Icicle Ridge Ride
Having climbed in the Icicle Canyon, outside of Leavenworth, WA, for the past seven years, I have had ample opportunity to stare up at the heights of Icicle Ridge and wonder. Other objectives always kept me from just hiking up the ridge and checking it out. Touted as one of the great, classic mountain bike rides in the area (if not the State), I finally decided to have a go at it.
Mike and I met up with Stefan at the North Bend Starbucks and headed out. Coming down off of Blewett Pass, the thermometer in Mike's truck was still reading in the low 30's. We were not sure about the conditions so, we had packed for a little bit of everything. Once the ridge came into view, we could see there was no snow; we were good to go. We parked at the Icicle Ridge Trailhead, where we would come out, and started up the road. I was all for taking a relaxed pace, to save energy for the descent; Stefan had a different idea of "relaxed" and pulled away. He proved to be a very strong climber, and a good guy to have along for the day.
The ride starts, and ends, at 1,200'; the top of the ridge is at 6,800'. We gained 1,200' on the eight mile road ride. The five mile "hike-a-bike" up the trail would bring us the remaining 4,400' of elevation gain to the ridgetop. A strong climber can ride probably half of the trail. Since we wanted to conserve energy for the descent, Mike and I adopted the "slow and steady wins the race" philosophy. Still, we kept a fairly decent pace, taking occasional breaks and pushing/carrying our bikes. As we got higher, the mountains of the Stuart Range and the Enchantment Lakes area began to rear up. As we pushed on to 6,800', the view South towards the Enchantment Plateau continued to open up.
Nearing the top of the ridge, we could see the trees covered in hoarfrost. It was a beautiful sight. We regrouped, and got ready for the descent. Mike got the helmet cam set up, and we took off. At this point, I realized that the term "ridge" is almost a misnomer; it was more of a broad plateau. The ride moves through several sections of burned forest, alpine meadows, and green forest. The ridge traverse, before the true "descent", is a significant ride in and of itself. I would divide this ride into three distinct, and significant portions: the climb, the traverse, and the descent. Obviously, one could say this about almost any ride. The difference, for me, was the scale of each piece.
At the far end of the traverse, we stopped for a bite before beginning the descent. Once we started, the smiles didn't stop until we were back at the car. Rocky 'downhill lite' sections, tight switchbacks, and buff sidehill runs, kept dropping beneath our front wheels as we rode. Finally, the Pines started getting taller and the trail started getting smoother and more populated. Fun riding all the way to the car. We hit the parking lot just shy of seven hours. We took our time to film certain areas and take pictures. This was a ride we truly wanted to savor.
Mike and I met up with Stefan at the North Bend Starbucks and headed out. Coming down off of Blewett Pass, the thermometer in Mike's truck was still reading in the low 30's. We were not sure about the conditions so, we had packed for a little bit of everything. Once the ridge came into view, we could see there was no snow; we were good to go. We parked at the Icicle Ridge Trailhead, where we would come out, and started up the road. I was all for taking a relaxed pace, to save energy for the descent; Stefan had a different idea of "relaxed" and pulled away. He proved to be a very strong climber, and a good guy to have along for the day.
The ride starts, and ends, at 1,200'; the top of the ridge is at 6,800'. We gained 1,200' on the eight mile road ride. The five mile "hike-a-bike" up the trail would bring us the remaining 4,400' of elevation gain to the ridgetop. A strong climber can ride probably half of the trail. Since we wanted to conserve energy for the descent, Mike and I adopted the "slow and steady wins the race" philosophy. Still, we kept a fairly decent pace, taking occasional breaks and pushing/carrying our bikes. As we got higher, the mountains of the Stuart Range and the Enchantment Lakes area began to rear up. As we pushed on to 6,800', the view South towards the Enchantment Plateau continued to open up.
Nearing the top of the ridge, we could see the trees covered in hoarfrost. It was a beautiful sight. We regrouped, and got ready for the descent. Mike got the helmet cam set up, and we took off. At this point, I realized that the term "ridge" is almost a misnomer; it was more of a broad plateau. The ride moves through several sections of burned forest, alpine meadows, and green forest. The ridge traverse, before the true "descent", is a significant ride in and of itself. I would divide this ride into three distinct, and significant portions: the climb, the traverse, and the descent. Obviously, one could say this about almost any ride. The difference, for me, was the scale of each piece.
At the far end of the traverse, we stopped for a bite before beginning the descent. Once we started, the smiles didn't stop until we were back at the car. Rocky 'downhill lite' sections, tight switchbacks, and buff sidehill runs, kept dropping beneath our front wheels as we rode. Finally, the Pines started getting taller and the trail started getting smoother and more populated. Fun riding all the way to the car. We hit the parking lot just shy of seven hours. We took our time to film certain areas and take pictures. This was a ride we truly wanted to savor.
4 comments:
The hits keep on coming! Busting them out now! Thanks for all the great rides so far this season partner. A few more, and then it will be "Till next year".
True enough. I think we rode more miles last year, but hit bigger objectives this year. It's been a great year riding with you.
GW
Next year will be even better, and with you getting your ski rig back up and running there are more options to explore on skis.
Baldface, alpine resort mountain biking is calling your name, and your credit card number...don't try and resist, it's futile.
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