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Diamond Lake + Crater Lake NP Bike

August 16, 2008 (Morning)

Exercise Type: Bike

Weather: 40s-80s, breezy

Comments:
Had a pretty good drive up to the mountains Friday night. I was quite tired early on, so I was happy that the drive was well under three hours.

The Diamond Lake campground is pretty amazing: all the sites are right on the shore (or less than 100' away) with terrific views of the lake. My site wasn't on the lake, but I didn't care: I wouldn't be there too long. I set up camp and tooled around a bit, taking pics of the setting sun. I ate some leftovers I had packed in the cooler over a little fire I made from scrap branches around the site. I had some decaf tea and sat by the fire 'til it died out, then went to bed at nine.

I slept quite well -- one of the best nights' sleep all summer -- thanks, in part, to nice temps. Boy, was it nice to get out of those 100F conditions in the valley! I woke up at 0500 still tired (a good sign, which means I was actually sleeping well!), but got out and moving. I partially packed up and assembled my gear for the ride. At 0615, just as some decent light had appeared, I departed for what would be a 60-mile+ ride.

At first I was going to ride just the rim and tack on a trail run. But with my knee bothering me again, I upped the ante, dropping the run and nearly doubling the bike mileage.

The ride would take me from Diamond Lake -- located almost due north of Crater Lake -- to the rim road, at the "11 o'clock position" (NNW), for a distance of 15 miles and an elevation gain of nearly 2,000' (5400' at Diamond to 7200' at the rim). From there, the rim drive was 34 miles around, with a tough-to-determine degree of ups and downs. I dreaded the climb into the park at first but figured that, with such an early start, I'd have pretty much "all day" to bike.

The ascent was easier than I expected, but it was steady uphill for more than an hour. The inital first few miles were the toughest, as I was still warming up and, quite oddly, there was a strong breeze in my face at 0630 in the morning! That annoyed me, but I got over it. I saw a black bear and her cub cross the highway on my way into the park.

The worst news of the trip would befall me just as I entered: my camera batteries died. I charged them Thursday night, but the batteries are old and drain quickly -- whether they're used or not. FUCK. I was too far out to turn around and recharge them, so I pressed on and bemoaned the fact that I wouldn't have picture evidence of this sweet trip.

The first highlight came as I entered the park and descended (my only downhill of the ride in) into the "Pumice Desert", which is this sweet plain of volcanic rock; though this kind was lighter and more gravely. As I was cruising along in the bright light of sunrise, I cursed my dead batteries, as the sillouhette of my bike along the pumice rock would've made an amazing pic.

After the desert section (maybe a K long), I started what would be a lonnnng climb -- probably a half hour of straight climbing. It was tough going, but I was fresh and feeling good, and the wind had died down a bit. A few cars and a motorcycle passed me but otherwise it was quiet.

After the beastly climb, I finally made it to the rim. I pulled into small parking lot at the rim's edge, where the motorcycle I'd seen had stopped. I chatted with the guy for 5-10 minutes as I drank some water and had a Clif Bar. Though he was on a hog, he mentioned how he's a cyclist, as well, and recently rode from Seattle to Portland. After a bit more chatter, he was off and I climbed up a small hill to a fence overlooking the lake: AMAZING. I couldn't wait for what would now be the "main event": the rim lap.

Briefly summarized, the rim ride, taken clockwise from 11 o'clock, was a series of rollercoaster ups and downs, of increasing size. A small uphill started the ride, followed by a nice downhill. It was perhaps its flattest at the 1-2 o'clock, then followed by a long, substantially steep uphill from 3-4, as I passed many amazing overlooks and features, including Mt. Scott, which I'm "sure" is named after Michael Gary (NOT "Mark Greg Sputnik"). After Mt. Scott -- which I would've been tempted to climb had I not been worried about potential unknown efforts ahead of me -- there was a massive downhill. I bet I was rolling 35mph down what was also the shittiest part of the rim drive. It felt pretty dangerous, but I made it in one piece.

I made a quick stop at "Phantom Ship Overlook", where there was set-up an aid station manned with 3-4 people. I was asked if I was part of "the ride". My response was "What ride?", and I was informed that this morning was the annual "Crater Lake Century", so I'd soon be seeing other bikers. They offered provisions, which I declined, and I kept rolling.

Another huge climb awaited me, though the scenery from this 4-6 o'clock climb was pretty nice. But I was getting tired and it was getting warmer, too. And I was beginning to notice the pattern: huge climbs followed by what seemed like even more enormous downhills. As predicted once I crested this climb into a picturesque meadow, I was soon bombing down hill again. I didn't mind it much, except that I knew that I had to get up to 7200' before leaving, so every downhill meant one more uphill. As I bombed downhill, I monitored the roadsigns for the Rim Village, which would be my main rest stop. I was looking forward to a snack and some coffee, as I hadn't formally stopped to rest/refuel in over an hour now.

The last climb began at the junction for Mazama Village, the southern entrance of the park. I saw a lot of directional signs for the Century ride, and as such, ran into my first bikers. This last climb from the south entrance to the village was by far the toughest. Not only was I switchback biking -- a method I employ when the road gets steep enough -- but I was now switchbacking on switchbacks! This uphill climb took a good 15-20 minutes and was steep as fuck. Near the top, I was hurting pretty good, muscles worn out and low on fuel. Just as I was nearing the crest, I was smoked by another cyclist -- demoralizing, but thankfully the only such occurence.

Shortly before 0930 I made it to the top -- the Rim Village. I pulled in, parked the bike, and mercifully doffed my gear and walked around. My legs felt OK but my back was sore. I picked up a cup of hot coffee and returned outside to enjoy the beautiful sunshine of mid-morning over another Clif Bar.

Near my bike was another guy, a hiker, also refueling. I noticed I was starting to sunburn, so I asked for some sunscreen. He only had a tiny tin of it, but he let me use it, anyway, for which I was thankful. We got to talking and I found out he was a PCT thru-hiker! I've been very interested in thru-hiking the PCT so we talked for quite a long time. He had started in mid-May and was hiking solo. We talked about a lot of things and I filled him in on his upcoming sections (the only parts of the PCT I know). After I finished my coffee and he his Poweraides, we parted ways. After the fact I felt bad that I'd used his sunscreen, since I had only an hour's worth of biking ahead of me, but he had like two months of hiking! What a bad-ass, though! I love it.

I filled up my camelbak with water and ice at the shoppe then hit the road for my last segment, looking forward to what would be a mostly downhill ride. From 8-11 o'clock was a pretty steady uphill climb. Though tired and sore, I was re-energized by the fuel and caffiene. Moreover, many bikers dotted the roadside. Looking ahead up the road, they slowly crawled up the highway like tiny ants. They must've been the more novice bikers, because I picked them off indiscriminately on the climb, chatting with a couple at one point to ascertain their route.

Finally, after a good 20 minutes of climbing again, I made it to my start. I split my watch as I began my descent out of the park: it had taken me just under 2 hours to ride the 34-mile rim. Not bad!

The closing segment was AMAZING! I just HAMMERED -- Losing 1800' over 14 miles, I would go 5+ minutes straight without pedaling, just enjoying the scenery and the cool breeze as I flew north out of the park. I did hit a couple small uphills past the Pumice Desert, then one more uphill to the campground.

I hit my campsite at Diamond Lake at just before 1100, stopping my watch at 3:45.

What a TERRIFIC RIDE. I stretched, got water, packed up, showered, and was on my way before 1PM. Stopped at a pizza place on south end of the lake and had a huuuuuge salad + more leftovers before hitting the road for Bend.