U.S. versus Italy for mountain rides?

On 3 Nov 2005 01:43:57 -0800, wrote:


The Stelvio (Dolomites of course) from both sides is the best road and
view combination I've ever cycled and I don't know whether it can be
matched.

Except it's not in the Dolomites. It's in the Ortler Group. The Dolomites
isn't the only mountain range in northern Italy.

--
Michael MacClancy

Steve Hill writes:

That looks like it was take about the same time the other picture
was because the reflected clouds are the same. That's an amazingly
calm day.

Yes, they were taken the same day. It was a calm day, but it can be
very windy at Crater Lake especially in the afternoon. As you know,
it's no coincidence that the most spectacular rides are accompanied
by great weather. It was an amazing day... the best ever on the
bike, for me, in North America.

I just happened to do a image search on Google using the keywords:
"cloud reflections"

http://tinyurl.com/avt3x

and had to chuckle looking at the results. The #1 photo is another
photo from my Crater Lake photo gallery on that day. Here is a link
to the complete gallery and more reflection shots if anybody is
interested:

http://www.steephill.tv/galleries/2005/crater-lake/

This time I took the photo so that the Bernina Massif was reflected
around the central horizon in the frame. I was greatly pleased to
have experienced Miralago after all these years... I can't show
you the picture but...

I'm sure it's a good one just like your others. I find reflection
shots intriguing because they are natural art. Here's a mountain
reflection shot I think is one of the best by an Alaskan
photographer:

http://www.wanderingphotographer.com.../ak3/pic10.htm.

By the way, did you notice the reference to you in the Crater Lake
photo gallery?

http://tinyurl.com/8u4xv

That reminds me of the ride I took over Ebbetts Pass with about seven
other bikies in the 1960's. These guys were strong and fast racers
who wanted to see something other than criteriums and road races and
joined four of us on a ride over Sonora, monitor an Ebbetts passes on
a weekend in the spring.

Coming down Monitor Pass into the East Carson River on the way to
Markleeville we saw that the Ebbetts Pass road had a barrier and a
"Road Closed" sign. That wasn't anything too daunting because we had
read the pass would be opened the next weekend and that meant they
were about done clearing the road. The next morning when we reached
Kinney reservoir we found a wall of snow and two parked snow plows.
From there is was a two mile hike to the summit on which the newcomers
saw it as a march to Stalingrad even though it was a beautiful sunny
day. Just beyond the summit were two more snow plows and a clear
road.

After returning home, the new members of our crew told tall tales of a
death march in the Sierra from which, today, we have the annual
"Markleeville Death Ride".

http://tinyurl.com/ccu2h

The cursor is where the "death" march began. On the other hand, two
of my riding companions were once arrested for riding on a closed road
at crater lake, so it isn't always so easy.

Jobst Brandt

That's a good story about the origins of the Markleeville Death Ride.

When I was cycling up Ebbetts Pass last spring (2nd last weekend of
May), the road was closed, but it was clear all the way to the top. The
snowbanks were highest and the road narrowed near the Kinney Reservoir
you mentioned and linked to. There were lots of other riders taking
advantage of both the great weather and closed road up Ebbetts that day
as well. Here are some Ebbetts snowbank photos of my ride last spring
near Kinney Reservoir where you started your Stalingrad march years
ago:

Gardnerville guy standing next to an 8 foot sheer snowbank:
http://tinyurl.com/a4u2r
Descending through high snowbanks: http://tinyurl.com/ajghb
The buried Ebbetts sign at the top: http://tinyurl.com/bkmtn

On the other hand, two of my riding companions were once arrested for
riding on a closed road at crater lake, so it isn't always so easy.

At Crater Lake, while entering the park by car I was informed that the
east side of the Rim Drive was closed. I asked the rangers whether the
east side was passable on a bike. They weren't sure and didn't seem to
care whether I tried. I suspect cyclists don't get arrested anymore for
cycling a mountain road closed to vehicular traffic. I've done it too
often to think otherwise!

Steve
http://www.steephill.tv bike travelogue

Steve Hill writes:

That's a good story about the origins of the Markleeville Death Ride.

When I was cycling up Ebbetts Pass last spring (2nd last weekend of
May), the road was closed, but it was clear all the way to the top. The
snowbanks were highest and the road narrowed near the Kinney Reservoir
you mentioned and linked to. There were lots of other riders taking
advantage of both the great weather and closed road up Ebbetts that day
as well. Here are some Ebbetts snowbank photos of my ride last spring
near Kinney Reservoir where you started your Stalingrad march years
ago:

Gardnerville guy standing next to an 8 foot sheer snowbank:
http://tinyurl.com/a4u2r
Descending through high snowbanks: http://tinyurl.com/ajghb
The buried Ebbetts sign at the top: http://tinyurl.com/bkmtn

Looks familiar. One thing to remember when pushing a bike OVER the
snow is that you must stay on the "road" because sooner or later you
will come to a creek that has steep snow walls with water flowing way
down there that you cannot cross. Therefore, you must look at the
trees and go there where the road most likely lies under the snow. I
learned this in the 1950's when climbing Luther pass where nothing was
plowed from South Tahoe.

