I love going on bikepacking trips. I often find myself daydreaming about going back out, not long after returning from one. But I have had enough suffering on trips lately. I've been thinking about how to have more fun. You know who has more fun? I think California Travis has more fun. I've been hearing stories and seeing pictures from his regular, social outings, and decided to try one. He shared this on ridewithgps, and also strava:
Pony Express Bike Camping Overnighter
🚨NEW ROUTE ALERT🚨 That’s right, July 25-26 we’ll be debuting a new overnighter in the South Lake Tahoe area made just for us by Jen Violet. It hops on the historic Pony Express Trail, and visits 3 different lakes!
The Details: July 25th, park on the north side of the western end of D Street, then ride over to Tahoe Gear Exchange where the nice folks there will be hosting our start at 9:30am. Quick rider’s meeting, then we roll out at 10am sharp.
This is self-supported overnight bikecamping on gravel and dirt roads in the Tahoe Lake Basin. 51 miles total, with 4015 feet of climbing, spread over two days. Tires at least 40c or bigger are recommended for this terrain. We will briefly hop on the Tahoe Rim Trail so expect to hike a bike for a few moments, otherwise you can expect delightful single-track, some dirt road, some bike path, and a lil bit of riding on pavement.
This will be dispersed camping following LNT principles, so bring: food, sleep system, a water filter, and a way to bury your own poop (trowel). “Bear Resistant Containers” are mandatory in the area of Round Lake where we’ll be camping. Many places like Mountain Sports Chico or Taylor Creek Visitor Center rent hard plastic bear cans, or you can spend big bucks on lighter Ursack/Adotec bags. As always, this is a casual open-invite trip. No sag, and no registration or money are required, but we’ll do our best to make sure nobody is left behind or stranded. Please download the route just in case though. We all wear helmets and ask that you do as well.
These rides are at a conversational pace, and we stick together. If you want to KOM your Strava or impress people by being first up the climb, don’t bother coming, as the best of the party is at the back of the pack.
We’re super excited to crack the seal on this beautiful area, and with 3 lakes, you’ll wanna bring a swim suit. Be sure to download the route for offline use in one form or another before the trip, as cell service can be nonexistent in this area, and this being a new route… even I won’t be 100% sure where we’re going 😂. Don’t hesitate to send @californiatravis a DM on IG if you have further questions!
This would be my bivvy-a-month outing for July, which would mean 8 months in a row. I liked the idea of a fun, mellow bikepack. I'm no longer on Instagram, but I got the impression that these things are popular. I usually bikepack solo, or with a few friends, so riding in a big group on a bikepack would be new for me.
The Hudski got the usual packing. I went with a lighter pack list, because it would be warm, shorter, casual. I was up earlier than I needed to be, on the road in my car to South Lake Tahoe before 5:30AM. I think this was the first time I'd driven to a bikepack since 2022, and the Colorado Trail. I got there around 8:30, and I was the first person at the meetup spot, Tahoe Gear Exchange. People started to arrive. I grabbed two ham-and-swiss sandwiches and a caffeinated drink in a can from the Starbucks, for lunches. The crew that gathered skewed young, hip, with a few people my age. A lot of them knew each other. Some were delayed by a crash on Highway 50. Jen Violet and California Travis talked about the route, and then we rolled out, expecting the delayed riders to catch us on the route.
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| Travis and Jen briefing the ~ 30 riders at the start, in the paring lot of Tahoe Gear Exchange |
I was delighted with the mellow pace at roll out. I'm anxious about how slow I've gotten, for no good reason. We had nice conversation in the group, and while I only knew Travis at the start, I quickly got to know a few of the riders, and discovered some with shared friends.
Our first stop was Fallen Leaf Lake. I found my way over to the little dam, ate a sandwich and drank my caffeinated drink, and had a nice chat with Mykie, Zelda and Vincent.
