Too bad we didn't ski this time. We brought skis, but it rained all weekend. But things weren't so bad, since the hotel had two hot tubs and I had my bike.
Riverside Blueberries
First singletrack destination was the Riverside trail, reached via an old dirt road called the Millar Creek Trail. Everything at Whistler is completely saturated right now, and this could instead be called the Millar Trail Creek:
The Riverside trail itself winds along the roaring Cheakamus River for several miles, rolling up and down with a nice rhythm and lots of overlooks like this:
and finally ending at Loggers Lake. The photo doesn't really show it, but it is POURING rain at this point:
On the way back to Whistler, I found my thrill on Blueberry Hill. This rocky, loggy trail climbs very steeply for a few hundred yards (not rideable by me when wet), countours the side of the hill for a while and then drops steeply (also not rideable right now) back to the valley. The middle section has several overlooks like this one:
A River Runs through It
Sunday I headed oot for A River Runs Through It, billed in the mtbr reviews as "Whistler's most famous trail". Only 2-3 miles long, this trail winds tightly around in a dense forest, with logs and other obstacles to clear every few yards. At many points there are ladders, ramps, platforms, and teeter-totters to challenge the adventurous rider. Wanna ride a 1' wide log that's 50 feet long and 8 feet off the ground? They have that. Best part is anytime there's a serious technical challenge available, there are 2-3 options to ride through that section, some extremely technical, though none of them easy. I could feel my technical skills improving after a few minutes on the trail, simply oot of necessity. Most of my pictures in this dark forest didn't turn oot, but here's something I rode:
And here's something I did NOT ride. If you slip off this slimy log bridge into the river which is raging right now, say goodbye to your bike and possibly your life:
I can see why this trail is so famous, and why people often ride it over and over again to sharpen their skills. Hey red-haze, you've got to get up and check out some of the cool stunts they have. Bet you'll get some great ideas for Stella. Same goes for you Eugenistanis and WhyPass.
And Trails Run around It
I was tempted to ride this trail a second time myself, but I had other areas to explore. First I rode a great nearby doubletrack called Whip Me Snip Me, then cruised over to the Lost Lake X-C ski trail system, which when the snow is gone consists of a bunch of rolling doubletrack trails with a few really nice singletracks thrown in for good measure. This view out over the village is from the sweet White Gold Traverse:
After all that good sloppy riding, it was time to head back to the lodge, get a good soak in, and enjoy the view from our balcony:
Not bad ... eh?
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