Tim planned a course leaving out of Livingston KY for adventure and a little mixed-terrain. I grabbed the Fargo and off we went.
We headed out of town on the “busy” road. Busy roads aren’t very busy in that part of the state. There were a couple of climbs to warm up. Temperatures were near 50 – 10 degrees warmer than anticipated. There was a little mist and fog.
We turned on to some great gravel on Mullins Station road. It ran along a creek for a while, then crossed over railroad tracks a few times. I almost fell once due to my own klutziness.
We eventually came to an area with a small train tunnel, and the remnants of a mine. There was also crushed coal all over a loading area of some sort. The coal was hard to ride across due to being laid over the top of soft mud.
We eventually came to a bit of a community along the road. It was marked at the ends with cattle guards across the roads, and no-trespassing signs. We were a bit concerned by this. It was supposed to be a county road.
While was we were trying to figure out what to do, an elderly man came out of the nearest home. He said we could go through, so that’s what we did. There were many dogs, a few pigs, a bunch of cows, and one very large horse roaming around. The horse was actually frightening.
I didn’t get any pictures here, as I was starting to suffer a little.
We rolled along the flat section for a while, then came to paved roads and another climb. I was beginning to slow dramatically on the climbs.
Near the top of this climb, were two large rocks making quite a view. Tim waited for me there, as this was the turn off for a road he had found on a map.
The road was easy gravel and it ran along the ridgetop, so it wasn’t too hilly.
After a while it got much more rustic. There was mud, a lot of puddles, roots, rocks, and general “mountain bike-like terrain”. It was a lot of fun.
As fun as it was, it was challenging. The rain kicked up at this point and the temperature dropped. Tim was losing his brakes in the muck. My bike made bad noises, but was fine.
After turning onto another paved road and enjoying a brisk descent, we came along a ridge road for a while, where two guys were shooting shotguns across the road. Tim seemed quite bothered by this. I simply got their attention, they stopped shooting, we rode past, and they continued their fun.
A while later, Tim pulled ahead of me, then I walked a long climb. I found him waiting for me at an intersection. He was cold and wet.
He headed out again, and again, I was too slow. We regrouped at a shelter next to a cemetery and discussed options. We were both beat. I was too slow. We’d head directly back to the car from there. It was still another six miles.
We headed out, Tim was told not to wait for me until he reached the car. I walked another climb, then had a very brisk downhill run most of the way into town.
Just as an aside, my memory isn’t good at keeping track of the order that these events take place. I think I written them in the correct order, but I moved paragraphs around a bit. The writing may seem a bit disjointed. I took fewer pictures as I got into the ride due to just trying to keep up. Tim’s account is probably more accurate.
Also, I had planned for 40F and rain. It started out closer to 50F and no rain. I ended up shedding my gloves and hat. Later, when it cooled, and I never bothered to put those things back on. I was glad for the heated seats in Tim’s car when we were done.
I wan’t physically ready for this ride, and I told Tim that ahead of time. He made the very good point that I needed to ride it to get in better shape. I’m glad I did. I had a great time.
Thanks for the great route, Tim.
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