We change into our gear. We could have brought more layers for the brisk weather. Paved road start, right turn onto the dirt. Through the forest we hit an unexpected fork not shown on the map. Let s take the wider route.
Gradual climb turns to technical grind with soft dirt and sharp rocks.
We re now hiking, so we stop and pull out the map. All of a sudden I heard a thunder-like sound and saw sparkles coming through the trees. Zoooom, zooooom a pack of downhillers flew by. Yeah, we definitely took a wrong turn. Through the forest and up the switchbacks I lost my rhythm in one spot.