I am starting a new category of post, “Ride Report”. It is a quick post giving my impressions of a ride that may be lumped together with some other rides in a bigger story about an area which I publish at a future date. I am doing this in part because I have so many ride posts started as drafts that I don’t want to loose my first impressions in the time it takes me to compose my complete story.

Today I rode the area above Washoe City’s Eastlake Blvd starting on Ophir Rd. The goal was to intersect with Jumbo and Ophir Grades high in the Virginia Range. Unfortunately the ride was cut short by sticky mud but the diversity of terrain and the feeling of isolation in an area so close to home was awesome.

The canyons we were riding in felt absolutely foreign. I repeated to myself, I had no idea this was here. At times we had great views of Reno’s big hotels, the popular route to Virginia City, Geiger Grade, snow capped views of Mt. Rose, Slide Mt., Job’s and Freel Pks, the prominent peaks above Virginia City, as well as Washoe Lake. We always new where we were but the canyons also surprised us with sand dunes, rocky, and muddy climbs. The varied terrain made riding my fat bike a great choice for the day.

Following Ophir Rd was a challenge, no signage and many side spurs. This creates a perfect recipe for exploration even if it makes seeking a particular goal more difficult. The many road and jeep-trail options only added to the richness of the area.

The ride explorations are here and will direct my future rides in the Virginia Range:

https://www.strava.com/activities/253205958/embed/3341b72b428ceed76d7c0076b213e4860f8a9097