Jumpoff/Shoreline Trail - First Ever RMB Video!

So this is my first ever video on this blog - short, a little bumpy, you might want to lose your lunch after watching it bounce around (I was videoing as I rode with one hand, phone in the other), but its a start - hopefully the start of many other good videos on this blog.

A few other photos also from our ride on the Shoreline Trail from the Jumpoff trailhead to 12th Street.

Early Shoreline Run

I just ended up taking a quick ride on Shoreline, starting at the Nature Center trailhead and going south.  Fun for a quick morning ride.

Women Shower, Men Ride

Climbing up Jumpoff

One of my sisters was having a baby shower, so the men of the family used this time to go for a ride - I hope no one takes offense at my title as this is more descriptive of our family than anything else.  Women will go do some feminine type thing like a baby shower or shopping while the men of the family are generally out riding.  We did the Jumpoff trail to Shoreline and then rode that to 12th Street and back.

Trailhead parking lot for Jumpoff

Jumpoff Trail

Just getting onto Shoreline

Cactus flower

Riding across Shoreline

After rain ride

I went for a quick afternoon ride, after a week where we had got quite a bit of rain.  This particular trail ended up being pretty dry.  I finally discovered the northern end of this portion of Shoreline.  You only can go about 1.5 miles before the trail essentially disappears.  A blast as always though.  Perhaps the funniest part of this ride was as I was getting in the car to return home I realized that the key to our shed was no longer in my pocket - I had forgotten to take the lapel that had the key on it off my neck when I started riding, so had stuck it in my pocket with the end of the lapel hanging out.  As it turns out it had gotten caught on a branch as I rode by, so I turned around and rode a half mile back up the trail to find my keys hanging off a branch, suspended in the air in the middle of the trail!

Pre-Conference Ride

We took a quick ride on the Shoreline trail starting from the Jumpoff trailhead on a Saturday morning.  Our ride was just prior to the LDS General Conference (see more here http://www.lds.org/general-conference/sessions/2012/04?lang=eng).  Every six months prophets and apostles of God bear witness of the divinity of Jesus Christ, and teach the way to return to live with our Heavenly Father, how to have joy in our families, and the path to true happiness.  I love these Conferences, and they bring me peace, direction, and joy to listen to.  There was a special emphasis on how important each person is to God, one being a disciple of Christ, and how the Church is set up to strengthen our families.

Winter Arrived???

Just about to catch air on the last downhill

Its starting to look a bit more like the January weather we expect.  There's finally snow on the ground (most places).  There is snow on the forecast.  Its still not there, however, seeing as I can go biking and spent a significant portion of my ride seeing dirt under my tire instead of snow.  I still spent the majority of my time riding on the packed white stuff, but it felt more like early March riding.  Frankly I'm not disappointed that winter has been tardy in his arrival this year.  I've got some pretty good rides in while he takes his time in arriving.

Same trail that I seem to be riding most frequently.  It turns out to be the most convenient trail to ride, especially when I have other things to get to in the day.  I didn't go quite as far this week.  The snow was packed great for riding though, it wasn't too cold yet, and I had a blast.  My favorite is on the last downhill section right as it hits the final flat section to the trailhead, there is a large rock that you can catch some air off of (pictured above).  Even in the winter it is pretty fun to hit.  

Heading back downhill on the snow covered hill,

A little more snow this time around at this spot

Spring in January

Rounding a bend on the Shoreline Trail

Typically I expect to see a foot or so of snow on the ground when I go out in January, expect to have ice in the driveway, many mornings I expect it to be snowing, and I figure it will be having a high around 30 degrees, and to start the day somewhere in the teens.  This year, however, is anything but typical.  I went riding this January morning and it was around 30 degrees when I started in the morning, and I didn't see one bit of snow the entire ride.  It made for a pretty enjoyable ride.

I took off from the Ogden Nature Center trailhead, and went about 1.5 miles up the Garner Canyon direction.  The trail towards Garner Canyon is quite enjoyable, and while I still have a ways to go on the trail, I quite like what I've ridden so far.

Navigating a particularly technical and rocky section on Shoreline

Perhaps one of the funniest comments I've heard while biking came today.  As I was just starting out, and heading toward my first switchback, I passed a young lady out walking her dog on the Quail Trail section.  She asked me, seemingly astonished, if I was actually going to bike up the mountain!  I assured her I would to which she seemed quite surprised!  I assume she must not spend a lot of time on the Ogden area trails.

Looking out over North Ogden

Picking my line over several rocky and narrow trail sections 

Heading over a bridge toward on the Garner Canyon section

Can we say cold???

First trailhead for Garner coming up from Shoreline - cold fingers!

We decided to brave the cold this December morning.  Having been fairly warm the day before (by warm I mean it had almost hit 40 degrees) I figured we would be doing pretty well, but it was still pretty frigid this Saturday morning.  Frost covered the cars as we left, and attempted to intimidate us into remaining in the warmth of our homes, yet we ventured out to the cold unknown.

We started at the Ogden Nature Center trailhead and went up the switchbacks, headed north on the Shoreline trail, and then took that first section that heads to Garner Canyon until we hit the sign indicating Garner Canyon and Dead Horse Canyon's directions.

Heading back down from our turnaround point

It was pretty cold - despite my limited bundling though I kept pretty warm.  The coldest part ended up being the fingers, which for me were fine until the ride down, but my poor dad's fingers were pretty numb before we had gone more than ten minutes.  All in all though it was a pretty ride and we had the trail completely to ourselves (and the three deer we had to share it with, but they were pretty accommodating with getting out of our way).  Come spring I want to see more of where the Garner Canyon trail goes.

Heading down from one of our last forks

Dropping down the last switchback at trail's end

Jumpoff - Late Fall

Riding up the Jumpoff switchbacks to Shoreline

We went for an early morning late October ride last weekend.  It was really cold to start, burnt the lungs a bit, but was a lot of fun still.  We did about 6 miles total, going from the Jumpoff trailhead to the point where the Shoreline trail intersects the canal road just before dropping to 12th Street.

Cousin Brad coming back up the trail.

My cousin rode with us on this ride.  He recently turned 19 years old and is preparing to serve two years as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  I think it is amazing that within the Church so many young men have a strong conviction that the Church is true and how it has blessed their lives, and so leave behind friends, family, schooling, and jobs for two years to serve God and help bless the lives of other people.

Riding south on the trail.

We had a lot of fun.  Hopefully its not our last ride of the year, but we know at this point with the colder weather that snow isn't far away.

One of the few tree spots - beautiful fall colors.

View over Ogden.

My dad riding up the trail

Riding up Shoreline

Return trip climb