The text pinged in: “Who’s up for a ride today?”
Within minutes, we had a plan: Bear Basin after work, a quick spin, then a couple of beers.
After a summer of trying to get everyone together, it was nice to have something come together so easily. Our crew had managed a few rides, but fewer than usual. Between kids, work, travel and everything else, the regular ride had become a little less regular.
Then fall arrived, and suddenly there was room on the calendar.
Town slowed down. Kids went back to school. Travel tapered off. More of the guys were around, and getting together started to feel less like scheduling a meeting.
Most Mondays, we found ourselves at Broken Horn for music and a beer. Somewhere in the conversation, another plan would take shape: a bike ride, a quick hike to a mountain lake, maybe a little fishing.
That’s a big part of what makes fall so good here. The temperatures and colors get plenty of credit, and deservedly so. But this year, what I’ve appreciated most is having more time with friends.
So when the workday ended, I loaded my bike and headed for the lower Bear Basin trailhead off Highway 55.
Patrick, who had sent the original text, had a route in mind. We rolled through the wooden fence, turned onto Westy and made our way to Ditch Witch.
Then he suggested riding it backward.
Of course he did.
We headed up Ditch Witch, continued onto Polar Express and worked our way around Rising Sun in the opposite direction from our usual loop. It’s funny how familiar trails can feel different when you approach them from the other side. You pay a little more attention. The turns come differently. The climbs seem to appear in places you’d rather they didn’t.
Patrick’s route kept us pedaling out toward the corrals before we worked our way back to Della’s, through Blue Ridge Parkway and down the Upper and Lower Drain to the cars.
By the time we finished, we’d climbed just under 1,000 feet—pretty respectable for an after-work spin at Bear Basin.
But the best part was catching up.
Along the way, we heard what everyone had been doing, picked up conversations we hadn’t finished and gave each other a hard time whenever an opportunity presented itself. With this group, those opportunities tend to come along pretty regularly.
There’s something easy about spending time together that way. You ride for a while, talk for a while, stop to regroup and pick it all up again. By the time you’re back at the cars, you’ve gotten some exercise and feel a little more caught up with your friends.
Summer flew by before we could fit in everything we wanted to do. Fall has given us a few chances to get together again, and I’m grateful we’ve taken them.
The weather looks like it’s turning colder, and maybe wetter, but I’m hoping there are still a few windows left. Enough time for another text, another ride and another round of catching up at the trailhead.
Have a great weekend—and, as always, hope to see you out there.