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| Fallen Leaf Lake |
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| Of course this triggered some web searches... |
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| Miles' minimal and colorful Surly |
We rode back from the dam, and discovered some late arrivals, and rode with them to where the big group was hanging out. And the big group was bigger, maybe fifty people! We hadn't ridden far, or climbed much. I am not great at hanging out on bike rides, it turns out. We hung out for longer than I'm used to, which made for good social time. I reconnected with an old friend, Ted, and had lots of conversations. People were throwing a disc, kicking a hacky sack, playing with a kendama, swimming. I really need to work on my hangout game.
We rode up to a view spot on the shoulder of Tahoe Mountain and... hung out! I was starting to get the hang of it. This time it was views, but no swimming, but just as enjoyable.
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| Jeremiah pointing stuff out on his Chromag, with Bitchn' bars |
We rode some dirt trails through meadows to another hangout spot, Lake Baron. More people kept arriving. People were lying on the grass, snacking, talking. I am so used to pushing myself. We watched people playing pickleball, and I had a nice chat with Mannie, who'd just caught up to us. Before we rolled out, we visited a really big, old Juniper tree, mildly interrupting a family that was picnicking beneath it.
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| Jen's helmet cracked me up. |
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| Andrew's 1995 Scott, restomodded |
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| Cait, in front of the big Juniper |
We rolled through a neighborhood on South Upper Truckee Road, then got to the beginning of the climb, near the intersections with Hawley Grade and the Christmas Valley Trail. We regrouped, with an even larger group than before. Some ladies were parked, ready to go for a swim in a nearby creek. One offered me an Oreo cookie, and offered some to the rest of the riders, then realized how many of us there were. She'd be out of cookies if we each took one. :) We began the climb of Old Luther Pass Highway, and people did keep it pretty tame. I was able to stay near the front. We regrouped at some near the second crossing of the busy Luther Pass Road, waiting for riders to arrive.
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| beginning the climb up Old Luther Pass Road |
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| Sophie, Travis and Ted |
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| Jordan, popping that tallboy |
Jordan rolled up and pulled a Chelada Negra tallboy from his handlebar pouch. I knew I was going to like Jordan. It turns out we have a friend in common, Shea, and he's considering both moving to Oakland and joining us for a TNR. We had some good conversations over the weekend.
After sufficient regrouping, we carefully crossed the busy road, then got on a very new alignment of the Tahoe Rim Trail, built by TAMBA, which switchbacked up the face of the slope in a very rideable grade. The trail straightened out, and continued to climb, mostly rideable, with a few rocky or stair-step sections requiring walking. I was surprised I was able to keep up with the front group, and I appreciated that no one was turning this into a harder ride. It was pretty chill. I saw some old USFS blazes in trees that look like the lower-case letter "i."
We rolled through Big Meadow. It's beautiful! Jen suggested we look for some trees that had been marked by bear claws. I forgot to look on the way to camp...
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| Riders at Big Meadow |
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| Sign post en route |
Cresting a rise, we sighted Round Lake, and descended into an area of really interesting rocks - conglomerates, and some big boulders that had what looked like a cracked-mud surface on some of their planes. Some volcanic action happened, there.
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| Conglomerates |
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| A big lava boulder with a surface like cracked, dried mud |
There aren't a lot of sites along the lake, the trail starts to climb away from the lake quickly, and people were grabbing choice sites quickly. I found a nice one, and ended up sharing it with Will and Maddie. I got all prepped, had a nice dinner with the group, on the water, was entertained by Jared's interpretive dance, describing Jen's wiggly stove arm, we discussed pesto aversions, Ronnie Romance, nice sweaters, golden retrievers and I can't remember what else.
