This was Derek’s first trip to Yosemite! Luckily it’s early season so it wasn’t very busy…not like you hear about in the summer season. We had zero wait time at the South entrance gate…just drove right in. Phew. First stop was Bridalveil Falls. Famous for its misty, wind-blown appearance – often called “Pohono” or “Spirit …
Month: March 2026
I don’t even remember how I found this ride but I’m glad I did. It’s a long drive from most anywhere you’d ever be. We are in Coarsegold, CA and it was about 40 min to where we started our ride. Instead of driving all the way out to the start of Million Dollar Road, …
The Lake Isabella and Kernville area of California have a lot of dirt/gravel roads to explore. Right from our boondocking spot we headed out on a great ride. I’m calling it the Keyesville Gravel Ride. Our route climbed through the Keyesville Special Recreation Area on a short pavement section before hitting dirt and winding up …
I mentioned before about rattlesnakes and this ride was no different! Kern Canyon Trail is long – one way it stretches 17 miles. We didn’t ride the whole thing, just an out and back on one section. We started our ride just off the Route 178 at Freeway Ridge 4X4 pullout and headed west on …
Construction began on a road through the Kern Canyon in the mid 1890’s. This road was built by Edison Electric for constructing their Kern River #1 powerhouse between 1902 and 1907. Materials needed to construct the facility were transported using 20-mule teams across rough terrain and up steep, narrow mountain roads carved out with picks …
The hike up Isabella Peak in Lake Isabella, CA is short and sweet. We stopped and knocked it out on our way to the Kern River Brewing Company to sample beers. The hike is across the lake from where we’re boondocking and we were able to see our trailer from the peak. It’s only 1.5 …
Back in the early 2000’s Derek raced and even won his Expert category at the Keyesville Classic mountain bike race in Lake Isabella, CA. I remember being injured and not able to race, so this ride was new for me. The trails are fast and flowy classic cross country trails. This area is beautiful with …
I just realized that I skipped a post about our ride around 20 Mule Team Canyon and out to Hole in the Wall when we were in Death Valley. Oops. 20 Mule Team Canyon For many people, nothing symbolizes Death Valley more than the famous Twenty Mule Teams. These “big teams” pulled massive wagons hauling …
Death Valley is full of ghost towns and mines. We’ve seen a lot of them over our travels through here and this was a repeat from 2019. We parked off the highway and rode mountain bikes up and back to it. It’s a lot of climbing, but the views on the way and at the …
Short and sweet, this hike out into Mosaic Canyon by Stovepipe Wells in Death Valley is a favorite. I hiked it before but the road to it was closed so I had to hike there and back which made it very long. Thankfully, this time we didn’t have to do that. The Death Valley area …