Getting home from Basin and Washes on November 23rd, I went straight to the calendar to see if there was an open weekend to offer a trip to our local group. It is a busy time of year. Probably no busier than any other but suddenly it is bookended with year end and with several holidays stacked before it. And parties, and planning, and deadlines, and expectations, and… the need for adventure!

Bikepacking Roots was facilitating a Winter Solstice Campout through their Community Stewards. As luck would have it the Winter Solstice weekend, December 21-22 was the openest weekend in my calendar. This will work!

I planned a 100ish mile loop out of Tonopah through Goldfield and Gemfield. I have been wanting to get back to the area and ride through Paymaster Canyon in part. I ran this part of my plan past a core group of BurritoPackingNV, Doug, Marc, Mark and Corby. There wasn’t much enthusiasm for the trip and Tonopah is a significant drive for a 2-3 day trip. And this was just the feedback I needed before putting it out to a wider audience. But I will get back to this route sooner rather than later.

So my thought for something closer to home was the Pine Grove Hills area. The area between Smith Valley in the north to Bodie State Park in the south,  Highway 395 in the west and US 95 in the east is prime bikepacking terrain within reach of Reno/Tahoe/Carson City populations. I have lead multiple overnight trips through the Walker River and Desert Creek areas as well as numerous day trips through out. Pine Grove is a favorite ghost town/mining camp and I have been wanting to incorporate it into an overnight some how. I landed on a 35 mile loop climbing Nye Canyon, overnighting at Pine Grove, descending Sand Canyon, and climbing Garden Canyon. Garden Canyon has been on my list of backroads to check out so that was a secondary target for this trip.

Of course the weather this time of year is a big consideration. Nevada usually has a strong high pressure system over the state. As a result we have clear skies and cool dry air. Most weather coming off the Pacific is trapped in the Sierra or shifts north to the Pacific Northwest. When that high pressure breaks down the precipitation makes its way across the state. Our least favorite term is the “atmospheric river”, while good for our water year, bad for turning our dirt roads into impassable peanut butter mud. But weather in Nevada is typically spotty and localized. So it is my policy to always show up for a ride and decide what to do on the spot. The threat of rain/snow was forecasted at 30% which was enough to influence some potential participants.

While I was prepared for a Solo-stice Overnight I was so pleased to be joined by Hannah Spendlove (@rather_b_wrecking) and Alex Stephens (@alexander_rno). I met Hannah through RAR-Reno, Coffee Outside, and Is Peavine Dry? Hannnah wears many hats, her latest project (though she is hard to keep up with) is Nine Lives Supply Co, a super fun stichery (sewn adventure goods) company. It is no surprise she is influenced by Fish Ski Designs. She gave me her version of a neck gator, and I love it! I have a lot of neck gators but it is an instant favorite. I just met Alex through Hannah. Alex is a road/gravel tourist, and a coaster brake aficionado. I can’t wait to put together a road tour with him this spring/summer, and I can’t stop thinking about coaster brake basketpacking. We arrived at the same time at the start of the ride and we were off! It was great to chat and ride, both have such great experiences to share.

Our first stop was the hard rock mining adit that was carved into the hillside breccia. Stay out, Stay alive! We only poked in a few feet. With the recent earthquakes in our region it is a good policy not to enter mines no matter how solid they look.

Then it was the long climb through the washes of Nye and Dead Ox Canyons to Pine Grove Summit. The sky was grey. The temperatures were mild and the wind was at our backs. The descent from the summit was a little challenging. With the exposure, the top of Pine Grove Canyon held snow and ice in the shade. The steeper bits approached 15% and combined with ice and ruts it required your attention. But we all made it down without a spill.

Arriving in Pine Grove we had plenty of time to poke around and set up camp before the sun set. Again the temps were surprisingly mild. Even after dinner and retiring to our tents the temps remained mild, 35^o at 10 pm and 37^o at 6 am. But we had some rain from 5:00 am to 5:10 am. I was a little concerned as the rain came down. Storms always sound more severe from the calm inside a tent. But my tent fly was dry by time we packed up.

Day 2 started with a steep little climb to the cemetery. I would have missed it, I remember seeing it on the map, but I was looking at the route ahead when Alex pointed out the barrier on our left. The cemetery entrance had a handful of great interpretive signs giving the history of the area. It was a great stop and the cemetery is clearly cared for.

Then we were winding our way down to Scotts Canyon for our big climb to Lobdell Summit. For a 35 mile loop, 5000’ of climbing seemed like a lot. The steep bits made the moderate grades feel “flat”. The descent off Lobdell got exciting with a short section of 15-18% grade. As far as a loop goes I feel like we chose the right direction of travel. Between the cemetery and Sand Canyon there were some really fun luge-like sections.

I was really excited to travel through Garden Canyon. The entrance is so rugged. The first third of a mile in the canyon is the steepest and water was running over the road. That made it a little tricky. After the first mile the canyon climb mellowed. We passed through three meadows before we were back on Risue Rd. The arc of Garden Canyon is a great 5 mile connector for route building in this area. It trades about 5 miles of paved NV 338 for 5 miles of scenic forest two-track.

By the numbers Back at the vehicles it was high-5’s all around! We traveled 35.7 miles with 4972’ of climbing! We didn’t see a lot of wildlife, a handful of birds, and deer, coyote, bunny, and mountain lion tracks. The Pine Grove Mine is a highlight of the district but there are other sites to visit. I kept thinking to myself I need to check-out all the little roads back there. A great reference to the area is the Nevada OHV website.

Pine Grove from Nevada Ghost Towns & Mining Camps (Paher, 1970) “had a post office, the weekly News, and a population of 200… In the early 1870’s the population reached its peak of 600… contained five saloons, three hotels, variety store, hardware store, Wells Fargo Agent, dance hall, blacksmith shops, stores of general merchandise, barber shops, shoeshine shop, school, oxen yards, livery stables, and two doctors offices.” This description vs the few structures and foundations that remain really challenges the imagination.

While this area is currently managed by the US Forest Service as a part of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest were were traveling on the traditional and sacred lands of the Nüümü (Northern Paiute) and Wašišiw Ɂítdeʔ (Washoe). We traveled along the northern border of the Wovoka Wilderness, designated in 2014, with the cooperation of local tribes and community members, and named in honor of Wovoka, a spiritual leader of Norther Paiute who through the Ghost Dance prophesied the return of indigenous dominance and traditional way of life. I would like to thank my friend Darron Sturgeon for sharing with me his Northern Paiute heritage.

Riders and rigs Hannah normally bikepacks on a gravel bike but for this route she set up her Yeti ARC for bikepacking. Her custom frame bag and feed bags were definite highlights. Alex rode his Lightspeed Pinhoti with a 27.5+ wheelset. I really hope we can get a coaster brake basketpacking trip in. I rode my Falconer B+ with Aeroe rack and mini-panniers from Nuke Sunrise.