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SHAFTER-BOLINAS RIDGE-McCURDY-RANDALL AND BACK

 Its another beautiful day in the San Geronimo valley as I cruise out of Weirdacre via Bates canyon. Before long I hit that

long lonely stretch of highway locally known as SFD, and headed west. No sooner had I smirked to myself at the dour

expressions on the commuters headed east, than who do I see but a 4- pack of FKFW's on their usual friday morning ride

. After exchanging pleasentries, I buzz through Lagunitas turning left on the west side of the second green bridge [Shafter]

. After passing through the Leo T. Cronin fish viewing area , I'm riding along Lagunitas creek, home of the California

record size for Coho salmon. This watershed supports 10 percent of all remaining Coho salmon remaining in the state.

Treat the area with respect.

I make the first right and head uphill. A word to the wise here, the blue porta-potty you just passed is the first and last one

you will see on this trip. The macadam gives way to dirt and the angle steepens. I try to settle into a groove and slowly

make my way up the 1.7 miles to Bolinas ridge. There are'nt to many places where you can coast or catch your breath,

but the trail is dry , the air is crisp and this deeply forested area smells great. I make my way up slowly.

As I climb the fog begins to thicken, and the trail is becoming damp. No dust with excellent traction. Even so, I dab

and so decide its a good place to take a break half way up. The second half of Shafter goes quickly after refreshing myself

and I feel my chest hairs grow as Bo ridge comes into sight. Shafter took me 44 minutes to climb, rest stop included.

Heavy, heavy fog at the top, its cold and I don't dawdle. Turning south, I break through fog shrouded webs spun the night

before and marvel at the amount of water that can hang from them without breaking. Bo ridge is a piece of cake compared

to Shafter and I enjoy the ride through rolling grasslands, nary a cowpie in sight. On a clear day the views through here are

stunning. This trail is square on top of the San Andreas fault, I am quite near the epicenter of the 1906 quake that destroyed

San Francisco. Soon the grasslands give way to deep redwood forest and all of a sudden it's dark and mysterious as the

trail snakes for miles beneath the giant trees. Its all quite beautiful and I make it to the McCurdy trail;head in 25 minutes.

The fog in the treetops has created a steady downpournow and I'm soaked . My tires are caked , looking and feeling like

two warm tootsie rolls. As I head down McCurdy the tree thin out and the trail dries up again. I'm pleasently surprised

to find that the trail isnt washed out as I had remembered it, but I didnt remember the GIANT waterbars either. I mean

large waterbars able swallow your bike . Be careful. Anyway, I reach the lower single track section in one pieceand notice

quite the quail population, so many in fact that at one point they startle me and I wreck.The top of McCurdy to highway

1 is 1.7 miles and I do it in under 15 minutes. After taking a short break with a " trail treat " I turn right on highway 1

and I'm at the Randall trailhead in what seems like no time at all. Highway 1 at this point is a twisty road through ranchland,

Eucalyptas groves and national park land. Drivers arent paying attention to the road be wary of them, lots of tourists.

Randall is great , an easy uphill grade, smooth as silk with no waterbars. Much easier than Shafter or McCurdy and I'm back

on Bo ridge in no time. Going balls-out downhill, I'm back at Shafter bridge in a winzig!

On the BTC difficulty scale of 1 to 4, I'd rate it a 3. It would have been a 4+ had I gone DOWN Randall and UP McCurdy.

Be advised that this report is written throught the eyes and ability of a 50 year old, mediocre rider. Your results and experience

will most assuredly differ!