[cohenfive]

just got back from my second and best trip to downieville. we had a great group of guys on the trip--zorg, guruatma, irwin horowitz, ebrider, gary miranda, steve guerguy and myself. bill (guruatma) and myself went up thursday afternoon and hung out until everyone else showed up later that night...except for zorg who only rode with us today.

we did two shuttle rides--friday morning and this morning. overall the trails were in fantastic condition (ie, no dust) and weather was in the 60's with some clouds but no rain. we literally didn't see another person the entire ride down on friday. saturday was more normal in terms of traffic on the trails. in the afternoon friday we explored the new north yuba trail. honestly it was not at all what we expected. the beginning was rocky with a very steep climb out, and the trail is very, very tight...in some spots i think too tight. we climbed for 3 miles and didn't reach the top. some of our crew had had enough so we turned around and went back down. i'd like to try that trail again with fresher legs and with a better sense of how long the climb is and what happens to the trail when you get to the top. for this trip is was a mistake--we should've opted for a second shuttle.

by the way, the new sunrise trail is fantastic--in many ways my favorite trail up in dville...but they are all great.

i've attached some pix from the trip. the other guys have a ton more. i've also attached a link to an album that has more of them.

http://picasaweb.google.com/cohenfive/Resized?feat=directlink

1. handlebar's eye view of some sweet singletrack
2. bill and gary hamming it up for the camera
3. gary making pauley's creek...it was pretty deep and cold
4. irwin enjoying the singletrack
5. j-c on his big boy bike

 

[cohenfive]

some more pix....

1. ebrider on a 'don't miss right' section
2. ebrider coming down the rocks
3. ebrider descending
4. irwin and ebrider in the streams
5. ebrider in the woods

 

[NoBalance]

Ahh late night pics of downieville singletrack. thanks for the post. gunna try and make it on the 28th or 5th. have a northstar-downieville weekend in mind.

 

[worthy_4242]

early morning pics are good too. looks like you had a great time.

 

[rglsr]

Great conditions at Downieville right now

The late June rains are keeping the dust down, maintaining great traction, also rode Fri/Sat. Got a short shower late Friday night, then Sat AM, no rain while riding. The recent trail work done on Sunrise is great, a fun warm up. Big Boulder and 2nd Divide are nice, (kinda missed baby heads though) didn't see anyone out there. Butcher had quite a bit of water still running, but still a blast. Third was absolutely ripping, I miss it already.

 

[cohenfive]

yeah, there was a decent amount of water but other than a muddy bike and the back of your shorts it just made it more fun...i missed the baby heads too, that section of trail is a bit less challenging than it used to be...but again still fun!

 

[zorg]

Downieville rules, especially when in good company (i.e. lots of stops to enjoy the scenery, take pics and BS around). Finally rode Pauley Creek for the first time, and it was very sweet. We even saw a bear cub running across the fireroad on the climb up to the baby heads. What a treat!

Next year, I'll make sure I can do both days. Thanks for the pics.

 

[GMM]

Thanks for posting the pics Dick.

Sunrise and Pauley Creek were definately my favorite trails, but they are all fun.

Hard to beat DVille, BBQ Tri-tip, and good company.

 

[Stumpy_Steve]

Downieville always seems to bring the best out in people...

 

[trailripper]

...or find every weak spot on a bike

 

[Stumpy_Steve]

...or find every weak spot on a bike

Word. Weak ass hangers...

 

[Impy]

Nice! looks like you guys had fun.

 

[GuruAtma]

Great rides. When I got to the bottom after the last run, I noticed a tear in my sidewall with the tube starting to bulge out. Luckily it lasted to the end!

Here's a few:
Irwin on the long climb on the Yuba Trail:

Cohen5 on that fun drop on the Sunrise trail:

Irwin imposing on Zorg's portrait:

Cohen5 intensely concentrating on the trail:

 

[EBrider]

That was a blast. Great riding, great group and perfect conditions. Rained every night just to keep the dust down.

I would try the Yuba trail again. We were thinking easy spin by the river after a shuttle and long lunch, but this is no ordinary "river trail". After the climb got more rolling and flowy, the trail got narrow. Consensus was not in favor of continuing and the beer in the fridge was getting lonly.

 

[ddraewwg]

Lucky ba$tards But I'll be going in 2 weeks...can't wait!

I've never done Sunrise (we're going to do the DH course) but you've got me curious since a few of you said it's your favorite trail.

I looked at the map and Sunrise seems to be the trail before you hit up Butcher...weird that I've never done it before. I guess it cuts out the road ride at the top? If it does, ANY trail has got to be better than the pavement!

 

[cohenfive]

sunrise is new (i think last year), so if you haven't been up there recently it might not have been finished. also you have to know it's there as it starts on the other side of the road just above where the shuttle lets you off. there is some pedaling involved at the beginning however...

and i'd do yuba again, would just like to know more about the trail beforehand...and i agree that it should be done as a day ride by itself rather than an afternoon 'warm down' ride...

 

[Ebo]

Sunrise trail opened last year but has been there for more than 5 years in one form or another. It closed down for a while due to being on private property for parts. The North Yuba trail from Rocky Rest to Goodyears Bar is a tough 8-9 miles of narrow, rocky, up and down singletrack. The newly opened section from Goodyears to Dville is a great addition but is also no stroll in the park. Certainly hard earned miles.

 

[EBrider]

From what I remember, we rode Sunrise two years ago, but when we were there last year it was closed due to snow. There was still a little bit of snow this time, but none on Butcher's.

Sunrise starts at the drop off point at Packer Saddle and ends right across the entrance to Butcher's. A great addition.

 

[Wherewolf]

Nice photos

Nice photos. Since when do your guys quit on a trail? Good thing I wasn't along. Maybe by the end of summer :thumbsup:

 

[grrrah]

Sunrise has been there for at least 4 or 5 years (probably longer), but it was re-routed and made official 2 years ago (I think), and has been a part of the race for the last 2 years.

Great pics! and looks like another great time!