...Halbouty fatbike loop

THE ROUTE:  Parking area at the end of the pavement on Halbouty Road>Pipeline>Holt-Lamplight Road>Kenai Spur Hwy>Halbouty Road>parking area.
TERRAIN:  Dirt, gravel, mud, pavement.
DISTANCE:  8.0 miles

The fatbike and the tilted basketball hoop at the end of the pavement on Halbouty.

The public access sign at Barbara Lake.

Fatbike nirvana.

Self-portrait on the Pipeline.

I told myself: "Just stand up.  Everything will be all right."  Then I told myself the same thing again.  And again.  After several minutes I pushed back the covers, planted my feet on the floor and pushed myself into the early morning light.  I stumbled downstairs to the fridge where I grabbed a bottle of orange juice and poured some of it into a glass.  I took a couple of drinks and talked with Gabby for a few minutes.  She opened her eyes and looked at me but didn't even lift her head.  Too early for a Labrador retriever.

The wind was blowing which I thought of using as an excuse for going back to bed.  But, when I opened the door it didn't seem that cold.  No excuse after all.  So I loaded the fatbike into the back of the truck and drove to the end of the pavement on Halbouty Road.  I unloaded everything, set the GPS to zero and started pedalling down the pipeline where I immediately rolled up to some mud pits.  Four-wheelers had been going though them so they were rutted and uneven.  I bounced and dropped as best I could hanging on to the grips tightly and pedalling wildly to maintain inertia.

Everything was all right.

I splashed through several more skidding and sliding the whole way not wanting to slow down lest I would have to put my shoes in the muck.  I pedalled and twisted the handlebars eventually making my way to the pavement of Holt-Lamplight Road.  From there it was a pedal on pavement all the way back to the truck.  Easy cheesy.

The fatbike went back into the truck with wet mud clinging to it and I put the rest of the gear in the backseat.  I would be at home in minutes and it would be time to let Gabby out and tell the Hufford girls about my ride on the...Halbouty fatbike loop.