The other day we rode out and back on the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) heading north from Homestake Pass and this time we rode south. A lot of people do it as an out and back but we opted to make it a loop so we could ride a couple other trails also. Our ride was 15 miles with 2614′ of climbing.
Unfortunately, after a short climb, this loop descended a long way on an sandy atv road that cut over to Thompson Park. Obviously it would be nice if there was a singletrack option. After a short dirt road climb up to the Blacktail Trailhead, we hit singletrack. The first part is a fairly wide trail where we passed a hiker and a couple other cyclists. It climbs gently up to the split and we turned left to head up to Blacktail Ridge.
Blacktail Ridge rolled along though the direction we rode it in climbed more than it descended. It’s rugged forest back in here with piles and piles of deadfall everywhere. The trail swoops in and around more rock formations and through forest that looks exactly like some trails back in Bend. After a left turn and a short section of the Beaver Pond Trail we rode the other day, we turned left again on the CDT. This section was all new to us and I absolutely love it.
CDT from here to Homestake Pass is a blast. We started by climbing up to the highpoint of the day. The trail is decomposed granite or kittly litter consistency. Again, all the interesting rock formations are captivating and I had to stop several times to look at them. The riding isn’t too technical, probably intermediate. We reached the top for what I thought was going to be all downhill back to the car. The downhill IS FUN!! Very swoopy with switchbacks and little rock sections to negotiate. It’s a fast descent and then you have to climb a few little hills to get back out.
Next time we’ll try this as an out and back, though I definitely like loops better.
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