2025 Diablo Day 34 - Saturday Morning Junction

We're having a heat wave.

There was a sizeable fire in Dublin yesterday afternoon - I got to see the tanker plane flying overhead - impressive, scary, got her done. Still kind of smoky today though.

Here's the latest on the hole in the fence.  The elitist snob fence is still up, but someone cleared the bushes around the semi-secret bypass so now it's easy to find and use.

This is the view as you're descending from The Mountain just as you pass the end of the stucco wall.

This is the view as you're starting up The Mountain - the bypass is over to the left.

Another view in the direction of starting up The Mountain. The view here used to be hidden by a bunch of bushes on the left... no more. You can clearly see the path leading down to the same path that went to the defunct hole.

And this is what it looks like up close.

There are about 15 sections of about 8' iron fence between the end of the stucco wall and the newly-exposed bypass end-run.

There were a lot of fast guys on The Mountain today - including this one.

And these two too.

2025 Diablo Day 33 - Saturday Morning Junction

Well the big news last week is that the Court ordered the elitist snobs in the country club to tear down that gate, so SGR riders coming from Danville will again have safe access to the Park.

https://bikedanville.org/court-orders-reopening-of-historic-easement-to-mount-diablo-state-park/

The Court ruled that a metal fence erected in September 2023 unlawfully blocked the “Cut-Through”—a public right-of-way connecting Alameda Diablo to Mt. Diablo Scenic Boulevard that has been in continuous use since the 1970s. The injunction requires the fence to be partially removed within 30 days after the bond is posted.

The fence is still standing as of today though.

In related news, the Ghost Bike has been removed after 6 years.

 

Today started out kind of iffy - I got drizzled on in the early morning walking my dog, and then I checked the weather and it forecast more showers, then I checked with JB and he said "we're going", so I dug down and found my windbreaker - and that was enough. The road was a little wet and the fog was a little thick, and I got dripped on a little under the big trees, but it was actually pretty nice riding once I quit worrying and got down to business.

Wildlife Encounter: a mother deer and a few fawns frolicking in a big open area - it was a nice parallel with the kids in my neighborhood and the first day of school.

JB arrived a little late and showed me his thumb surgery scars - pretty impressive; lots of swelling and bruising. His doctor's advice was just not to crash and he'd be OK.

2025 Diablo Day 32 - Saturday Morning Junction

 Hot one today!  Definitely felt the energy drain. JB got his thumb screws out but he's not riding yet... so I took it kind of slow. Also, I forgot my Garmin computer so I only had my Garmin smart watch and I can't really read it on the road so I didn't know how well I was doing and I figured I'd just ride my own ride without any worries about times or statistics. Then I accidentally re-set my watch mid-ride so I can't even check Strava.  All in all, I think it was about average - maybe a bit slower because of the heat.

I gave these guys a head start, but then passed them
at about the 15 minute mark.

This would've been a better photo if I'd waited until the rider was out of the shadows - but then I wouldn't have the framing of the tree. I always look for naturally-framed shots when I review the reel, but I generally don't think about it when I'm riding.

2025 Diablo Day 31 - Saturday Morning Junction

Cool enough to wear arm warmers during this first ride of August.

Some of this road surface needs tending to.

No wildlife, no roadkill. Just bike riders and hikers enjoying My Mountain.

I thought this guy was taking my picture, but then I realized he was probably taking a selfie. He waved anyway.

Once in a while a great photo presents itself.  Composition wise anyway, not the greatest lighting.

This guy really likes blue.

Stopped for a battery change in the Diablo Bike Cam - otherwise I might've set a PB.

Fall Colors?!?!?!  In August?

This guy knows about the secret bypass around the locked hole in the fence.

2025 Diablo Day 30 - Saturday Morning Junction

Last ride in July and it felt like early March. Drizzle, fog, wind, and chilly.

JB's still out with surgical posts in his thumb. The surgeon left little hooks outside of his hand so they can pull the posts out when he's healed without cutting him open again; I've never heard of that before.

Also this is the penultimate day of Le Tour - my favorite stages this year were 1) the 14th stage to Super Bagnere in the Pyrenees that Tadej dominated , and 2) Thursday's 18th stage to La Plagne won by Ben O'Connor.  I really like the exciting stage win competitions more than the GC long game.

Foggy and drizzly for the lower half.

My photo program offered to let AI edit this picture - this was the result.

SGR is ripe for some repair work.

These guys heard the reggaeton music on my Diablo MP3 player and gave me a thumbs-up!