Tioga Pass!

Click on a picture to see the full resolution version!

Well, after the abbreviated Death Ride, I finally got around to doing a ride (on 8/23) that felt, well, monumental (and the Tour of Napa, as nice as it was, just didn't do it). I found myself with reservations for Yosemite, but without the family. I was going to cancel the reservations, but instead I took the bike. You see, ever since I had first seen the road, and then read about some people riding it on the Chain Reaction website (http://www.chainreaction.com/tiogapass.htm), I'd thought it would be neat to ride up to Tioga Pass.

I learned a few things:

- Don't do long hard hikes the day before going on a long hard bike ride (duh!). I'd gone up the Upper Yosemite Falls trail, then on to Eagle Peak the day before starting the bike ride. My legs hurt before I started pedalling.

-Bring water and food - the only place to buy anything, or to refill your water, is at Tuolemne Meadows, 36 miles and something like 5,000 feet of climbing up the road (OK, it's only a 3,000 foot change in elevation to that point - but on the way up, you get to go down several long descents, and therefore get some extra credit climbs. Plus, you'll get to do some climbing on the way back, when it's all supposed to be downhill!). Sunscreen is a really good idea, too.

-Bring good sunglasses. I was riding into the sun all the way to Tuolemne, and then for the whole way back down.

- Like most roads in Yosemite, there's not much of a shoulder. Most drivers were very polite and safe, but there's always a few bozos (you're on vacation! Where are you in such a hurry to get to?!!)

-The scenery is spectacular (duh!)

- I was a bit worried because I often struggle on the first hill of the day - and this had the potential to be a 46 mile long "first hill". Not to worry - within 4 miles I was into the first set of rollers.

- For some reason, the old Talking Heads tune "We're on the Road to Nowhere" kept playing in my head (beautiful scenery, but not a lot else going on. Unless you count the tourists).

- The only time I felt like the altitude really affected me was during the last slog from Tuolemne Meadows up the summit. It's only 8 miles and 1,000 feet or so of climbing - how hard could it be? Pretty tough, it turns out - I stopped more to catch my breath on this section than on the whole rest of the ride put together. I guess the air does get thin above 9,000 feet!

And of course I have a few pictures:

I passed the 8,000 foot elevation sign after only 12 miles. I was feeling good and thinking about how easy this ride seemed to be! Not for long.

That's Half Dome in the background - an incredible sight from any angle.

That's Tenaya Lake in the background. I got a tourist to take this for me - she didn't speak English very well, so we understood each just fine.

Tenaya Lake - a beautiful Alpine lake.

This may have been my favorite spot all day. A pretty little meadow and pond just past the 9,000 foot elevation sign - hardly any tourists or cars, because they all stopped at Tuolemne Meadows. This was a great place to stop and catch my breath.









What a great ride! It is a great feeling to be able to just go and do a ride like this without worrying about if I'm in shape, do I have the right equipment, food, etc. Team in Training got me into this shape, and now I'm determined to stay in shape to keep exploring California (and beyond?) by bike.