2022 Pashnit Touring on a Hayabusa
- Thread starter pashnit
- Start date
There's this road that heads into the mountains out of the American River Canyon known as Bayne Rd. Its single lane paved with zero shoulders, and zero guard rails. At the right spots, when you look out, you see nothing, just space. Super cool road!
Bayne Rd is the top left sequence, which leads to Rock Creek Rd to Mosquito
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Bayne Rd is the top left sequence, which leads to Rock Creek Rd to Mosquito
Mosquito Rd - Rock Creek Rd | El Dorado County | California Motorcycle Roads
Ride El Dorado County Motorcycle Roads, Sierra Nevada Foothills
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American River Canyon
More backroads, Rock Creek Rd: Mosquito Rd - Rock Creek Rd | El Dorado County | California Motorcycle Roads
Mosquito Rd - Rock Creek Rd | El Dorado County | California Motorcycle Roads
Ride El Dorado County Motorcycle Roads, Sierra Nevada Foothills
www.pashnit.com
Mosquito is a tiny mountain community built around a private airstrip.
American River Canyon
The original Mosquito Bridge was built in 1867 with the steel cabling constructed on site. The bridge was built before the time of the automobile and long before the weight of autos was considered in the design. Original photos show the 1867 bridge without any sides or railings. When automobiles became commonplace in the 1920s, the bridge would swing side to side from the added weight of autos, thus gaining the moniker, The Swinging Bridge.
The present-day wooden suspension bridge was re-built in 1939 using the original 1867 foundation anchored by concrete pillars on either side and is 140 feet across and a mere 9-feet wide. Steel cables are suspended across the canyon, with down cables attached to multiple intervals to support the weight of vehicles.
Mosquito Rd wasn’t paved until 1943 and the paving was laid over the top of the original wagon road. No apparent attempt to widen or smooth out the hairpins was ever attempted in 1943.
CalTrans closes this bridge for at least 1 month of every year just to do maintenance on the wooden bridge to keep it road-worthy in supporting the weight of vehicles.
My favorite rider, Hana, rode down from Canada to join us for this tour.
We've been riding together for at least 10 years & she is delightful.
The original Mosquito Bridge was built in 1867 with the steel cabling constructed on site. The bridge was built before the time of the automobile and long before the weight of autos was considered in the design. Original photos show the 1867 bridge without any sides or railings. When automobiles became commonplace in the 1920s, the bridge would swing side to side from the added weight of autos, thus gaining the moniker, The Swinging Bridge.
The present-day wooden suspension bridge was re-built in 1939 using the original 1867 foundation anchored by concrete pillars on either side and is 140 feet across and a mere 9-feet wide. Steel cables are suspended across the canyon, with down cables attached to multiple intervals to support the weight of vehicles.
Mosquito Rd wasn’t paved until 1943 and the paving was laid over the top of the original wagon road. No apparent attempt to widen or smooth out the hairpins was ever attempted in 1943.
CalTrans closes this bridge for at least 1 month of every year just to do maintenance on the wooden bridge to keep it road-worthy in supporting the weight of vehicles.
My favorite rider, Hana, rode down from Canada to join us for this tour.
We've been riding together for at least 10 years & she is delightful.
Apple Hill is an area outside Placerville started in 1967 by area apple growers seeking to draw tourists to their farms. The roads are fun in the off-season, but busy during the fall apple season. Many tree tunnels and bucolic small family farms open to the public. If you need a Christmas tree, you come here to cut it down yourself.
Waterwheel at Larsen Apple Farm
Waterwheel at Larsen Apple Farm
Last stop before headed deeper into the mountains, picking up sandwiches at the local deli, then head to the top of the closest mountain top for lunch.
Plus a small town book sale in Pollock Pines.
My understanding is there is only one fire lookout in the Sierra Nevada Range with a paved road directly to it. If I'm wrong about that, please let me know. The rest, you get close, and hike to. And it just so happens this very fire lookout is along our route and would make an excellent midday lunch stop.
But to get there, we have to ride Ice House Rd.
www.pashnit.com
The fire lookout atop Big Hill at an elevation of 6,132' dates to 1933 when the California Conservation Corp constructed fire lookouts throughout the Sierra Nevada range. It has been manned seasonally ever since, except during WWII, when it was manned year-round for the detection of balloon bombs sent into the jet stream carrying Japanese firebombs in an attempt to set western forest ablaze.
The Cleveland Fire in 1992 destroyed this hilltop and all its structures. But by 1993, a new tower was completed 23’ feet high with a 14’x14’ lookout atop. The narrow catwalk that surrounds offers a 360-degree view. All the trees surrounding the fire lookout were replanted by hand and are now 20 feet tall.
The Crystal Range in the distance. Not a bad view for our lunch stop.
Plus a small town book sale in Pollock Pines.
My understanding is there is only one fire lookout in the Sierra Nevada Range with a paved road directly to it. If I'm wrong about that, please let me know. The rest, you get close, and hike to. And it just so happens this very fire lookout is along our route and would make an excellent midday lunch stop.
But to get there, we have to ride Ice House Rd.
Ice House Rd | California Motorcycle Roads | Pashnit
Sierra Nevada Motorcycle Rides - Ride Ice House Rd, Crystal Basin, California
www.pashnit.com
The fire lookout atop Big Hill at an elevation of 6,132' dates to 1933 when the California Conservation Corp constructed fire lookouts throughout the Sierra Nevada range. It has been manned seasonally ever since, except during WWII, when it was manned year-round for the detection of balloon bombs sent into the jet stream carrying Japanese firebombs in an attempt to set western forest ablaze.
The Cleveland Fire in 1992 destroyed this hilltop and all its structures. But by 1993, a new tower was completed 23’ feet high with a 14’x14’ lookout atop. The narrow catwalk that surrounds offers a 360-degree view. All the trees surrounding the fire lookout were replanted by hand and are now 20 feet tall.
The Crystal Range in the distance. Not a bad view for our lunch stop.
The view of Union Valley Reservoir below the lookout is expansive and breathtaking. Mountain peaks frame the horizon, the most prominent to the southeast is 9,985' Pyramid Peak, a triangular shaped peak that also overlooks the Lake Tahoe Basin. The peak is the highest point in the Desolation Wilderness that borders the Crystal Basin to the southeast from Big Hill.
What makes Big Hill Lookout most interesting is if you ride Ice House Rd only intent on experiencing a brisk clip, you’d never know this amazing view is even here.
What makes Big Hill Lookout most interesting is if you ride Ice House Rd only intent on experiencing a brisk clip, you’d never know this amazing view is even here.
Twenty years ago, my wife and I bought our first house. We both worked in Sacramento but had no desire to live there. We started pushing out from the edge of the city to find something more within our first-time buyer price range. Now being young kids with a new baby, we didn't have high expectations, and we couldn't afford to buy 10 or even 20 miles outside the city. We pushed further out and the prices of homes came down to our level. We finally purchased a home at 4000 feet in Pollock Pines which was the furthest point out from the city that was still a manageable commute. My commute would be 45 minutes each way, but it was our house, our yard, our driveway. We were homeowners.
I had also just bought a Suzuki Hayabusa. Next on the To-Do List was begin exploring the mountainous region around our new home. Nine miles from our new house was Ice House Rd.
Back in the day... Ice House Rd was minutes away.
I had also just bought a Suzuki Hayabusa. Next on the To-Do List was begin exploring the mountainous region around our new home. Nine miles from our new house was Ice House Rd.
Back in the day... Ice House Rd was minutes away.
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