Gary Eidsmoe and I took off around noon from the Shell station on Los Coches Rd. The weather was absolutely great. Gary was his 2009 BMW 1200 GS Adventure and I was on 2009 1200 GS with after market exhaust (Akrapovic) and suspension (Elka), and Heidenau tires. As we climbed toward Sunrise Highway the temperature consistently dropped, but was never under 44 degrees. However, adding in that fuzzy math for wind chill, humidity, barometric pressure...blah, blah, blah...it still felt cold.
We were going to get off the 8 at Sunrise Highway and take Old 80 the rest of the way to Mc Cain Valley. Only two problems with that idea- number 1, Sunrise Highway was CLOSED and number 2- we realized as we passed the Pine Valley exit that everyone in San Diego all the same idea at the same time...LET'S GO TO THE SNOW!. Cars were backed up on the highway at least half mile back from the exit. Cars were parked on both sides of the freeway so “responsible” adults could let their kids and dogs play in the snow. I kid you not- both shoulders of Hwy 8 East. I would have stopped to take a picture of this snow induced euphoria (read circus), but I would have also been one of those “responsible” adults. Needless to say we skipped that exit and got off at Buckman Springs.
The roads were dry and clear all the way out to McCain valley. We headed out passed the OHV park and stopped at the Corrizo over-look. The skies were clear out the Colo River. We got back on the road and headed toward Cottonwood campground. We went over a couple of rises in the road and as we descended toward the campground, the snow started to accumulate and the tracks were getting slipperier (is that a word). We were doing pretty good slogging through the mud, but then we made a left turn into the campground. The snow had melted and then refrozen...guess what? It doesn't matter what kind of tires you have...you can't get traction on ice! We eventually got turned around, out of the campground and back on McCain Valley Rd.
We went about another half mile, and I think we ended up about half mile short of the end. The ruts were getting deeper, the mud thicker, and the time later. I told Gary I didn't want to wait for the ruts to refreeze to get better traction- meaning I didn't want to be out there past dark. He agreed so we turned around. Coming out was a little better and we were thankful for packed DG freshly dampened.
The bikes did great. Every time I ride one of these GS's in the “outback” I am amazed at their capabilities and reliability. We had a great time and joked that if we keep riding like this together that we will eventually be ready for “The Long Way...something or other”.
Thanks for reading,
-Brian Jones
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