Wilderness 101 Recon Ride

[trail_turkey]

Just got back from a recon ride on the Wilderness 101 route in Central Pa.

Picture Dump: https://www.flickr.com/photos/74146447@N05/sets/72157644161847914/

Bike: Gravity G29 SS 33-22
Front Sausage Pack: REI SubKilo 20deg bag, hammock -  3lbs total
Relevate Designs Terrapin Holster with REI stuff sack: tarp, rain gear, long pants, fleece jacket, balaclava, skull cap, sleeping socks - 4.5lbs total
REI Flash 22 Pack: Camelback bladder, Therarest CCF pad, Snowpeak stove and generic mug, PT EOS headlamp, hygiene kit-4lbs base + consumables

12lbs base weight
2lbs food + 70oz water

Short Recap:

Started the route from the Bald Eagle trail head north of the Boy Scout camp on Sand Mountain Road. Got to the trailhead around 7pm on Thursday. Rode about 10 miles to Poe Paddy SP and made camp around 9:30pm. Navigation in the dark was too difficult. Got on the trail around 7am. Rode to the tunnel but had trouble finding the route to Coburn from Poe Paddy so I took the forest road up to Penns View and crossed over the ridge picking up the course just outside Coburn. Navigating the western half of the loop was pretty easy. Found a beautiful spring on Detweiler Run trail.

Rothrock SF near Longberger had some reroutes which had me studying the map. Overall the forest roads and trails are well marked. Even with no course knowledge I didn't have too difficult a time navigating. Rode through Alan Seeger NA and made a big mistake not filling up on water at the creek crossing. Ran out of water in that section and didn't find more till Coopers Run. After eating dinner and regrouping, I rode onto Beautiful Trail as the sun was starting to set. Decided that I would not ride down No Name Trail on a loaded bike and took an alternate route to Mt Pleasant at around 9pm. Made the long climb (HAB) up Stillhouse Hollow in the dark and coasted into the trailhead parking at around 11pm. 90 miles total for day two.

Overall great trip. First outing on a single speed and longest ride with this bike. Riding a SS is a blast and this trip on a SS was great. The bike itself performed flawlessly. For a $350 machine, I'm amazed at how well it performs. I took it easy on the downhills but it wan't on account of the bike but the extra weight that threw my center of gravity off some. 22t rear was the right call. Had to walk a few of the tough sections but overall was plenty of gear inches.

[Dirt Dog]

Kewl write up. SS is a sickness that is hard to quit.

[jhl99]

The confusion at Poe Paddy.... is the tunnel closed or open?  The tunnel by the bridge over Penn's Creek was closed a while back because of debris falling from the ceiling.

[trail_turkey]

The confusion at Poe Paddy.... is the tunnel closed or open?  The tunnel by the bridge over Penn's Creek was closed a while back because of debris falling from the ceiling.

The tunnel was closed. The 2014 course map from the website did not appear to direct through the tunnel. http://www.mtntouring.com/mountain/maps/wilderness-101/W101_2013_course_final.pdf

Based on this map the tunnel is out http://www.mtntouring.com/mountain/maps/wilderness-101/W101_course_2013_poe-paddy_alt.pdf But I couldn't find a trail that crossed the river.

Earlier versions of the map did appear to use the tunnel. The map appeared to direct to the river and then cross or run parallel to the river. Not exactly sure what to do so I backtracked to Poe Paddy SP and took the jeep road past the latrines that led to Penns View. Probably cut a few flat miles off the course but I made up for it later with misdirection's and bonus miles due to navigation errors.

[trail_turkey]

Kewl write up. SS is a sickness that is hard to quit.

I can totally see the addiction. I don't own a geared mountain bike so I don't know any better but I am loving the SS. With a top pedaling speed of about 11mph, its hard to ride fast enough to miss any scenery  

[iamrockandroll13]

The part you cut is Fisherman's Path. When you cross the bridge to the officially closed tunnel (you can still access it, but for the event it is "closed") there is a cabin to your left. Behind that cabin is Fisherman's Path. It's the gnarliest most god awful trail of the whole race, I can ride it when I'm not 95 miles into the W101, but it's definitely HAB for me during the race.

[trail_turkey]

The part you cut is Fisherman's Path. When you cross the bridge to the officially closed tunnel (you can still access it, but for the event it is "closed") there is a cabin to your left. Behind that cabin is Fisherman's Path. It's the gnarliest most god awful trail of the whole race, I can ride it when I'm not 95 miles into the W101, but it's definitely HAB for me during the race.

Thanks for the info. That makes sense. I don't recall seeing a sign for the trail and I certainly wasn't looking for it. I've read about Fishermans Path on some ride reports. About how long is the trail? It looks like it connects to rail-trail.

Another course question: near the top of Stilhouse Road, the trail crosses a creek and the bridge is out. I crossed the stream to the right of the bridge. I assume this is what the course does on race day.

[Racingguy04]

How do you like the terrapin? It looks tempting, but right now I have a viscacha.

[trail_turkey]

How do you like the terrapin? It looks tempting, but right now I have a viscacha.

I window shopped a lot before pulling the trigger on the terrapin. I liked the idea of being about to pull the stuffsack/drybag completely off the bike. I like stuff sacks as multi purpose items and I usually use my clothes bag as a pillow (if its dry). I also liked the idea of being able to take all my gear into a shelter without have to unload it all from a pack like the visacha or pika.

So far my opinion is the terrapin is an excellent product. I'm totally loving it.

[iamrockandroll13]

Thanks for the info. That makes sense. I don't recall seeing a sign for the trail and I certainly wasn't looking for it. I've read about Fishermans Path on some ride reports. About how long is the trail? It looks like it connects to rail-trail.

Another course question: near the top of Stilhouse Road, the trail crosses a creek and the bridge is out. I crossed the stream to the right of the bridge. I assume this is what the course does on race day.

If we're thinking of the same bridge, then yes that is the way it is on race day.