Looks like I won`t be riding for a while.

Could be better, could be worse but I just hope I don`t have  along term nagging injury.

I parked at the corner on Harper and pedaled up to the Triple Crown where I started my descent.  The trails I rode were Triple Crown, Red R, Slayer, Dawg and Hustler.

The ride wasn’t all that wet but it was oh so fun!  Dawg and Hustler have seen some recent trail work by Bryan, Karaleen and Vic.  These trails are simply amazing right now and I can’t wait to get back there for another ride.

This is a compilation of the footage I caught with my ContourHD chest-cam.  It was so dark and dreary in the forest that most of the footage was useless, but this is what I could put together of the ride I had today.

Early September sunrise.

This morning I was up with the rising sun at The Woodlot and spotted a rarely seen deer  on the climb.

A stare-down with a deer.

I rode my Trance today and pedaled to Cabin Trail where I tested version 2 of my chest camera mount for the ContourHD and also my XC helmet mount for the ContourHD.  Both seemed to work really well especially given the small travel bike and the roughness of the trails  that I decided to test them on (Cabin Trail, Snakes and Ladders and Shotgun).With my early start and minimal delays finished my ride and was home by 9am and able to spend the rest of the day with my kids.

Orange Agoseris: (Agoseris aurantiaca)

I had a couple of hours to get out for a ride so I boarded my Trance and pedaled up to Golden Ears Park.  I had my chest-cam on at the Alouette River crossing so I filmed what I get to cross when ever I go for this ride.   A little later at a small stream crossing I noticed what appear to be trout fry so I dipped my waterproof camera in the water to see what its like to be a fish.

The Chicken of the Woods:(Laetiporus sulphureus)

I noticed this glowing orange mass on a cedar in the forest, so I snapped a photo and looked up its name.  Turns out its an edible fungus/mushroom that some people think tastes like chicken; hence the name Chicken of the Woods.

On the way I snapped a picture of a blooming flower on edge of the road gleaming in the morning sun.

A flower on the edge of the trail - Hardhack - Spiraea douglasii

Once I hit the top I donned my helmet and began my descent down Krazy Karpenter, Blood Donor, Stovetop, Snakes and Ladders and finally Shotgun.  The conditions we simply amazing and for the most part the trails are in great shape.

When the light shines through the trees lighting up the trail I just have to stop at take a picture.

Riding in the morning light

I’ve been experimenting with my camera lately and I made up a chest mount for my ContourHD.  This first version seemed to work alright but needs a few little modifications to be more to my liking.  This is a little edit of my ride through the eye on my chest.

I brought my follow cam, helmet cam and seat tube mounts with me to see what angles I could film to get some different perspectives.

The video below shows what I was able to capture with my ContourHD and a few custom camera mounts.

The route I took was Tsuga, Snakes and Ladders, Bloggy Style and Shotgun.

I decided to ride down (B-Line, Bloggy, Shotgun) and he hiked down the back to our cars.  I did however bring my ContourHD with me and decided to test out a custom mount I made to firmly attach the camera to my helmet.  It didn’t budge at all and for the most part I’d say it worked well.  A few tiny tweaks and this thing is dialed.

I rode up to Alco park and then crossed Alouette River into Golden Ears Park.  I then headed back along some trails and crossed the river again at 24oth and home.

This ride took all of an hour with a pause for a quick photo.

Sweet double-track

Summer weather makes river crossings oh so refreshing.

Curtis and I set off from home around 4:30 and headed to the shore with our bikes loaded in the back of his truck and arrived at Superstore by 5:15 and waited for the rest of our crew to show up.

Once the second truck and retrieval car arrived (Shaun, Greg, Jeff and J.P.) we loaded up a truck and blasted up to the top.  6 grown men in the cab of a Dodge 1500 is rather tight but doable.

The bikes in the shuttle truck

Seeing as Curtis was a CBC virgin, we decided we would ride CBC and then Lola / Cambodia.  Below is a simple helmet-cam I took of CBC.  The riders were Curtis, Shaun, Jeff, Greg, J.P. and me (Dean).

Mutilated E.13 bash ring

After CBC we hit a somewhat less traveled trail: Lola which leads into Cambodia. Below is a video compilation of Lola. Lots of Old School Shore.

Placid Lake

Placid Lake

Looking south to Maple Ridge

When I reached the peak I was a little let down due to the fact that there were some clouds obscuring the view and some trees in the way of what should have been a spectacular view of the Fraser Valley.  Regardless, I enjoyed the long ride out and back but would not recommend this ride unless you simply want a 15Km climb followed by a quick blast back home.

Indian Pipe (Monotropa uniflora)

I snapped a few photos of the area and took in a view of the Golden Ears I have never seen before.  If there weren’t any clouds, the photo below would have been much better.

The Golden Ears in the clouds

Maybe I’ll just have to head there on another sunny day.

A 180 degree panorama taken atop Gwendoline Peak

Looking north up Pitt Lake

Looking down on Widgeon Creek