 DAY TWO: Copperopolis to Calaveras Big Trees State ParkMiles: 36 (89) • Start elevation: 971 ft. • Ending elevation: 4500 ft. • Temp. 94F
I had a refreshing shower and a good night's sleep at the "bordello", but, it was time to ride out of town. Fortunately, I didn't meet Black Bart, but I did spend some time before leaving, talking with the owner of the Old Corner Saloon, Bud "Odie" Odekirk. Odie was cleaning up around the place as he shared some of the history of the town of Copperopolis—a booming mining town, back-in-the-day.
Back on Hiway 4 heading east out of Copperopolis is a nice, big, hill. The thing about cycling east toward the Sierra Mountains from California's Central Valley is, that the valley's elevation is just 50 feet, so with nearly every stroke of the pedals you are bound to gain in elevation. Well, from Copperopolis (971 ft.) the elevation really begins to climb. In 6 miles I would be in Angels' Camp (1379 ft.). Six more miles up "Murphys Grade" would bring me into the town Murphys (2171 ft.).
Murphys is one of those great little towns that you like to drive to on a Sunday afternoon, just to stroll the tree-lined streets, browse the unique shops, and sample some of the several restaurants' tasty fare. I visited with the proprietor of the Sierra Outdoors shop, and shared the story of my bike trip with some of the folks in front of the beautifully preserved Murphys Hotel.
But, it was now time to continue the climb into the Sierra Mountains. It's a steady ascent up to the town of Arnold. I could smell the sweet fragrance of pines and red woods with every breath as I entered the National Forest. At 4000 feet elevation, the town of Arnold sits on the edge of the "real" Sierra, catering mostly to "day tourists" driving into the area gazing at the scenery from the comfort of their car. I decided to stop at a cozy little "gourmet" sandwich shop, where they prepared me a delicious spinach salad with dried cranberries, raisins, nuts, and so on—and a California veggie sandwich, complete with avocado and the entire vegetable garden! It was so good that I had them make a second one so I could enjoy it later at camp.
The remaining miles to Calaveras Big Trees State Park were, well, up hill! No surprise. Even though the mileage for the day was just 36, there hasn't been a flat stretch of road since I crawled out of bed at the "bordello". More than 3500 feet of climbing. Of course I did dilly-dally around in Murphys for awhile, and stopped again at Arnold, so I'm not out to set any records. Bicycle touring is about "smelling the roses".
I arrived at the state park and the ranger offered me an easy-access (read: handicap) site, with a water spigot, food locker, fire pit, beautiful view of the meadow, and just down from the showers—all for $3.00 (hiker/biker rate). Arriving at camp on a bike often attracts some attention, and friendly folks usually wander by to say "hi" as I'm setting up camp or cooking supper. This was no exception. After I had showered, Kyle, a college professor from the Los Angeles basin stopped by to welcome me. Kyle was spending five days at the park, hiking, riding his bike, and enjoying the serenity of the place. He was very interested in my journey, vowing to give loaded touring a try. We talked until after dark, when it was time to bid "farewell", and I crawled into the tent, and quite frankly, slept like a log.
You can view the photo album here. |
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