Case in point: Right at mile 22 the pavement turned to gravel. I thought, "Not too bad. I know at one point this meets up with pavement again, so it's probably just a short section." Washboards on the road bike are a bit tricky, but they are better than loose gravel, so I was doing OK. At about mile 24.5, the gravel phased to sand.
Geotechnically, I would describe it: "Brown fine to medium SAND with occasional cobbles, moist to wet, medium dense". The "moist to wet" and "medium dense" became key here, as I am running 100+ psi tires that are only 23 millimeters wide and have no tread. Without moisture I would have certainly been toast. As it was, I was able to track and even climb pretty well. There was only one short section that was not well compacted where I had trouble sinking in.
Had the scenery been different, I most likely would have turned back. But with the very determination to find my way that has often put me on Sarah's blacklist, I pedaled on. This is what it looked like:
Here is one of the puddles left over from the rain. For the most part I was able to ride around the edges of the water. I did have to go through one puddle, though, and it was about 4 inches deep...enough to make me cringe the next time I touched the brakes and heard sandpaper grit against my aluminum rims.
At slower speeds, I chanced taking these pictures...for your viewing pleasure. :P
Like I said...slower speeds. The sand lasted until about mile 26.5, phased back to gravel, and then finally intersected with pavement at mile 27.25. Wouldn't you know this was the first ride after giving my bike a thorough cleaning. Sweet.
oh, so dedicated! we've been so busy getting our garden together, that every spare moment has gone into that . . . almost every spare moment. the remaining spare moments have been spent just hanging out; not cycling. shame on me; good for you!
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