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| My bivvy spot for the night |
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| Sunset on clouds and water |
I put my remaining food and some nice-smelling toiletry items in my Bare Boxer bear barrel, tucked it away in a low spot among giant boulders and got in my bivvy as the sun was setting, painting the clouds a glorious red. I had to zip up the bivvy, because the mosquitoes were a bit fierce. I put in earplugs to keep the mosquito buzz down and give myself the best chance to sleep, and ate some CBN / melatonin gummies. As I tried to fall asleep, a really bad headache came on, maybe from trying to sleep at 8000', or dehydration, and only got an hour or two's sleep close to dawn.
Because I hadn't slept well, I did that thing where I pulled the sleeping bag and my hood over my eyes, but with a mesh bivvy, there's no getting away from the rising sun. By the time I unzipped and sat up, Will and Maddie were all packed up. Will had to go back to work. We chatted for a bit, he invited me on a three-day bike tour they were doing immediately after Travis' next Truckee monthly bike camping overnighter, I got his contact info and we said goodbye. All I remember is Blue Lake near Kirkwood being on the route. I will follow up with him! They were really nice.
I slowly got my camp put away, retrieved my untouched bear barrel, made breakfast, had a nice conversation with my neighbor Kevin about fruit trees, business opportunities and pitfalls, AI, (oh no) and bears. I was definitely slow-poking my packing routine. After getting ready, I walked over to where everyone else was. We had some more conversation. Cait explained some things about trees to us. Someone said something about trying to get something out of the ground and giving up and... well this is the kind of thing that makes my ears perk up. There was an old, red tent stake in the ground that no one could pull out. How does that happen? Tent stakes don't get stuck. I pulled and pulled and, it came out! I'd broken it, leaving the tip in the earth, but getting the majority out. It took off some finger skin, but hey, I really enjoy feats of strength against stubborn objects, so it gave me some satisfaction.
Maddie (the other Maddie was on her first mountain bike ride ever, on a loaner bike, with loaner bags. So impressive that she did this weekend trip. She's friends with Travis, and an experienced through-hiker, so much of it was familiar, but bouncing over rocky Tahoe singletrack on a rigid Surly Krampus with no prior bike experience was really impressive. She had a great attitude, and was more than willing to dismount and walk when needed.
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| Maddie's loaner Krampus sports a sprig of jaunty greenery |
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| Following Tabitha on buff singletrack |
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| This, this is where the bear marked its territory |
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| Travis pointing at a cool rock. I think it's a glacial erratic. |
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| Charles points at things, while Sammy and Tabitha look on, bemused |
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| Big Meadow is big. |
Some people opted for the Christmas Valley descent, which is challenging. I stayed with the main group, going down the way we'd come up. After the first crossing of Luther Pass Road we regrouped again, and people took turns taking photos with the trailhead sign.
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| Travis, and Cait's bike at the Tahoe Rim Trail Big Meadow Trailhead sign |
A fun bomb of Old Luther Pass Road brought us to the junction with Christmas Valley trail, where we saw some faces we hadn't seen since yesterday afternoon. The Davis crew had camped on a different part of the lake. Oscar, of the Davis crew was pouring some Côtes du Rhône wine he'd carried - two bottles - and I had a bit. Such a fun crew. More conversations on the roll through the neighborhood, then we stopped at a grocery, with plans to bring the food to a nice spot on the river for more hanging out and lunch. Jordan told me a funny story on the way.
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| Bombing down Old Luther Pass Road - 'The pass is named after Ira M. Luther, one of the "Irish Brigade" described by Mark Twain in Roughing It. - Wikipedia' |
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| Oscar - born and raised in Burgundy, France - pours some wine he'd carried, for Jordan |
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| Save it for later |
At the grocery store there were so many bikes lined up, I had to do one of those video sweeps of all the bikes. It took two sweeps, because they were on both sides of the big store entrance. After I finished the second sweep, another group rolled up, and then another. It was a real jamboree.
I still had a sandwich, snacks, and filtered Round Lake water, so I skipped the store. Jen led us to a beautiful, grassy spot on the Upper Truckee River, where there was more swimming, conversation and lunch.
