To the gym and then auto exploration of Mt San Jacinto

Sunday, 02 October 2016

This morning ride was to World Gym at Vista Chino and Sunrise. Mitch had alerted me to a new yoga class held there on Sundays, 9:30 to noon. So that was a good reason for a gentle ride there and back.

The class is a very nice, introductory yoga under a good instructor. His focus today was on very basic, light aerobic movements that had light stretching. On my way home, I zagged over to Ruth Hardy Park to catch any laggard volleyball players, who had already left by my passing by at 12:30.

This afternoon, I drove from P.S. to Banning and then to Idylwild, looking for bikeable roads up the mountain. I had seen roads marked as "Service Road" from Tipton Road to Banning, and I tried these rocky, unpaved routes first. They might be suitable for mountain biking, though the way would be somewhat boring, And then when you've arrived at the road up the mountain, what fun would a mountain bike climb up a paved road be? So after that exploration, I decided against these as any viable route.

I then tried first a couple other roads up from the pass, but both Falls Creek Road (from Snow Creek) and Halls Grade Road (south from Cabazon) were blocked with "No Trespassing" signs posted.

After much doubling back from the unsuitable roads, I took an exit from Banning onto Route 243. The road  rises from 2235 ft at Banning to 3000 feet in less than 2 miles, then 4000 ft by about 5 miles, 5000 ft by 10.5 miles, and finally 6000 ft after 19 miles. Idyllwild is the summit at 6200 ft and 23 miles. The route could be a beautifully challenging bike ride, but I would like to find a couple other cyclists to ride it together.

I returned by Highway 74 from Mountain Center down to Palm Desert, about 36 miles to El Paseo. Along the way, I explored a bit of Pinyon Flats, looking for the uppermost part of Dunn Road. i found Palm Canyon Drive pretty easily, and I took it to a barrier at the point that it likely becomes Dunn Road. Almost all the roads in Pinyon Flats are gravel, but they are in pretty good shape. If ever I get there from Cathedral City, the way back down 74 could be really enjoyable.

Ride conditions
Temperature: 82°F at 09:45
Precipitation: none
Winds: calm 
Clothing: Double MTB shorts, T-shirt, ankle socks, open-finger gloves
Bike: Lotus Legend fixed 48x16 
Time: 00:32:14 for 7.66 miles
Heart rate: 127 bpm HRave, 154 bpm HRmax

Playback of the ride