CABDR Day 2

Sunday April 21st

CABDR Day 2

The Dreaded Sand and So Much More!

We were up and off early Sunday morning, wanting to tackle the sand before it got too hot. Last night’s riding and sleep had given me time to internalize just how wiggly the bike is with sand.  We got to the deep section, and it all went off without a hitch. We were through it before 8:30, and celebrated by opening up the throttle and having even more fun. I started to feel like a desert racer!

We got to Blythe and filled the bikes. There was debate – lunch or no lunch? It was only 10:30. I decided lunch, and we had some awesome BBQ.

Then it was off to the Intaglios! What a cool experience. No one knows how old they are, but these ancient carvings are believed to be more than 1000 years old, and have stood the test of time and humanity. We were all a little awestruck.

We decided to ride the Intaglios Loop, and that was some rocky fun! We debated whether I should try the long rocky downhill (it was barely noon on day 1, and I didn’t want to get hurt yet!) but I did it. It was intimidating and there was a lot of swearing, but it was fun. The rocks continued, and luckily Nathan was watching the GPS. We got to an intersection where multiple people we know have headed down the old creek bed.   Nathan stopped to be double sure on directions; Unfortunately, my brain short circuited when I saw him stopped in the middle of the road, and dumped the bike.  All good, Nathan led us in the correct direction, and even that had rocks a plenty! We celebrated getting back to the road unscathed.

There was a lot of desert to travers today.  We found lots of rusty remnants of the Gold Rush, and I was absolutely delighted to help make shade by sharing the umbrella I brought along.

We even left our mark on a bygone gas station…

 

The CABDR took us into the Mojave Preserve. It was beautiful with a combination of wide roads, narrow roads with washes, and bumpy rocky sections. This is where I really started to notice my suspension. I first noticed it in the sand by just how far back I had to lean to get any sense of stability. But in the sand washes, I was bottoming out both my front and rear suspension. I had to slow down a bit, because it got a bit dangerous at times, wheels bouncing off the ground unpredictably, and my seat whacking my behind a few times. This desert racer identity might earn me a new suspension, or a new bike!

The Mohave was beautiful.  As we wandered through, the Joshua Trees grew closer and closer to the road, and there were vast expanses of them.

The sun was getting low in the sky and the baby bike was getting low in fuel.

We were happy to find Route 66 and knew we were close to the Hi Saraha Oasis.

Be forewarned, gas is pricy here, but worth it.  A family owned business with motorcycle parking is worth supporting!

We also were wanting to find camping, but it was going to be a bit… there seemed to be very little camping allowed in the Mojave Preserve. We rolled through Geoff’s Place. This is a place that would have been fun to explore, but with the sun setting, we headed into the New York Mountains pretty quickly. Luckily the road was an easy dirt one, and we found a campsite among the rock spires. An evening campfire was a wonderful way to end the day.

It was a very windy night, and with or tents whipping around us, I’m not sure and of us slept much. We were all looking forward to the adventure tomorrow was sure to bring on this epic route!

Things to note:

Intaglios loop starts easy, but turns into big rocks and deep sand.

Hi Sahara Oasis has gas, but it’s expensive.  Some folks opt to just get enough to get them through, but I like supporting small businesses.  I bought souvenirs too.

Love video?  See this trio on their DAY TWO CABDR ADVENTURE!

Enjoy this?  Don’t miss DAY ONE!