Categories
Idaho Our Trips

Rollin’ Fatties in the Snake River Canyon

Late February might not normally be a time one could expect to find dry conditions in the Snake River Canyon.  Blame climate change or just call it good luck but a long spell of dry and unseasonably warm weather in the middle part of the month has resulted in excellent trail conditions throughout much of southwestern Idaho.  I joined on with a crew of seasoned desert travelers for a trip through the Snake River Canyon from the Swan Falls dam, downstream on the southern bank before crossing the river at Celebration Park and pedaling back upstream on the north side.

Our crew of six drove from Boise to Swan Falls, where we were greeted with a stiff breeze and chilly temperatures.  We debated layering strategies, topped off water supplies and saddled up to explore the canyon.

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We made our way across the dam walkway to the opposite bank and struck dirt on the sandy beach.

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We rode upstream along the riverbank before taking a sharp right turn and heading up a steep, rocky ascent.  Having entered into this ride in a state of near-total ignorance regarding the route details, I was afraid that we were about to climb the whole way to the canyon rim on this rugged, broken track.

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Fortunately, we peeled off the uphill path after a brief but strenuous climb and began to contour along the upper slope of the river bank.

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The road conditions also improved dramatically and we spun along the hardpacked dirt road, soaking in the scenery and sunshine.

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We made our way along the firm, sometimes sandy double-track through grasses and sagebrush.

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Before long, we reached a grouping of rocks standing all alone in the midst of the grassy flood plain.  Many of the larger boulders were covered with tattoo-like petroglyphs.  I won’t attempt to summarize the history of human habitation in this canyon, but these ancient marks stand as a testament to the fact that humans have found this to be a significant place for hundreds of years.

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We continue to be drawn here for many of the same reasons that those early people came but we weren’t making camp among these relics from the past.

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We paused for a snack and reflection before climbing aboard our steeds and continuing the downstream journey.  The clouds above had begun to thin, the breeze had diminished to barely a whisper and we were all happy to shed some layers.

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As we continued along the river bank, our grassy flood plain grew narrower and narrower until we were confronted with a section of boulder-strewn canyon wall that fell away at a 45-degree angle straight to the water.  The trail through the boulder field was narrower than our tires in many places and rocks varying in size from babyhead to VW Bug impeded our progress.

As I’m often prone to do, I neglected to photograph this most challenging section of the ride as I was too busy trying to keep my wheels beneath me or lifting my bike up and over obstacles.  Some of the more daring riders claimed to have ridden 75% of this section.  I was lucky to clean 50% and was happy to walk the remainder of the time.

After exiting the boulder field we continued to traverse hillside singletrack until we reached a junction for the bridge crossing at Celebration Park.  We made our way across the old railroad bridge and stopped for lunch at a sunny picnic table before rolling upriver on a heavily-braided, dusty single, double and sometimes triple-track across the grassy plain.

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On the northern side of the Snake, we soon came to the same boulder field that inhibited our progress on the opposite bank.  However, we found much easier going this time around as the rocks were strewn across a rolling section of the flood plain rather than a steep hillside.

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We wound and bounced our way around and over the rocks, past the remains of stone shelters and across sandy washes along the riverside.

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Compared to the outbound trip, the return leg was much easier going.  Some recently-dried sections of trail were heavily cratered from equestrian use earlier in the season but the fatbikes smoothed out the worst of the bumps.  We slowly meandered closer to the canyon wall through grasses and brush.  Birds flew to and from their cliffside nests and we enjoyed the sun on our backs while we pedaled east.

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Eventually, we emerged at the end of our trail and the start of a gravel road that would carry us back to the cars at Swan Falls Dam.  “Okay, you can put your slicks back on,” joked one of our party.

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We made it back to the Swan Falls park in good spirits; tired from the day’s exertions but happy to have had a rare late-winter opportunity to explore this amazing canyon.  I’ll be back, for sure.

Categories
Touring Bicycles

Surly Pugsley and Pug Ops

Real Blew Pugsley and Canvas Green Pug Ops

We had a chance to take the Surly fat bikes out this Labor Day weekend and this is my report.

From Bike Touring News H.Q. we did a quick 10.6 mile loop that took in some single track so we could see how the bikes handled.

