A DAY OF XC REQUIRES A KUTENAI KOOKIE

So Sunday found me with the TBN crew at Wasaga Nordic Centre. The temp was about -5c again but I made sure the day's skiing was going to go well; I baked lots of Kutenai Kookies. got everything in them so you know they just have to be healthy. Must of worked cuz the day went well. Wasaga is a great place to ski. Scenery is ace and the trails are in great shape.

SOMETIMES YOU JUST GOT TO PUT YOUR FEET UP.....

REST STOP STILL......., originally uploaded by joneboi.

Lots of rest areas on the trails...some open shelters exist with BBQ's as well....sounds like the making of a party!

HEADING UP MONUMENT HILL

The trail up to Monument Hill and the Highlands is great....nice hills....a little more work...good fun

MR TBN MAKING THE LAST RUN OF THE DAY

Dan and I headed out for one last run before the bus was to arrive and take us back to Toronto. A nice 5 km run back up to Monument Hill and the run of death..which I walked but Dan skied. That is why he is Mr TBN

THE SARGE AND I PREPARING TO RIDE E2

I was joined by Adam, aka The Sarge for the saturday ride at E2 trail in Ganaraska. Fresh snow meant this was going to be a worker of a ride. The temp was about -5c but felt much colder. We wore quite a few layers of clothes and the booties were a must. Still, all of us after about 2 hours felt the chill and headed back to Rob's house to sit by the fire.....I bonked about 30 min before the ride was done and the bike was acting quite loose in the head area. Or maybe it was me a little loose in the head....anyhoo, something for the shop to look at this week. On the way back to Toronto from Rob's I ran out of gas and had to call CAA. Sue aka Big G Gal, who had ridden with us this day stopped by with a car package of muffins and water. Our favourite saviour! Cant wait to see what happens next week!

WALKING THE BIKE IS PART OF WINTER RIDING

Winter riding with new snow means walking the bikes on some sections that were rideable only a few weeks back

MR ENDURO HAVING SANTA CLAUS FUN!

Rob was having a blast on the trail...good hard work with a few turns not quite turning out the way they should.

RIDING E2 TRAIL

I barely made it back to Rob's...wused out big time....was it because my camelback was frozen and I couldnt drink? It was a great ride but I was happy to be at the end.

FINALLY! XC SKIING TIME!

Today I went up to Horseshoe Valley Resort, north of Barrie. The TBNers were to go XC skiing there today but I later found out they cancelled. As of thursday there was only 8cm of snow and after last week's disaster at Highlands Nordic I guess they pulled the plug. But enough snow had fallen since Thursday night to make the skiing decent. And for the first run of the season I was happy. Especially since my legs were still feeling the affects from yesterday's bike ride. The great bonus is that I got to work on my hot chocolate recipe.

HORSESHOE IN ACTION......

I was surprised there weren't more people skiing.....I think everyone is having difficulty believing there is finally enough snow to ski whether it is XC or downhill.

THE FUN OF WINTER RIDING........

The Fun of Winter Riding....., originally uploaded by joneboi.

So saturday I needed to get out....everyone seemed to either cocoon or just hide. I decided to ride and chose Earl Bales Park near home. The Park is located at Bathurst and Sheppard in Toronto and has some very decent single track. I rode the trails at Earl's and then crossed over the Don river to Burnett Park and rode the trails just west of York cemetery. I then rode a trail on the east side of the Don river from Sheppard all the way to Yonge and Wilson ending up at the Golf course. Crossing the golf course west I found more single track trails leading me back to Earl Bales Park and the trails that I started out on. A decent ride of 4 hours exploration! I would classify the trails as beginner...though the winter does make for some intermediate style riding on the hills. Major fun in the Big City!

More pix of Earl Bales/Burnett Park riding can be found at my flickr site. Look up the set... Assorted Biking pix 2007 at the following:

www.flickr.com/photos/joneboi

EARL BALES PARK....TRAILS AT BATHURST STREET

I started the ride on the single track trails off Bathurst and Timberlane Drive. Easy stuff but still plenty fun

NORTH YORK SKI HILL

After riding the trails on the upper levels of Earl Bales park I headed down to the Don River to cross over into Burnett Park.

BURNETT PARK

Following the Don river from Earl Bales Park under Sheppard Avenue you arrive at Burnett Park and this is where the real sweet single track riding can be found. Plain and simple; fun.

TRAIL ENTRANCE LOOKING AT YORK CEMETERY

At the west end of York Cemetery there are an abundance of trails heading down into Burnett Park. Very decent single track. Beginner level but I would say going down the hills in winter is a step up to intermediate. Lots of fun!

WHAT ONE FINDS ON THE TRAILS

A tree hut......kids? homeless? On the trails in Burnett Park

HEADING WEST FROM THE DON VALLEY GOLF COURSE

So from Burnett Park I headed down the Don River West on the east side. There is a sweet single track running from Sheppard Avenue down to Wilson/Yonge bringing you on to the Don Valley Golf Course. As you head west on the golf course you can see various single track on the upper banks. At the far west reaches of the golf course as it approaches Earl Bales Park there is a chain link fence that has an opening right at the start of some more single track leading the way to the service road near Westgate Blvd

THE ADVENTURER IS OFF TO BATHURST STREET.....NO WAY!

At the end of the ride, making my way up the service road from the Don Valley Golf Course I found this sweet single track that climbed up the gulley. As the walls of the ravine were closing in on me and I was climbing higher I thought how decent to find a single track back to Bathurst. But about 4 metres from the top the single track ended....so I had to climb a 45 degree icy grade with my hummer bike in tow...seriously should consider completing the trail to the top.

BIKING THE BIG 'G' THE CARSCADDEN ROAD TRAILS

I am a big fan of mountain biking in the Ganaraska forest...today after 2 weeks of feeling like crap I road in the West Forest with a few friends. We tried the trails found at the Carscadden Road parking lot. The trails were similar to the Honda trails in the E2 section...long , windy, big Datona banks and lots of moguls. Today's extra treat is that snow fianlly started to fall. It's a blast riding in the white stuff!

BOWL OF WASABI TO WARD OFF EVIL SPIRITS

So I get home from the trans Canada flight and yahoo! Jonnie gets ill....remedy is lots and lots of soup with lots and lots of wasabi sauce....

BIKING THE NORTH DELTA WATERSHED FOREST

An awesome area to bike...just over the Fraser river from New Westminister....I guess one could classify the trails as beginner but there is a section of ...shall I say not quite North Shore but definately West Coast stunts. There is no denying that riding in a rain forest is an awesome experience.

XMAS IN VANCOUVER.....STORM SIGNS

Vancouver was going thru a cold wave whereas Toronto was rockin' in the 13c range. I took a walk down to Stanley Park to check out the storm damage there......nature is a vicious affair.