CableJockey

I’m interested in camping at Tecopa Hot Springs and riding to the local abandoned mines (Gunsight, Noonday, Columbia, and War Eagle) March 2 - 3 or 16 - 17. This is more of an exploration trip than a riding adventure. I plan to bring hiking boots, rope, safety helmet, and flashlights. Each may explore to their comfort level or ……. Google Maps says it’s 3 hours and 40 min from my place (Arcadia) and just under 5 hours from San Diego, a long drive for a Friday/Saturday Ride, some may want to include Sunday. You can look at the link below to see a write-up on the mines. The author gave code names to War Eagle and Noonday mines, they are Peace Dove and Midnight. A Google search will turn up a lot of articles. I was in the "Underground City" for 5 hours (before they blew it up) and it was cool figure out how they pulled all that gypsum out. If anyone is interested I will pull together a plan and post it up. John And for what it's worth, entering a mine is dangerous and I have no clue, other than my personal opinion, if a mine is safe to enter. Everyone will have to make that decision for themselves. Abandoned Mine Blog

Anyone know how I can upload a Google Earth .kmz file?

I love the desert and riding Death Valley was an excellent adventure. It was fun checking out alternate routes and the occasional mine. The video below is of Goofy Footer riding to the top of Chloride Cliffs Mountain (the dust trail way in the lead and bboyle9 in the middle) and me going up 10 minutes later after I grew a pair. Chloride Cliffs Mountain I got in two days of riding before my DRZ crapped out on me. I think I take good care of my ride so I was pretty PO'd that the battery was no longer charging. I checked the connectors in the dark and everything was mated correctly so it must be the stator or regulator. Time to pack up and head home C(%^P! I get home, unpack, and finally get out the tools to see what is wrong. In the dark I did not see that one of the contacts in the two pin output connector from the regulator was toasted. Thirty minutes later the bike is fixed, back together, and running fine. Saturday and Sunday riding gone for 30 minutes of work. Several people offered to look at it and I was too PO'd to listen. I mean, I know how this stuff works, I don't need help! Lesson learned, relax, put your feet up and be willing to accept some graciously offered help. Other people know how stuff works too. I'm looking forward to heading back to the area. I'm thinking of Tecopa, just north of Baker where there are a lot of old abandoned mining operations.

I don't think anyone is up in the San Gabriel Valley but I leaving for the Desert Daze around 2:30 Wednesday. I have room for 2 more bikes, gear, and riders if anyone wants to hitch a ride. PM me. John

PbdBlue, You obviously have a good understanding of the system down there and who the players are. I have experience in another area with a different group of operators which may or may not apply. I think the first question is, is there somebody (or a tag team of people) willing to actively manage the response team? If there is, I would do everything mentioned above. 1. Track your teams using whereamiriding 2. Use phones as the primary means of contact where there is coverage 3. Use spot where you don't have coverage or use it in every case because it will log the GPS location 4. Use simplex wherever possible to stay off the repeaters 5. Use the repeaters with approval of the owner and as little as possible unless the owner gives you exclusive use for the event 6. Put together a cheat sheet with the repeater frequencies, phone numbers, email addresses, and operating practices for all riders, not just the response teams. I won't be there but I can provide 2 2M radios and my SPOT Connect if it helps. I live in Arcadia so it's hard to come to meetings in San Diego but I would be happy to help with a cheat sheet. John

I have to agree with PbdBlue, setting up a Net at this late date would be difficult. You need the permission of the repeater owner (could be a club) to use their repeater for this type of event. You'll want a backup repeater in the event that something happens to the first repeater. Experienced Hams will need a little training so they know how the net will be run and the inexperienced hams will want some additional training on radio etiquette. A cheatsheet would be a good idea. I ran the LA Marathon emergency medical net for 10 years. I had skilled operators with good equipment and they were well trained. You would be surprised how much can go wrong, there were always some good stories at the end of the day. People switching their headsets to VOX will tie up the repeater until their battery runs dead or you figure out who it is and go kill them. Hams who are unhappy that "their" repeater isn't available will screw with you by trying to call in bogus problems or jam your transmissions. The list goes on and on. Something that Hams don't like is people without a license using the Ham frequencies. Yes, you can legally use any frequency in an emergency but unless the unlicensed operator is calling for a medical emergency (death will occur if help doesn't arrive soon) they will raise a holy war against SDAR and all the Hams who were in contact with the unlicensed operator. It would be unpleasant and could potentially result in someone losing their license. Hams are a great bunch of nerds and completely unforgiving at the same time. Trust me, I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed but this I know. Since there are a bunch of SPOT devices in the group, why not turn on tracking so you know where the sweep teams are and if they need non-emergency help they can push the Help button and a vehicle will be sent to their location. Once in the area the vehicle and riders can make contact on simplex. Of course, if it is a life threatening emergency they use the SOS/911 button which would also let you know where they are. You would want to have everyone create a group with the rescue team phone numbers and email addresses. Just a thought.

UPS finally delivered my Wolfman Expedition Dry Duffle bag. Combined with the E10 Saddle Bags, Enduro Tool Kit, Enduro Tank Bag, all my gear including a new Big Agnes sleeping bag and sleeping pad all fit with room to spare. Just over 50 lbs with clothes, food, tools, and camping gear but no water. Now all I need is a free weekend for a bikepacking trip. EDITed again

Carguy, I see what you did and was able to edit it to get the right picture. Thanks, John

I'm looking forward to it.

