Troll's First Camping Trip

After work last Friday, Jason and I headed out on the mountain bikes for a little camping. The Troll has never left the house for more than a commute to work so this was an exciting maiden voyage.

I really liked the way the Troll felt loaded down with a couple days worth of gear. It was really comfortable over the longer ride.

Jason was pulling a BOB trailer with his Giant MTB. This was the longest ride he'd ever done on a mountain bike, too. We weren't sure how it would go, but we were willing to try it out.

We camped in Frankfort in Jason's friend's back yard. It wasn't too adventurous, but it was accessible and free. The closest campground was closed for the winter to tent campers.

I slept in the hammock again. It was so cold that our bags and hammocks were covered in frost by the time we went to bed. I need to find a better solution for cold weather camping. My bag is rated at 30 degrees (it got down to 33 that night) but my feet were too cold to stay asleep. I didn't sleep well until the sun came out in the morning. In fact, I slept until 10am. I haven't slept that late in years. But I think the warmth of the sun knocked me out after being up all night.

When I finally woke up, I ate a quick breakfast and we headed over to Capitol View Park for some trail riding. This little MTB adventure was the whole reason for our choice of bikes. In hindsight, I could have brought the Cross Check and had a more well-rounded experience. But I wanted to see how the Troll felt for a longer ride. It was a good decision.

The trails were nice. We just dumped our panniers and the trailer in the woods where no one would see them. It felt good to ride unloaded for a bit, but we were cautious of straining ourselves since we had a long ride home. It was still a bit wet, too. We were riding at a much slower pace than usual.

After riding unfettered, the bikes felt heavy on the way out of the MTB park. But the ride home was so beautiful, our scenery made up for our tired legs and heavy loads.

We left Frankfort and headed to the river. We had a great ride along the river for several miles.

 No dumping sign was thwarted by some old van seats.

 An abandoned trailer.

 We got to see an old distillery that was shut down. These old buildings were really cool to look at.

The photos above show the barrel rollers that were used to transport liquor all over the distillery. These things went on and on. It was cool to see how the mechanisms would move such heavy barrels in a simple, yet intricate way.

 Parked here for a snack.

The Old Taylor Distillery Company had some beautiful old architecture. We knew that taking this route would add some climbing and mileage, but it was well worth it. It made for a great point of interest.

After the distillery, it was miles and miles of horse farms. We hit 60 degree temps and straight, flat roads. It was a great way to round out the trip.

With 14 miles to go, we stopped for some Long John Silvers. Terrible decision, but totally worth it. Everything on my plate was fried. It didn't sit well at all for those remaining miles. But it tasted so good after all that pedal mashing :)

Get out there.