The Bristlecone Pine Forest (1 of 14)

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9/6 Today was the day we were to ride from Big Pine to the Bristlecone pine forest. It's a 24 mile ride with 21 miles of serious climbing taking you from 4,000 ft. to over 10,000 ft. in the White Mountains. I haven't ridden high altitude in 2+ years (over 6,000 ft.) and haven\'t done a comparable climb since the Stelvio in June '04. I wasn't sure if I was up to the task, but thought there was no harm in trying. After about 40 minutes of climbing in 90 degree heat, it became apparent I wasn't. My heart rate stayed constantly just below the anerobic threshold - something one can only sustain for about 20 minutes at a time. Getting it to recover became harder the higher we climbed, and I knew I couldn't do 3-4 hours of riding in 20 minutes stretches and trying to recover with no shade in sight. So, after 7.25 miles, we turned around and headed for the car. I hoped I would be able to recover for the next big climb tomorrow.

We then drove up Highway 168 and White Mountain Road - the end of which is the Schulman grove of the Bristlecone Pine Forest. We hiked their loop trail, which was only about 1.5 miles, but had a 1,000 ft. ascent in it, so you still had to work a little. The trees were mysterious and beautiful - some up to 4,000 years old. We had deep blue skies and rapidly forming thunderheads. So, that made fore some dramatic photos. All in all, it was a good day - despite failing on the climb. Tomorrow is a new day.