Korey the cyclocross fan.
Ok, I’ve never competed in cyclocross, but I love watching cyclocross, so that counts for something! And yesterday I did some off-road hill-climbing, maneuvering tricky descents, and riding through mud and snow -laden trails on my touring bike. Ok, I never had to dismount and carry my bike, but I think this ride was adequately cyclocrossish and it was a great workout. Additionally, I found the correct path between Trail Creek Road and Michaud Creek Road, whereas I failed before!
The forecast for Thanksgiving in Pocatello sounded awesome: 45 degrees and lots of sun! This was the perfect time to reattempt the route I had planned; namely going from Trail Creek to Michaud Creek road rather than the other way around. I was bound and determined to find the correct trail this time! Due to the recent snow and ice on the roads, I had put my studded snow tires on my mountain bike, so my trusty touring bike was my only option today. It really wasn’t a bad choice since this route requires about 50% on-road riding.
Near the top of Trail Creek Road.
This route begins at the bottom of Trail Creek Road on the southwest end of Pocatello (commonly referred to as the West Bench area). The steady climb up this road is a great warm-up. The pavement ends after a few miles and you’re on a well maintained trail after crossing a cattle guard. It was at this point that I had to take my gloves and windbreaker off since I was roasting to death after this long climb! And then the climbing just goes on and on until you can see most of Pocatello in the distance behind you. The sun was so brilliant, the wind was still, and I could feel the warmth of the suns rays and hear the distant sound of shots fired from people practicing for hunting season. Aaah, Pocatello is a rather nice place.
Soon, I was at the top and I recognized the trail intersection here from what I had seen on mapmyride.com. After some looking around, I found the trail that must be the path to Michaud Creek Road; it was on the other side of the ridge and didn’t look like much at first since it was less maintained and skinnier than the other trails. And this is where the sloppy cyclocrossing fun began! This trail was cut rather deeply into the hill, so it was plenty snowy and muddy. After a few near-spills, I got the hang of where to put my front tire to keep from slipping out. It was quite fun practicing this slippery decent in such nice weather with no traffic around! I highly recommend it!
View from the south side.
The decent on the south side of the ridge is very gradual, with fields of tall grass, junipers, and sage brush all around you. In the distance, you can see the Arbon Valley and the American Falls Reservoir. My tires were soon coated in thick mud and I was glad for my fenders. I came upon a BLM Trail Management sign and a gate, and carried my bike around the gate. Oh, hey, I guess I did have to carry my bike! I wouldn’t recommend running around the gate with your bike, however, since it was rather hard to get through and there was a cattle guard you had to walk across on the other side of the sign. Cattle guards are very slippery when your shoes are wet, so be careful :-)
Wheee!
After a few more miles, the trail ended at Michaud Creek Road. On this end of the trail, there is an ancient-looking, rusty no-trespassing sign, but I really don’t think it has been applicable for a few decades since this was the only no-trespassing sign I saw on the entire journey and there was a BLM information map a few miles back. Trespassing shmespassing!
I think I will try this route again from the other way on my mountain bike in the spring!
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