I rode the standard Pugsley and Sky King was riding the Pug Ops bike. The main differences between the two, besides the color, are tabulated below:

Component Pugsley Pug Ops
Rims Large Marge Lite 65mm Rolling Darryl 82mm
Tires Surly Nate 3.8″ 27 t.p.i. Surly Nate 3.8″ 120 t.p.i.
Crankset Sram X-5 36/22 Surly Offset double 36/22
Rear Derailleur Shimano Deore RD-M591 Shimano LX RD-T670
Cassette shimano HG61 9 speed 11-32 Shimano HG62 10 speed 11-34
Shifters Microshift Top Mount 3×9 Shimano SLX Rapid Fire 3×10

So the Pug Ops gains a little more footprint by using wider rims and tires with a higher thread count. The higher thread count should make for a stronger and more supple casing for better handling at low tire pressures. Even though the tires on both bikes have the same nominal dimensions, the wider rim on the Pug Ops means that the tire is wide enough to potentially interfere with the chain when riding in the lowest gear. That’s why the Pug Ops comes with Surly’s offset double crankset.

The Ride

Me riding Pugsely
Surly Pugsley in the Boise foothills
sky king riding the pug ops
The smile says it all. Sky King on the Surly Pug Ops, Boise foothills.

We started with about 20 p.s.i. in the rear tires and about 15 in the front but I let a little bit out for the downhill sections. (I need to get me one of those low pressure tire gauges when QBP has them back in stock)
The single track on this particular ride, and most of the other trails in this area, is sand….some of it smooth and hard, some of it with washboard stutter bumps and some short soft and loose sections.

Impressions
Well, as Ed Sanders of  The Fugs said (but not about riding fat-bikes); “Shit, it was more fun than squashin’ tadpoles.”
Gearing; The two chainrings combined with a 32 or 34 tooth big cog in the back provided low enough gearing for everything we did on this ride. I don’t know if the lack of a larger front chainring will be too limiting with regard to top-end speed.
Handlebars; Let’s just say the Salsa bars that come stock on these bikes are less than optimal from a standpoint of comfort. The sweep angle is anti-ergonomic and made my wrists and the joint at the base my thumb ache after just a few minutes. That prompted a call to Jeff Jones the next day to order some of his Loop Bars. We will have those in stock for customers wanting a comfortable bar with multiple hand positions for their fat bikes.
Shifters; I am a fan of top mount thumb shifters and not a fan of under the bar trigger shifters. ‘Nuff said.
Handling;
–Climbing; Another fat bike I rode one time had the tendency for the front wheel to bounce around and/or become unweighted when climbing anything technical but this Pugsley stayed planted and it was easy to get the front wheel to go where I pointed it. And traction, obviously, is not the limiting factor on any climb with 4″ wide tires sprouting aggressive, wide spaced knobs.
–Descending; I’m not a fast descender on any bike but the Pugsley made me smile. Some of the chatter bumps were a little jarring and the chain slapping on the chainstay was annoying, but lower tire pressures could help smooth that out. The bike felt magnetically attached to the ground on the bigger rollers and knobs, it just sucked them up without trying to buck me off. Again, the traction is astonishing when going around corners with some speed. These tires have a round profile and the big buttress shaped knobs on the shoulders of the tread bite into the loose stuff.

Conclusion

This bike makes me want to ride more and that’s a good endorsement. My original feeling towards fatbikes was that they might be a little limited in versatility, but these things are fun!  They roll over anything and make it possible to ride terrain you would have to push or carry other bikes over. Single track, dirt roads, snow, deep sand, wet sand, and loose gravel all become fair game. Actually, now that I am thinking about it these bikes may be more versatile and less limited in many ways than non-fatbikes. And the market segment seems to be growing which is good news for the consumer because that means more innovation and products down the pike. Get a fat-bike. You won’t regret it, if you live. (apologies to Mark Twain)

Categories
Event Coverage N.A.H.B.S. Podcasts Touring Bicycles

It’s A Fat World, Joseph Ahearne Interview

The theme for the 2012 North American Handmade Bicycle Show is fat-bikes! At least in the bike hermit’s feeble mind. First up is Joseph Ahearne’s take on the genre. I was able to squeeze in this interview when he wasn’t bombarded with customers and we talked about this bike as well as the other off-road tourer he brought to the show.


Inner tubes stretched over custom fender frames.

Carry All

Joseph Ahearne's Off Road Touring Bike

The double top tubes make the bike more rigid when loaded while still providing the desired ride qualities.

The rack suports the fender, the fender supports the rack. Integration of parts makes for a more reliable touring machine.

Stay tuned. More to come.