got off work and jagged around till about 9 before leaving leesburg. i'm taking just the basics -- some alcohol for tippin back once i get to camp, poptarts for breakfast, beefaroni for lunch and dinner. that, the tent, thermarest, extra clothes and sleeping bag all smashed into a 3500 ci pack. well, some strapped to the outside of the pack...
arriving at the parking area at about 11 pm, i gear up, turn some tunes on the phone and start pedaling the 2 mile trip up to strausburg reservior via fire road. i'm now wondering why the funk i brought the rigid singlespeed rather than the f/s cannondale. 45 pounds on my back, 1 gear and no suspension. shitf, you stipid. 
i roll into camp, and my 2 friends were not expecting me to show this night. it's about 11:30 and they were getting ready to crash out. i've got tool playing and i'm ready to do some drinking. lol... so kev and mark blaze the fire back up and we bs until 12:30. mark is a early to bed kinda cat, so he crashes out. kevin stays up till 2:30 shooting the shitf with me and it's all good. i get to see this guy once a year -- if that. cool dood.
now i've been drinking some energy drinks with alcohol in them and am jamming out with a roaring fire until 4:30. 
i gotta get to sleep....
8 am and mark and kev are up and getting ready to ride. 
3.5 hours of sleep and a mild hangover, and i'm ready to choke a biitch. 
i really wasn't planning on riding, but kev and mark talked me into it. it was upper 30's when we got up, but the temps quickly rose as the sun crept into the valley. i had to borrow water bottles and gloves from kev, and we hit the trails...
the first quarter mile is fire road, and then we branch off to some uphill single track that turns into a hike-a-bike to the summit. unfortunately, my camera died on the indy trip, or i'd have lots more pictures. i told kevin if i start bitchin about anything, tell me to shut the *** up and keep riding! heh heh
water crossing and 45 degree temps -- my butt is going slow through that...
after reaching the summit, it's still pretty much a hike-a-bike for the next quarter mile or so. this trail is crazy rocky with small ledges and loose rocks. a few of my friends actually hate this place because it is so technical. lol... oh well, i'm a sucker for long, brutal rides. 
the sun is hitting this side of the mountain, so temps are getting really nice. i guess the high reached about 70 or so. within a mile of riding the downhill, my hands were throbbing from holding onto the hard grips and no suspension to eat up the energy. my back even started hurting from the jarring. again, i can't stop thinkin why did i bring THIS bike????? don't get me wrong, i was having fun. but it was kicking my butt and i'm used to going sooo much faster.
every time we ride here, mark somehow gets in front of me and snaps a picture at this same switchback. the first picture is 2008 and the second is 2004.
the singletrack is pretty much 90% downhill for 3 miles, making for a long descent. at one point, i looked at kev and said -- man, i'm thinkin about takin the blue trail short cut and meeting up with you fools on the fire road. kev looks at me and says -- biitch, shut the f up, we're going THIS WAY. i just laughed and said -- hellz yeah we are. 
at the end of the downhill, we ride fort valley road for a mile or so before taking the gravel fire roads back over the mountain. my gearing was a bit steep for these kinds of grades, or should i say, my physical condition. 
mark and kev slowly pulled away as they spun it up the mountain in granny gears. kev making the climb. i'm waaay behind him.
from the fireroads, it's a rocky, sometimes muddy climb up mudhole gap with a handfull of creek crossings. the air is clean, my tires are dirty and my ass and hands are killing me -- but damn, is this living!
mudhole gap leads us to the parking lot where we parked, so it's a 2 mile grade to the camp -- and then i am crashing out. riding for more hours than i slept tends to do this to me... 
even though i was strapped for time and had to head out saturday night for work on sunday, i had a great time. i love going to this place, camping and riding.
i'm thinking about doing it again this weekend or sometime mid december. if anyone wants to camp in the cold, ride some really challenging trails and have a good time, let me know.