The Santa Ana Winds are here.  And they are powerful.

The night is a swirl of gusts and flapping fabric.  The X-Mid holds secure - success born of its design and our campsite choice.  But the winds just continue to grow throughout the night.  I shove earplugs in deep to drown the sound of gusts whipping.  The heat of the desert dies in the night; it's replaced by a chill from wind and storm front.  I awake to use the restroom several times and tighten all guylines each time.  But I sleep, and so does Janna.  My eyes are already open when my alarm sounds at 5:30 am.  The two of us decided to wake up extra early for several reasons: (a) today is the crux of the route with The Willows, (b) today will also hold the most elevation gain per our plan, (c) the Santa Ana Winds will be at their worst for us, and (d) the latest weather report warns of a significant winter storm brewing over the San Jacintos threatening several inches of snow and whiteout conditions.  The Santa Ana Winds alone are against our favor - literally predicted to be blowing all day in exactly the opposite direction we are moving.  We mentally brace ourselves for 25-40 mph headwinds with 50+ mph gusts.  I ponder our fate after our alarm goes off.  It's nearly night still, the break of dawn just barely here…

I lay in bed comfortably most of the night, torn between equal parts excitement to show the wild beauty of Fish Creek to Janna tomorrow, and a feeling of dread and doubt about the Santa Ana winds we read about the day before.  Today will be the beginning of the winds, building slowly, surely, and then crescendoing over the next few days when we plan to climb to Idyllwild with wind forecasts building from 20 mph, to 40 mph, to nearly 80 mph in gusts.  I sleep soundly but awaken mid-night to the rustle of fabric as gusts start in.  Janna and I wake up early, pre-dawn in the cold blur of blue night and yellow dawn, to pack.  There's a lot of sand on the menu today which could slow us dramatically, in addition to the big miles we plan.  I also want to get as far as possible up Coyote Canyon to dispersed camp as I know tomorrow is the true crux of the route…

I sweated for hours during the night before sinking hard into a sleep that washed the heat away in a chill of autumn. By the time morning rolled around, I was just laying in my quilt waiting for sunlight to finally hit the horizon. And when it did, I got out and started stretching and eating breakfast on the cusp of day while relaying some satellite texts to Janna. I wanted to get going early because I needed to cover about 50 miles today, avoid the heat, and drive back to the South Rim to do some school work. I jumped on the bike and headed down doubletrack to Bedrock Point. It's an unbelievable location with doubletrack that careens down into a shelf of rock hanging out below the upper rim of Marble Canyon. Today was no different, and I had the place entirely to myself. Backlit dawn made the rust and yellows of tumbling rock gush and split into a jumble of colorful views as Bedrock Canyon meandered in multiple directions from the viewpoint….(Read More at the Full Blog Post)

Biking House Rock Valley has become a multi-year love of mine.  It all started back in 2017 when Darren and I were driving to the North Rim to stay at Big Springs and we eyed the straight arrow path of Buffalo Ranch Road cutting across the high grasslands out to places unknown to us.  It struck us, stayed with us, and became a conversation topic we returned to over and over: what it would be like to ride out there?  It took moving to the Canyon for me to begin really biking there starting in 2020.  When winter set in high up on the rims, I began looking for relatively close desert treks to go ride in: House Rock Valley fit the intent.  Ever since, I spend a good chunk of weekends in the area riding down old doubletrack and across sandy washes enjoying the grasslands, desert scrub, and spectacular scenery along Marble Canyon…(Read More at the Full Blog Post)

My website has gone through a major update as I have transferred to SquareSpace from Weebly. This is a big move that has needed to happen as Weebly has begun phasing out support and features with its recent acquisition.

All routes are fully updated for those looking to ride or hike. Blogs are still being transferred so you may see some gaps or unfinished sections; those will be finished up over time.