I learned that Topher, Jen's boyfriend was on his third mountain bike ride ever. Another newbie! He was doing really well, but did have an unfortunate phone-answer-brake-OTB incident leaving him with a sore ankle. She voluntold him to lead us the rest of the way, which he did, through fun, little, cutty trails around property lines back toward town. I rode behind Travis, and we had a good conversation about good and bad things; Bodfish, fires, Quincy and Plumas trails, forests and the next ride in August through the old train tunnels near Truckee. He told the story of how Jen suggested this ride to him, adding that it met all his criteria; "under 50 miles, under 5000' climbing, and lots of swimming." We also talked about ridewithgps helping him for nothing in return, "social nutrition" and keeping these rides capitalism-free.
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| Topher, in front of beautiful scenery |
As we got closer to town, I played a guessing game with Adam, trying to figure out what country his accent came from. I guessed around 7 countries, and each time I guessed wrong he'd give me a cardinal direction as a hint. I finally got to "east of Germany, and south of Poland." I couldn't get it, so he started counting down, "3, 2, 1... Czech Republic." I felt bad for not getting it. We talked about Bohemians as we continued rolling through neighborhoods.
We got to an intersection, and Jen explained that they were heading to another swimming spot. It was my turn to peel off, as I wanted to get home in time to have dinner with Lauren. Such a fun crew. It was happy goodbyes as I turned left, this time with Stephen from Oakland, who also had to get back.
My drive home was uneventful, drinking all the water and listening to my local public radio station streaming through bluetooth, telling me good and bad things, all the way home. Lauren and I did have a nice dinner. I'll probably do the 8/15-16 Donner Bike Camping Overnighter. Thank you for organizing this one, Travis and Jen.
Gear, History, Thoughts, Next Trip
- polycro ground sheet - lighter and slimmer than the tyvek sheet, but I did see a few small holes from gravel after its first use
- Bare Boxer bear cannister - a hard-sided, approved bear cannister is a requirement for where we'd be camping. This one was small enough and light enough for one person, and I think you could squeeze as much as three days' food in it. It was easy enough to open and close. Many had rented or borrowed bigger bear cannisters, or brought "bear-resistant" (yeah, right) food bags. We saw no evidence of bear on our one night. This cannister fit easily in my Bags by Bird front bag, with plenty of room for other stuff. I kept it packed full of non-snack food, to optimize space.
- An even smaller Little Sit Pad - it's small, you can sit or stand on it, but I didn't use it much because I also brought my...
- REI Flexlite Camp Chair - this was the right luxury item to bring, on this trip. Comfortable, light, sturdy.
- I ate a Luxefly Banh Mi Curry Noodle Bowl for dinner, with some salami / cheese / nuts from Trader Joe's. This Luxefly dinner was delicious, another winner. For breakfast I had the Brioche French Toast with organic strawberries and organic rhubarb, which I'd had before, and which is also really yummy. I need to work on my food game, and see if I can't make dinners and breakfasts from something other than a dehydrated, packaged meal. I have a few other, less-bougie options I've used in the past. I would like to try a bit more of a DIY, low-budget option, especially one that's more easily packed and sourced.
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| Detail from Illustrated Map of Pony Express Route in 1860, by William Henry Jackson |
This route roughly follows today's US 50 across Nevada and Utah. It crossed the Great Basin, the Utah-Nevada Desert, and the Sierra Nevada near Lake Tahoe before arriving in Sacramento. Mail was transferred and sent by steamer down the Sacramento River to San Francisco. An alternative overland route was used for the first month and whenever the steamer departure was missed.[24] The alternative route, roughly following first today's Interstate 80, then Interstate 680, then California Route 24, took the mail by horseback through Benicia, California.[25] This route would then cross the Carquinez Strait via ferry to Martinez, then on horseback onward to Oakland and across the San Francisco Bay by ferry to San Francisco.[26]
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