Hmmm, Obviously did that wrong. Got the links not the pictures.

I had the same result. Got my profile and could move around but I suspect that I have access because this computer has the password stored. I will try it from my work computer tomorrow and see what happens.

Wonderwoman, You and Beezzz are welcome at my site (34), I'm camping Friday night, riding Saturday, and heading home Saturday evening. Hmmmm I wonder what checkout time is? It will all work out. Maniac, Mark was my buddy who bought the bike. I'm picking up a set of suspension for the DRZ from SteelRain on the way down that has been modified to Marks weight. Looking forward to getting it installed and getting his lazy arse out in the field. John

I will be in too late to ride Friday and will leave Saturday evening. I assume that they allow more than one vehicle and more than one tent per site so if anyone wants to share my site I'll make room.

Deb, I'm in. Booked Site 34. Not only is it a full moon, there will be a total lunar eclipse starting about 4:45 am Saturday morning (see link below). Unfortunately the campground is poorly located to get a good view since the moon will be low on the western horizon. I might get up just to see what I can see. http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2011/02dec_lunareclipse/ John

I was just in REI and the GoPro Digital Helmet Hero HD Wide-Angle Camera is on clearance for $199.93 down from $239.95. Apparently a new model is coming out.

Assuming it's an allen bolt, SOMETIMES you can find a fractional allen wrench that is a bit larger than the metric and you can drive it in then unscrew the bolt. If it's not an allen but a hex head bolt or nut, try a 6 point socket as previously suggested. Try to find a fractional 6 point sockets that can be driven on. Welding a bolt on to the head of whatever you have is a sure solution but if the surrounding area is anodized, you will end up with some discoloration. Good luck.

Anyone interested in a Friday ride out of the Temecula area (since I'm coming down from LA). Start at 9am and end whenever. Looking to go easy since the knee is still healing. Forest service roads to single track is ok just as long as I don't screw up the knee.

Getting better every day, it's just taking forever.

Lightweight Mylar http://www.rei.com/product/357005/space-emergency-bag I carry the heavy duty version http://www.rei.com/product/813511/sol-emergency-bivvy The additional ounce ain't much

Actually I've always lived in Arcadia (think Pasadena). After 13 weeks of healing from the last misadventure the knee was good enough to ride 2 weeks ago. Felt soooooo good to get out. I had RG3 do my suspension and it was a very significant improvement. I had them lower the suspension as well. Total cost $800. Well worth the money. I suspect that it really doesn't matter who does the work as long as it's done well. Can't be that much magic to any particular valve design. PS Next time we ride, I'll try not to fall on your bike.

Goofy Footer, Great video with a nice overview of what is out there. Thanks for sharing. CableJockey

Beezzz, I'm planning to take the original route except I will check out the alternate path around the rutted out hill. That's a sharp right instead of a sharp left turn about 1 mile from the start of the dirt. John

Gonna try this again. Anyone interested in a Noob friendly ride from Oak Grove Campground (Hwy 79 between Aguanga and Warner Springs) to Anza then on to Toro Peak. From the peak you can see Mecca and the north end of the Salton Sea. It’s 95 miles round trip and is very doable by Noobs that have some experience with sand and mountain dirt roads that aren’t well maintained (but not completely rutted out). Expect to see some mildly steep uphill and downhill sections (we are going up a mountain). With the caveat that I have never ridden a “big bike”, I would think this ride is big bike friendly. The plan is to meet at Oak Grove Campground. I’m going to pay the $8 day (I think) use fee to grab a campsite with shade but I think there is free parking across the street at the Oak Grove Ranger Station. We leave at 9am (I live 2 hours away) and the ride should take 5 – 6 hours to complete. We’ll stop in Anza for water, snacks, and gas on the way out. We ride to Toro Peak, enjoy the views, and then back to Anza for lunch. The last leg is back the same way we came. You can bail out, or bail in I suppose, at Anza by taking 371 to 79 and back to Oak Grove. The forecast is for 78 degrees in Anza, and I would expect it to be considerably cooler at the top of Toro Peak (8272 ft). For the real Noobs: No we will not leave you behind. The pace will vary by rider and if there are fast and slow riders, and we have enough people, we may break into two groups. I will stay with the slow group and do my best to make it a positive experience. If there are no Noobs, the pace will be brisk. Bring water, snacks, tools, and a tube (Most people only bring a front tube and, with the exception of the TW200, the front will usually work in the rear) or patch kit for your bike. You should have tires suitable for dirt. Post or PM if you have any questions. I’m looking forward to a good ride.

I read 81 camp sites.... I presume the meeting point will be near the entrance of the camp ground? by the round about maybe? Dan, I'm going to try for the campsite by the restrooms right next to the frontage road. In any case, the meeting place will be in front of those restrooms. You should be able to see the bikes from the road. John

Attached is a gpx file of some alternate routes. You will need to download the file and change the extension from .txt to .gpx to use the file. I will arrive about 8am and check out the Chihuahua Creek and Cooper Cienega Truck Trail Tracks looking for a more Noob friendly route. The north end of the light green track is the problem section that is shown in the picture. The dark green on my topo west map is shown as the primary road with the light green a less developed route. I've not ridden the dark green route. If anyone wants to join in a little early, be at Oak Grove Campground ready to ride at 8am. John Toro Peak alternate paths.txt