Old Borges Ranch RIde

This was a great place to ride. Still quite a lot of elevation change, 260 ft of it. This ride wasn't just go to the top and then fly down. You do climb right off the bat and then get into the meat of the ride.

 The first ridge you see here is actually what I climbed and then the fun decent during the last ride. You start in the valley on the opposite side which is where a creek bed lies. The hills in the background are those lush green hills which are already browning this early in late spring.

Late afternoon ride after work, this is about a third of the way up the hill as I was trying to get a decent sun bloom shot but didn't quite work out.

 

 Looking south east during the ride this is such a great view. What a great place to be able to ride! Glad I love exploring, but I am sure I will be visiting this place and getting some good riding in all summer long. This is in the East Bay Area in Northern California. Berkeley and Oakland are on the other side of those hills with San Francisco past them. Yet up here I feel like I am away from all the crazy population.

A few shots of the Airborne Guardian and the singletrack.

 Showing Mount Diablo looming over my riding area.

After the ride a parting shot of the trail.

So far the 29er is doing a good job of keeping me riding. I did have to break out the grease and take care of a creak in either the seat rails or the seat post. 

I am really loving the hydraulic disc brakes. They are a large upgrade from my previous Trek 950 and I have been confident in my ability to scrub speed or control the bike on some steep transitions. Overall I have positive things to say about the Guardian. For only $600 the bike has been a great purchase for me to get out and ride.

Castle Rock Park Ride

 A good 4+ mile ride with about 400+ ft of elevation to climb. Some of it incredibly steep! Hard to even walk up, but hella fun to ride down.

The trail for the most part was pretty wide, but there were a few singletrack sections. This one was a little fun because of the drop off to the left.

As you were going down the singletrack this was the view to the left. This is the best time of the year as everything is green. I'll ride here again in a week, or so and everything will be yellowish and golden.

This rock was where the elevation started to change. I rode along the valley for about 8/10ths of a mile and then things started to get fun. The trail is not very technical to ride, there were some washouts from the rain and some big flat rocks to navigate around. Easy enough for those just starting out, but very challenging with the climb.

I was trying to show the change in elevation. This part though was very timid compared to some of the sections of the trail. The right is the trail where I came from and on the left is the trail that keeps going up.

These are the foothills of Mount Diablo. I have heard that Mount Diablo is one of two spots that you can see  such an incredible distance. The surrounding land is all flat farm land. You can see the Golden Gate Bridge and all the way to the Mountains surrounding Tahoe. The rock formations were fun to look at as I caught my breath.

If you look in the bottom center of this pic    ^    that is the trail I rode to the big rock which then I started the huge climb. But wow this had a great view. I was lucky enough to frame it with my bike. Didnt know it would turn out to be such a good shot.

This last pick is of Mount Diablo, but it also shows how steep the path drops off down and to the left. The 29er Guardian does climb incredibly well. I am starting to get some of my riding habits back and the legs are working a little better. I cant wait to keep exploring as there are more trails in this park and a few other parks close by that I can get to and ride. Ah what a journey I have begun....