evdog
iMTB Rockstah
Bikepacking Catalina Island has been on my to-do list for a long time. It should be an easy 3-day trip, but with permits and reservations required it takes more advanced planning than I normally prefer. 406 has been working an odd schedule right now giving him mid-week off so with temps still looking reasonable it seemed like a good time to go. Managed to snag the last campsite at Little Harbor that was free for consecutive nights.
Our shuttle to the island
Walking off the ferry in Avalon was a bit of culture shock - tourist hell. We picked up our bike permits at the visitor center and immediately watched some girl back her golf cart into two carts behind her when she couldn't figure out how to put it in drive. Seeing the golf cart tow cart made more sense after that.
Get us out of here! We climbed out of town to the south up Wrigley Rd. Apparently this road forms part of a loop all the tourists take their rental golf carts on so it was a parade of them going the opposite direction. But at least we were away from the worst of the mayhem.
See ya later, suckers! Here we turned onto the dirt East End Road where the real climbing began.
Warning!
This road would take us up to 1,600ft, the high point for both day 1 and the entire trip.
The elevation wouldn't kill us, but the heat just might. Heatwave across the southwest appeared on forecasts soon after we booked reservations.
My little thermometer showed between 90 and 100F and there was minimal breeze on the climb
Finally up top we get a view back down to Avalon
The Trans Catalina trail, along with other trails here aren't open to bikes. Most of the sections we saw were steep and stair-steppy, so I was actually fine with that. From the map it looks like half or more of TCT is on old fire roads.
Few trees means little shade, so shade structures have been installed along the TCT and bike routes. We came across a fountain soon after this as well.
The Catalina Island Conservancy clearly has our safety in mind. That cattle guard would be really dangerous to ride over!
We had another 8-9 miles to go to the Airport where we could refill water and maybe get some food. Fortunately the main climb for the day was over, it would be all rolling ridgetop terrain from here on. And some cloud cover moved in. It felt 20* cooler.
Had a coke and snack and picked up a couple expensive beers for later, then continued on. The remaining miles would trend downhill.
View of the west coast. Little Harbor campground is in among the palm trees in the background. You can see the TCT switchbacking up the ridge above it.
We got into camp and met the neighbors. Some were more social than others. Went over to the beach for swim and to use the outdoor shower.
The girls next to us had to wait across the way until this guy moved away and started napping. We were told he likes our campsite in particular, and even knows how to turn the water spigot on with his nose.
Rather than build our own we commandeered the neighbors' campfire while they went off for a sunset paddle.
Good day on the bike. The only bummer is getting a late start due to ferry schedule meant the ride started in the heat of the day. It would have been much easier if we could have started earlier. Heard about a few backpackers who needed assistance from the rangers. It really cooks once you're away from the water.
Stats 24.5mi, +/- 3,200
Our shuttle to the island
Walking off the ferry in Avalon was a bit of culture shock - tourist hell. We picked up our bike permits at the visitor center and immediately watched some girl back her golf cart into two carts behind her when she couldn't figure out how to put it in drive. Seeing the golf cart tow cart made more sense after that.
Get us out of here! We climbed out of town to the south up Wrigley Rd. Apparently this road forms part of a loop all the tourists take their rental golf carts on so it was a parade of them going the opposite direction. But at least we were away from the worst of the mayhem.
See ya later, suckers! Here we turned onto the dirt East End Road where the real climbing began.
Warning!
This road would take us up to 1,600ft, the high point for both day 1 and the entire trip.
The elevation wouldn't kill us, but the heat just might. Heatwave across the southwest appeared on forecasts soon after we booked reservations.
My little thermometer showed between 90 and 100F and there was minimal breeze on the climb
Finally up top we get a view back down to Avalon
The Trans Catalina trail, along with other trails here aren't open to bikes. Most of the sections we saw were steep and stair-steppy, so I was actually fine with that. From the map it looks like half or more of TCT is on old fire roads.
Few trees means little shade, so shade structures have been installed along the TCT and bike routes. We came across a fountain soon after this as well.
The Catalina Island Conservancy clearly has our safety in mind. That cattle guard would be really dangerous to ride over!
We had another 8-9 miles to go to the Airport where we could refill water and maybe get some food. Fortunately the main climb for the day was over, it would be all rolling ridgetop terrain from here on. And some cloud cover moved in. It felt 20* cooler.
Had a coke and snack and picked up a couple expensive beers for later, then continued on. The remaining miles would trend downhill.
View of the west coast. Little Harbor campground is in among the palm trees in the background. You can see the TCT switchbacking up the ridge above it.
We got into camp and met the neighbors. Some were more social than others. Went over to the beach for swim and to use the outdoor shower.
The girls next to us had to wait across the way until this guy moved away and started napping. We were told he likes our campsite in particular, and even knows how to turn the water spigot on with his nose.
Rather than build our own we commandeered the neighbors' campfire while they went off for a sunset paddle.
Good day on the bike. The only bummer is getting a late start due to ferry schedule meant the ride started in the heat of the day. It would have been much easier if we could have started earlier. Heard about a few backpackers who needed assistance from the rangers. It really cooks once you're away from the water.
Stats 24.5mi, +/- 3,200
