White Mountain Peak MTB — The Way Down

What goes up White Mountain Peak must come down.

The two of us bundled up prior to the summit as the weather had turned cold— I wore my Mountain Hardware down jacket, Ibex gloves, and North Face Diad rain/wind shell.

A sort of a meal at cache #3 (on the return )

After a day of high energy, the organic beef jerky sapped my energy— bad choice. But it sure tasted good. The right fuel is critical for sustained efforts, and beef jerky and a candy bar are not it apparently. I should have stuck to Gu energy gel.

Note how the North Face Diad wind/rain shell fits conveniently under the helmet— adding a great deal of comfort and warmth over a jacket with no hood.

Beef jerky gut bomb on its way down from the White Mountain summit, below Barcroft
Photo by Geoffrey Faraghan

Late day weather can be gorgeous, but also cool. Knowing one has a light makes it possible to relax and enjoy the trip down without having to race down to beat the dark.

Descending the short paved section near Patriarch Grove

Ancient Bristlecone Pine with silhouetted by the westering sun, White Mountain Road

Westering sun biker shadow
Photo by Geoffrey Faraghan

It’s a long day, and we cached lights at cache #4 so that we could descend in the dark if need be. Fortunately, we had daylight right up until we returned to our campsite in Silver Canyon.

The Trek SuperFly 100 Elite SRAM XO brakes overheated not far from here, and I had to stop and let them cool. The Shimano XTR brakes had no trouble.

Near the top of Silver Canyon at dusk, ~ 18-25% grades

Sunset in Silver Canyon

A warm glow from a setting sun and high clouds illuminates Silver Canyon

A warm glow from the setting sun fills Silver Canyon with warm light.

Your author about half-way down Silver Canyon at dusk

Your author and friend at the end of the epic ride, back at camp
Photo by Geoffrey Faraghan