Oopsie

First things first: no one got hurt. [More on that later.]

I needed to keep it short today and figured I would just ride alone. But then I thought, why not invite some friends? Good call: Four joined me. Much more fun than riding alone.

There were turkeys. (There are always turkeys.) This brood had settled inside a pen, reluctantly flapping their wings to scale the fence when it was time to leave. The largest one was the last to exit, after repeatedly pacing the perimeter and studying each post. [Yup, they're all about the same height. You can do it!]

On the way up Shannon, I watched a doe dart across the road and kept an eye out for any of her companions. She was joining her fawn, as it turned out. Later we spotted a pack of four young bucks crossing a field.

We were ready to be cautious on Hicks, knowing that it had recently been chip-sealed, but the surface was fine. There were some patches of loose gravel at the edges of the road, in places—which might have contributed to today's bit of excitement.

There was very little traffic. After passing the reservoir, we regrouped at our turn-around point, a small clearing at the bend just before the road kicks up to its merciless 13.7% grade. The sound of spinning tires led someone to ask “Is it hard for vehicles to get up it, too?”

No, but ... first there's a sharp bend, and then surprise! Steep! And maybe there are some deep piles of loose gravel right now.

Maybe the pickup truck took that curve a little too quick, slid a bit and lost traction. However he did it, he was now perpendicular to the road, his back wheels in a ditch. An SUV came along and stopped to help, but this was gonna require a proper tow truck. We had a hard time convincing a couple on their way to Mt. Umunhum that they really truly could not get through, and slowed down a couple of motorcyclists (who could get through). After we'd each walked around the bend to get a clear view of the action, we decided it was time to skedaddle. [Good luck to the other cars we saw, headed in that direction.]

One more climb, followed by a social coffee stop, and I finished my ride after 18 miles and 1,340 feet of climbing.