An October Treat- Mt Abercrombie

Saturday dawned bright and cold(-4 C). The plan had been to ride Mt. Abercrombie before the snow flies. Today was going to be the day, cold or not cold. At least the sun was shining. Seven of us met at Greener's and loaded the trailer with bikes then they came to get me. The cold had me moving with hesitation, did I really want to go up to 7000ft above sea level when it was -4°C at 3500 ft above sea level. OK, after all, it is one of the most fun rides around.

Off to Abercrombie we went, stopping at the Waneta Border Crossing to be told it was the first weekend of the american hunting season and did we have orange to wear, and stopping at Waneta Quick Stop for refreshments for after the ride.

Arriving at the Silver Creek road intersection half of the party had to get into the back of an open pickup for the trip up to the trailhead. Poor fellows, it was still 0°C out even in the sun, a cold ride up, but no one jumped out.

The trailhead seemed farther than usual. When we finally arrived, everyone climbed on bikes as quickly as possible , searching for warmth in the exertion of the 1000ft vertical climb to the trail. The climb seemed to go by at a faster rate than normal and before you knew it we were sitting on a sunny slope on the flank of Abercrombie enjoying the relative warmth(still only 0°C to +1°C).

After a quick bite to eat and the donning of protective gear, we started the delicious decent that the single track on the south side of the mountain provides. It was as flavorful as always and everyone had a blast. Even the final scoot down the road to the parked vehicle and the refreshment cooler brought out the twelve year old in each of us. Boy was I glad I had weathered the cold and come on this ride.

Abercrombie is a classic, with some 36 switch backs and many star wars like flights through the trees, a must do at least once a year. I think the fall is the best time, because the leaves are down and the scenery is so vibrant. I'll be back again next year.