Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126400
- ---- .. .. ~------- N ~ REDMT. , 11.472 - .- WHEELER CREST PK _!... I (Abovel Don't ride past the sign. Walk. (Belowl Rock Creek: 11,742 ROUND VALLEYPK ....... 11,943 . . • . ," ~ .......... - '! - ",' • .. •1...... -- . ", • I " .. . , . ,, , , , . ... _ . I ... .. WILDERNESS BOUNDARY Two miles high on a bike By Donald E. L. Betsworth Photos by Donald W. Betsworth / ' How's this sound for a trail ride? Start ,in a bare gravel pit and end miles later a few yards short of a beautiful lake surrounded by avirgin pine forest. Included with no extra charge is a view unequalled in any technicolor movie. Interested? If you like a ride with solitude, rocks, beautiful scenery, 14 sand, a couple of de ceptive strea m crossings, a rid e up 40·degree slopes while playing tag with huge boulders, and if your old scooter will make it to 11,000 feet , then take this ride.• In going over my Mammoth Lakes area maps and remembering a n article by an off-road writer I had read several years ago , I zer oed in on the old and almost forgotten dirt road that hangs high above Rock Creek, Rock Creek itself is a beautiful canyon, cutting a deep 'cleft in the Sierra. It 's complete with rushing stream . beautiful lakes . and ,' unfortunatel y. too damn many campers, fishermen and just plain sig htseers . But high up on Wheeler Ridge: Rock Creek' s east wall . it's a world only for four wheelers, hikers and a . few adv enturous motorcycle ride rs. On th e da y we did our ride, we saw only one person. a sheepherder, h is one hundred woolies and th e usu al interest ing mounta in wildl ife. T his rid e. though only 20 m iles round trip, will seem much longer, and once started . you 'll hate for it to end . W e d id . The day was brilliantly clear, a little on th e cool side, but just ideal to ride an d explore . Our start was delayed due to an extra 20 winks of shu t-eye and a huge lumberjack .type break fast. Finally , we t ra ile r ed t he b ikes down from Mammoth Lakes to the starting poi nt. It' s 15 or so miles southea st of Mammoth . I'll ' start th e directions from Tom's Place on H ighway 395 . It 's well-signed and also well known . From Tom's go southeast toward Bishop to Lower Rock Creek Road . it short 1.2 m iles. Tum right and drop down the canyon, with one sharp rise , for 4.4 miles to Swall Meadows Road . Take a right and proceed to Sky ' Meadows Road . At this point bear right , then straight ahead , to the end of the pavement. Then , take the first dirt road to the right you can. This is approximately 1.2 miles from ' Lower Rock Creek Road. Within a few yards you will ent er a small unused gravel pit. Park here , out of the way. Unload the bikes . top off your gas tank . apply a big dose of chain lube. and let's start. Follow the road north out of the gravel pit , continue, and at 0.7 miles you cross a small trickle .of water - called ' Witcher Creek. (I hope , you set the odometer at 0.0 at the start. ) Right after the crossing the road forks, go left. The ' right fork goes down ' towards Holiday Camp near Tom's Place. I'm not sure it's open all the way . The Forest Service was hesitant with inform a tion on this road for some strange reason . After taking the left fork . continue and at 1. 2 miles a small sign for Trial 5S08 appears . The trail looks like a road . so go left again. ' Continuing ,west there are a few fa irl y rough spots. There were deep tire tracks and I'd guess some of the ' four-wheelers had a bit of trouble with traction judging by the depth of some of the ruts. At 2.1 miles , Birch Creek is forded . It was narrow but deep . When fording I'd take _the left side. The right side was twice as deep , about two and onehalf feet thanks to the four-by fours . I went right , and what a surprisel My riding partner who doubles as my camera clicker was a lot smarter after wimessing my crossing. He went left and only got his boots wet. I'll let you guess what I got wetl A mile or so up the road you'll pass a sheep camp. This was where we saw the only person on the entire ride . the one lonely sheepherder. We were probably disturbing his solitude, but in tum , I was sorry we even had to see the one human . Right after the camp you start up a long mile or so of sandy track. The sheep had chopped up the road very badly. After it levels out you then hit some pretty rocky spots and it can be a . ~~tl~ t.ricky. Alopg t~is ,stretcp ~f sandy , and ,r,ocky incline, you climb , out, of