On the other hand, two of my riding companions were once arrested for
riding on a closed road at crater lake, so it isn't always so easy.

Make that Lassen Loop. In any case, it was an officious Ranger and
they had to pay a fine.

At Crater Lake, while entering the park by car I was informed that the
east side of the Rim Drive was closed. I asked the rangers whether the
east side was passable on a bike. They weren't sure and didn't seem to
care whether I tried. I suspect cyclists don't get arrested anymore for
cycling a mountain road closed to vehicular traffic. I've done it too
often to think otherwise!

Not all rangers take their power so seriously.

Jobst Brandt

Not all rangers take their power so seriously.

As I mentioned, I've never been hassled while cycling on a closed road;
however, on one occasion I could have... easily! It occurred a few
years ago while climbing a closed section of the Blue Ridge Parkway in
the Mount Pisgah National Forest, the "Cradle of Forestry in America",
near Asheville, North Carolina at the end of December. I encountered a
lot of black ice from frozen melt water and debris during an out and
back. I passed a ranger and thought for sure I was going to take heck
but he just smiled and waved. Maybe he knew what lay ahead and doesn't
like cyclists. Since I was doing an o&b, I did valuable recon on the
ascent taking note of the dangerous sections and stored them away. The
Parkway has a fair number of tunnels and some of the them can be very
dark. As I passed through the Mt Pisgah tunnels:
http://tinyurl.com/ap4fj I noticed huge chunks of ice in the middle of
the opposite lane barely visible in the dark. On the return descent, I
descended like such a little baby that I lost valuable daylight and by
the time I hit the tunnels they were pitch dark. Dark as in... it
doesn't make a difference whether your eyes are open or closed! Anyway,
I walked through the tunnels feeling my way along the walls and
stumbling over blocks of ice. I got back to Asheville in one piece but
with no daylight to spare.

The moral of the story: sometimes there is a good reason why a road is
closed! And... bring a light!

I know a little bit about your sense of adventure, Jobst, so I'm sure
you would have enjoyed it.

Steve
http://www.steephill.tv bike travelogue

There is some extraordinarily beautiful scenery in northern New Mexico and
western Colorado. There is also a lightly traveled road parallel to the
Icefields Parkway in the Canadian Rockies between Banff and Jasper which has
some scenery to marvel at..

"Ken Roberts" wrote in message
...
I put some photos of my September trip with Sharon to northeastern Italy in
Veneto and Sudtirol up on the web. Then I saw photos from California and
Colorado, and that got me thinking:

Are there some paved roads in the United States with mountain views as
spectacular (or more?) as the Dolomites in Italy?

It would be nice to know, in case the USdollar drops further against the
Euro, or aviation fuel prices make going to Italy or France too expensive.

So like what's a paved mountain loop in the U.S. that's in the same league
with say this ride over the Giau, Fedaia, Sella, Gardena, and Valparola
passes:
http://roberts-1.com/t/b05/it/k/c

I'd be happy to see someone substitute a more spectacular Dolomites route
or better set of Dolomites cycling photos than those. In addition to the
obvious fact that I'm not an expert photographer, and I've only been
riding there once so far, most people would say September is not the best
time for the Dolomites. I'd guess that June is more spectacular, with more
snow on more of the mountains. But that route is what impressed me the
most.

Ken

I think the "lightly traveled road" you are referring to is Hwy 1A
which runs parallel to the busy TransCanada Highway between Banff and
Lake Louise (80k). From Lake Louise to Jasper (220K), the Icefields
Parkway is the only road through the park. The 1A is very scenic road.
There are some short spurs off of the Parkway but nothing that runs
parallel.

Steve
www.steephill.tv bike travelogue

Are there some paved roads in the United States with mountain views as
spectacular (or more?) as the Dolomites in Italy?

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

As mountains I find the Alps far more interesting, as the north american
mountains have been polished by ice. The Rockies appears as gigantic rounded
hills compared to the Alps and the Himalaya, the latter two ranges are
geologially much younger. Also the roads are different. You rarely find the
switchbacks that are common on alpine roads.

On the other hand northamerican mountains are much better for
mountainbiking, because they are not that steep.

Per

http://lowdin.nu