A whole day to myself, and it was too nice to do chores around the house. At this time of year, we have to take all the opportunities we can. Am I right? Of course I am!
So I set off going east to the foothills. In less than ten miles I'm in the curves with zero traffic. A little slice of heaven. Turning onto Watts Valley road on the an undivided narrow road, (Must be careful. People tend to use the inside of curves, so one must be aware), I came across a couple on the side of the road. I stopped to ask if everything was alright, and they said they were simply enjoying the beautiful fall scenery.
Continuing on, the road began it's steep climb up "Wildcat Grade." Sections exceed 10% grade with a few blind switch-backs. I hugged the right side looking as far ahead as possible. Sure enough, someone in a pick-up truck comes around a curve hugging the inside. Fortunately, there was barely enough room to make little move to the right, and I continued on.
A little further up the road, and I came upon a young fella ridin' a hardtail chopper who was taking some pictures against the backdrop of snow capped mountains. I stopped again to make sure he was OK, and continued on.
Once past the intersection of Watts Valley Road and Burroughs Valley road, continuing straight, the road name changes to Maxon Road. It runs along a little creek and lined with oak and maple trees. It "T's" into Trimmer Springs road and a series of switch-back turns and steep inclines.
At the intersection is an abandoned store. I think it's been closed for 30-40 years. I stopped to take a few photos myself. Then along comes the chopper rider. He stopped and we chatted for a while admiring each other's rides. I had to hand it to him. Riding a hard-tail on those roads had to jar the spine!
The road from there skirts Pine Flat reservoir. One of the forum members, "Tommy," lives close by, but I don't know exactly where. The road is fairly wide and curvy, and I only scraped the floorboards a time or two. It honestly doesn't take much to do that.
Once past Pine Flat Dam, the road runs along the Kings River. I found a wide spot in the road for a few more pictures!
All in all, a great day out on the bike. Made a new friend, only one minor close call.
You are fortunate to live in that area, beautiful riding in those parts. i worked in Chowchilla for a while, rode all ove that area. Certainly one of the best areas in the country IMO. I'll have to get down again sometime.
Might be in the market for another rear tire soon though...
*Coarsegold*
I used to live there, my mom still does, and I visit every spring and fall. At least one of the trips on the bike. In fact, my mom lives right on Coarsegold Creek. Here's a pic taken from a few hundred yards away, back up toward her place. Late fall, so the creek is dry, but it will be running hard in May.
Might be in the market for another rear tire soon though...
Thanks Norty!
That's fer certain! I reckon I'm trying to get my money's worth. Right now it's about 12,000 miles on it. A little over a year and a half. At least they ain't sittin' around getting rotten!
Keeping it fairly close to home till I change it. Probably right after the holidays
Nice pictures, Mike. That tire is as far down as the first tire I need to replace on my Ultra. I had a Vulcan 750 and would get about 12k on rear tire so I wasn't checking my Ultra at 6k. I was riding in a light rain, and some old guy turned into my side of the road. I applied my brakes lightly and skidded all over. When I checked my tire I was shocked to see how bald it was.
We are having an Indian Summer here in Wisconsin. Which isn't unusual. What is unusual is there isn't much salt on the roads so it's OK for riding. But I already cover my bike up in the back of the garage. If this keeps up, I am going to have to change my storage strategy.
12-03-2017, 12:03 PM
Beautiful Day in Central Fresno County
