[andrewsclues]

Some brief history...

Early last year some of my friends and I, all from near Philadelphia, became business partners and purchased a twin home in Ashland, PA. Ashland is roughly 2.5 hours from Philly.



The idea was we could have a "base of operations" to go trail riding, and have a place to stay, shower and sleep in the area. We would rent out one side of the house to cover the mortgage and other expenses, and have the other side for ourselves.



The house was built in 1865, and while it was obvious it had been renovated in the meantime, it still needed a lot of work. We got down to the business of making the house inhabitable, working only on weekends as we all have regular jobs Monday through Friday. In a few months, the rental side was complete and tenants moved in. Lately we have been hard at work repairing and sprucing-up other parts of the building... The point of all this is that with all the hard work and bad weather lately, not very much TW riding has been occurring.



Until today...



Steve and I are good riding partners. We don't get impatient with slow trail riding... in fact I prefer it that way. Don't get me wrong, I also enjoy brisk-paced, death-defying throttle flogging just as much as the next guy. Thereis, however, something to be said for going slow, keeping your eyes open to what's around you and just taking it all in.



This was the tact we took today and it payed nice dividends. We were riding this one particular trail up the mountain that separated Ashland from Centralia. We had been on this trail dozens of times, but our slow pace along with the wintery lack of foliage in this otherwise very green area led to the discovery of a small path we had never noticed before. Of course we steered the T-Dubs right down that path.



We acme across this frozen pond and a little campsite...

Here's a pic of Steve and the bikes from across the pond...

We clicked a few pictures and fired up our bikes, and continued down our newly discovered path. About 20 minutes later, we came across a coal mining operation. The landscape changed sharply here, going from pine forest to a vast wasteland of shale and other rocky by-products of coal mining. Since it was Saturday there was nobody around but Me, Steve and some heavy equipment. Picture time once again.





And you thought the TW had big tires!

In front of a huge front loader bucket.

Here is a side view

Of course we were on private property. We respected the area and took only pictures. We got back on the bikes for some more exploring.



It was pretty cold (20 degrees) but navigating the Yammys over the rocky trails was providing enough of a workout to keep warm. Later we came across some ice patches where the trail widened. No doubt on warmer days these were pretty deep mud pits that we would normally avoid or stick to the edge where it could not get too deep. But today they were frozen solid. I thought it a good idea to snap a couple pics with my bike on the ice...

here's Steve's bike

and both of 'em

I was thoroughly enjoying myself and cockily rode my MC forward on the ice... then the back tire slipped out from under me and I went down. I was laughing because I figured that would happen, but picking a TW up on a solid sheet of ice is not easy. Every time I almost got the bike upright, the rear tire would slide out and the bike would go down. After a few failed attempts, i pulled the bike while on its side along the slick ice to the edge of the patch and some dry land, where I was finally able to get the bike properly oriented. Fortunately for me, none of this was captured on film!

Further down the trail we came across a nice view of a neighboring town. Mt Carmel.

At this point we were both pretty hungry, so we rode into town for some chow. Chicken wings, pizza and lobster bisque. All very good.

Upon leaving the restaurant, is was snowing. We decided to ride about halfway back to Ashland on highway 61, then jump back on the trail for the rest of the way. After about 5 minutes on the highway, my hands and Steve's feet were freezing. We were a little underdressed for highway riding, so we jumped back on the trail to slow the pace and keep the wind off our extremities.



The rest of the ride was uneventful, but beautiful as we slowly headed back to our base, with the snow laying a fresh blanket in front of us. This ride was long overdue for me and I am energized as I type this.



Its amazing what a couple hours of riding can do for one's psyche!

 

[Leisure Time Larry]

Dude, I was totally drawn into your story, and I was very entertained. All of the elements are just so...t-dub. Making a getaway a reality to get closer to nature and the trail, meandering through the woods, finding new routes/discoveries. Those are great pics. In the coal area with all of the big equipment, all I could think of was that they look like Decepticons and how MrBracket should've been there with Bumblebee!

 

[DonBenito]

The trail left by the front tire in this image is a very elucidative example of how much rubber the stocker actually puts to the road, or trail as it were.



Glad you had a fun ride, I haven't been quite adventurous enough to seek out ice and snow myself. In this area ice and snow means altitude, which often means unprotected drop-offs. Combine drop-offs with low traction and I'm liable to choose a friendlier route!



Cool to see TWs in the freezier climes though. Thanks for taking us along!



P.S. You were just a couple days late in dominating the latest round of the Photo Tag/Picture Game with those shots of the TW with the Komatsu dozer!

 

[B-dub]

Great story and pics! Good onya for getting out, even when the weather/temps aren't ideal! That was cool finding a new trail. Like you I love exploring new trails and areas. I look forward to hearing of more adventures from your base of operations! Thanks for sharing your ride with us.

 

[andrewsclues]

Dude, I was totally drawn into your story, and I was very entertained. All of the elements are just so...t-dub. Making a getaway a reality to get closer to nature and the trail, meandering through the woods, finding new routes/discoveries. Those are great pics. In the coal area with all of the big equipment, all I could think of was that they look like Decepticons and how MrBracket should've been there with Bumblebee!

irppcer, if they were decepticons, they lay dormant

 

[DonBenito]

Oh hey - I almost forgot to congratulate you and your friends on some awesome entrepreneurship. In this last real estate boom a lot of folks got burned because all they had in mind was short-term money making.



Investing in projects that offer fringe benefits like accommodations for vacationing, hunting, riding, "prepping", or WHATEVER! kinda territory can pay off monetarily as well as in less tangible ways.



Good on you guys!

 

[admiral]

Nice write up and photo's. I for one, appreciate a little story to go along with the adventure. I bet that area is just gorgeous when the leaves are on the tree's.



After reading and looking at your post, I noticed something that you and I both do, or should I say, don't do. You (we) mention how cold it is, photo's of TW's on ice, freezing feet on the highway etc. We should now mention and show some warm stuff, like you all sitting by a fire after the ride, or a good warm drink, or perhaps a photo of someone wearing one of those big fuzzy bear paw looking slippers on our feet!

And I'm as guilty of not showing or telling about the warm stuff. (Though you did mention a lunch stop in Mt. Carmel, which could indicate some type of warmness).

Thanks for taking the time and posting your "Few hours of fun".

 

[timberfalls]

Terrific story and many to come from a great investment congradulations, Ride on

 

[evan]

The Tdub is great for exploring! I got mine for finding new riding spots for quads but finding myself riding the Tdub just because its fun! Thanks for the cool pics and write up.