Puyallup Cyclopaths: Alder Lake Loop Ride

Author:  Mike Hassur

Woke up at 4:00 AM and checked the outside temperature – 50 degrees – looking good for today’s ride. 

I picked up Leon at 6:15, and we drove to Orting.  This was Leon’s first Cyclopath Ride since “The Accident”, and it was exciting that he was joining us. 

We arrived at the meeting place (Orting, in front of the bike shop) at about 6:35 AM, started unloading our bikes, and waiting to see who showed up for the ride.  It didn’t take long.  First, Jim Wilcher (from the Seattle branch of The Puyallup Cyclopaths), arrived.  Then, people just started pouring in.  We ended up with thirteen guys (Leon and I thought maybe we would have 6 or 7):  Leon Matz, Les Becker, Nick Iverson, Jim Wilcher, Mark Delrosario, Dan Haller, John Winter, Martin Katzberg, Kurt Maute, Scott Larson, Duane (Les’ friend), Rex (Rob Critchfield’s friend), and me (Mike Hassur).  Apologies to Duane and Rex, I’ll learn those last names as we go.

As we headed out of Orting it was overcast and about 50 degrees.  It felt a little chilly at first (at least to me), but that only lasted about 10 minutes.  We headed south on Orville Road past the soccer fields and the old sawmill.  Everyone was talking as we rode – welcoming Leon back to the group, meeting the new guys, and just enjoying being out on a nice morning.  Before we knew it, we were past Lake Kapowsin and were heading to Lake Ohop (where we made the traditional bathroom stop at the boat launch).  While the group stopped; Leon, Jim Wilcher, and I headed on up the road. 

With Leon riding more slowly than usual as he recovers, we knew the group would catch up with us.  As we started up the long climb into Eatonville, we turned right about 200 yards up the climb onto Ohop Valley Road.  This beautiful road took us through the Ohop Valley (obviously!!) and over to the Mountain Highway west of Eatonville.  As we headed up the Mountain Highway toward Alder Lake, Leon left our group and took one of the cutoff roads back to Eatonville and then back home – NOT BAD FOR A GUY WHO SUSTAINED A BROKEN FEMUR AND HIP A FEW MONTHS AGO!! 

The Mountain Hwy climb up to Alder Lake is one of my favorite parts of this ride.  The road winds its way up to the lake – constantly climbing but never very steep.  It is scenic and a fun climb to push hard on (though on this ride we mostly “talked hard” rather than pushing hard going up). 

We took the obligatory group photo at the overlook with the Alder Lake Dam in the background; and then it was off to the Alder Lake Cutoff Road which took us back to Eatonville.  From there, we retraced our steps past Lakes Ohop and Kapowsin. 

We stopped at the turnoff to The Climb and separated.  Rex, Mark, Kurt, and Dan had to get home; so they headed back to Orting.  The rest of our group (John, Scott, Martin, Les, Nick, Duane, Jim, and me) took Camp One Road as we wanted to introduce Jim Wilcher to The Climb.  By this time; the sun was out, the sky was blue, and we visited all the way to the top of The Climb.  After The Climb, it was a fun paceline back to Orting. 

 

This year’s edition of The Alder Lake Loop Ride turned out to be just what it was intended to be:  relaxed, fun, and a chance to get some miles in our legs.  Things will begin to change with our next couple of rides:  The Chinook Pass Snow Ride and The Skate Creek Loop Ride (for more info see our 2013 ride schedule on our web page:  https://sites.google.com/site/puyallupcyclopaths/home/2013-ride-schedule ).  These will be mountain rides.  They are not extremely long rides (~40-50 miles and ~80 miles respectively), but there is lots of climbing.  If you find yourself lagging way behind on either of these rides, then you may not be ready for our more demanding rides (e.g. Triple-By-Pass, Reverse RAMROD, Quadruple-By-Pass, etc.).

To see photos from this ride click on the following:  https://picasaweb.google.com/103821724300588557330/2013_05_11AlderLakeLoopRide#slideshow/5877097605829777506