I had one of the most fun and interesting rides of my young MTB career today. It's been dead at work, so I was able to bang out early and get an afternoon ride in for the first time ever. Because Rach was still at work, I figured I had time to do a ride I had been interested in for a really long time: the full Santa Luz loop.
Instead of the traditional loop, I wanted to start from home and head west, past the place where I ususally turn for my local ride through the Santa Fe Valley. I'm glad I did.
I left from home, wearing my new Fox Sergeant shorts for the first time, decked out in all of my Christmas MTB gear. It was one of those perfect times when stuff that you've bought actually works the way you hoped it would before you got it, and makes the ride better than it was before you had that particular gear.
I left from home and did the first part of my traditional loop, but instead of crossing the river and heading back east, I continued west under Camino del Sur toward Rancho Santa Fe. I was treated to some beautiful views of a canyon I didn't know existed, and had an awesome time exploring the trail as it meandered west.
I began to climb out of the valley toward what I thought was Santa Luz. I actually came out on San Dieguito road, heading toward RSF. Faced with a choice of whether to go up to Camino del Sur and road-ride over to the the section leading to the Santa Luz singletrack, or ride a horse trail that seemed to go roughly the same direction, I chose the horsetrail.
It lead to a wide fireroad, which went steeply downhill and then virtually straight uphill. I think if I had taken the uphill I would have ended up where Sean and I were a few weeks earlier, but didn't feel up to the climb at the moment. So I followed a literal bunny trail towards a street in the distance where I could see there was some unfinished homes edging the gully I was in, and climbed out to Camino del Sur that way.
From there I made my way under the bridge over Camino del Sur, and into the single track area that leads back toward Black Mountain Park. I had ridden that section from the opposite way with Sean a few weeks before, and knew I was in for a climb. I actually made it the whole way up without any HAB, but I did stop a few times to catch my breath. That section was way more fun to go down than up. But I was committed to my loop, and glad to be on singletrack at least.
I arrived at Black Mountain Park, and made my way down to Carmel Valley Road. I rode north on CV Road and down toward the west enterance to Black Mountain Preserve. From there I rode up the tough paved road to the parking area which serves as the trailhead for the Miner's Loop as well as a fun downhill section I like to ride towards home.
After taking a few minutes to enjoy the view from that part of Black Mountain, I took the fun downhill section back toward Dove Canyon. I was tempted to just road-ride home, but the loop had been awesome so far, and I felt like I owed it to myself to finish it in the most fun way possible. So I went through the Middle School and took the 4S Ranch trails home, the way I do for my neighborhood ride.
This was one of the longer rides I've done in terms of mileage, particularly with the climbing and different areas I covered. I can't wait to go back and explore the western portion near RSF more, there were several trails that went farther west and northwest that looked interesting.
On a final note, I have the GPS-created Google Map of the route, which I would love to post. However, this was a "doorstep to doorstep" ride, and I don't want the entire internet knowing my exact address. So I'm not posting it. If anyone knows how to edit a .kml file so that I can show the bulk of the route without revealing my exact location, post a comment. I think it would be cool for others to see the path I took, because I'm sure there are some minor deviations that would make it a lot more fun than it already was.
Here are the final stats:
Total Distance: 15.0 miles
Total Time: 2:21:55
Ascent: 1812 feet
Average Speed: 6.3 mph
Top Speed: 30.9 mph
Bike: Specialized FSR XC Pro
Map:
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