In and Out of the Canyon

Packer fans are chomping their brats after soundly biting the Falcons beaks last night. And while the Bears were ripping out the talons of the Seahawks, I was pointing my cyclocross deep into the cold wild country where, as Yoda Yonda would say, “the owls screw the chickens.”

I’ve ridden through but never out of Apple River Canyon State Park. This seemed like an excellent place from which to explore new roads between Stockton and Apple River.

It was 16 degrees as I parked the Blazer in the lot. I lifted the Las Cruces out the back and began adding layers over my Craft tee and merino V-neck-- a hooded jersey followed by a fleece lined nylon vest, and finally my Patagonia lined ripstop hunters-hold-yer-fire orange shell.

Then, toe warmers to socks and booties on tap; puffy down gloves; and warm woolen cap. These are a few of my favorite things.

I rode east out of Apple River Canyon Park to Fiedler and turned south. After about a block, as Fiedler turns right, I continued straight ahead on Kupersmith Road. Kupersmith is paved down into the valley to the intersection at Rush Town Road.

“Let dogs delight to bark but not bite for God hath made them so.” A pair of honey furry golden retrievers trotted along side on my approach to Rush Town.

At the stop sign just across the little bridge, it was straight south up a very abrupt incline. After tackling that, I rode flat and curled back east to Rush Town Road along Kupersmith and Chelsea Roads. Several creeks run together chiseling solitary hollows around this loop.

Back at the intersection of Rush Town and Kupersmith Roads, we might have ridden straight ahead on Rush Town over to Canyon Park Road. Instead back turned north on Kupersmith up the hill past our fluffy tail waggers to Fiedler Road. From there we reached over to Canyon Park Road.

Circling back into the Park, we crossed the bridge, and turned left. My GPS measured 17% on the climb out of the canyon. On top, Canyon Park Road eases its way west to Broadway Road.

For years, I have passed by the south end of Broadway Road. On a whim, I drove it in the Blazer the Friday before and was delighted at my discovery. Broadway runs from the village of Apple River southwest and terminates at Townsend Road just east of the Boy Scout Camp.

After a couple easy rollers, the road dips into a quiet coulee and rises steeply out the other side around a corner near the Bonjour Farm. I was impressed with the grip of my Schwalbe tires and was pleased I had listened to Bill Leibman’s lesson on tire rotation.

In the next quarter mile the coulee converges with Apple River Canyon, and you look down on either side through tight naked woods expecting a buck or buckskin covered Boy Scout. In fact, I was close a place where people practice orienteering to build teamwork and leadership skills, and perhaps mix it up with the Scouts. It was tough terrain on a bicycle but I preferred riding on frosty gravel to trudging through the thick forest.

I squeezed the brakes down the hill to Townsend Road and approached my turnaround at the entrance to the Scout Camp. After slowing for a lady in a dirty cream Chrysler I came about. Alas, I cut handlebars too short. The snow clogged rear tire met the cold hard pavement, and, BANG, down I went. All the mummified layers failed to cushion my left shoulder from the fall. I prayed for my rotator cuff as I climbed back up Broadway and made my way back to the Park.

Maybe I should take up snowboarding -- eh, maybe not.