and downstream, there's a weir - apparently Washington or at least some of it - gets it's water supply here.
There's a picnic area beyond the confluence but I didn't bother with it. Also beyond is Arctic Mine Road, but I believe it's gated and washed out anyway.
So, back to Highway 20 and realizing I'd pretty much blown my timeframe for Bowman I decided to check out Omega Road, named for the hydraulic mine town of Omega (and it's nearby sibling, Alpha).
Omega Road is also FR-29.
I figured this would be a short and boring ride. But it started out nice!
And it stayed good....
Lots of little glades and glens and small streams.
It skirts the edge of the Yuba River canyon, just below Highway 20, going east.
It tops out on Lowell Hill Ridge (Lowell Hill reaches down into the Bear River drainage almost all the way to Dutch Flat) where there is a tree plantation (newly logged no less).
Instead of following around a 180 curve, I took the spur straight ahead - and into a view that knocked my socks off. Signal Peak and Lake Spaulding are at left.
Grouse Ridge, Black Buttes and Old Man Mountain are at left.
Emigrant Gap, I-80 and Bear Valley.
All the views are great here!
Hey, there's a train at Emigrant Gap, and you can see Monumental Ridge and Quartz Mountain at the top (both on FR-19).
Sidenote for the above picture - right below the tank cars (black cylindersin the picture), there is a upside down triangular area of bare dirt. Most of it is fill from building and improving the railroad, but this spot is where the wagons of the Overland Trail emigrants had to cross over from Carpenter Valley (Laing Road exit on I-80) to the Bear Valley. They locked their wheels with chains and lowered the wagons to the valley below. Most parties rested a day or two in Bear Valley as it was abundant with grass for the animals. Then they undertook the climb out of the valley to Lowell Hill Ridge and thence down the ridge to Steephollow Creek, where they were once again faced with a huge slope to go down. Steephollow Creek heads up right near Highway 20. Later routes avoided that descent unless folks were heading to Dutch Flat - they simply stayed on ridge down to Nevada City. Well, hope you enjoyed that bit of history. This view was a huge find for me!
Here's a more expansive view of the Bear Valley. You can see these bluffs of gray ash I am atop from I-80 at the vista point.
From that spot, a single-track leads down. Yikes - wonder where it goes?
Back to the trip at hand. I had a really pleasant ride - lots of nice running through decent forest with occasional views.
Lots of really green area - probably since its a north-facing slope.
This little bridge crosses a ditch - I've never seen a concrete crossing of a ditch. Perhaps it was a water supply ditch that lasted longer than most.
More nice - without much logging slash - forest.
A little stub road that was nice to ride.
And a nice little pond at the end of another stub. Probably for impounding water - it's perched on a hill.
Back to the truck and not enough time to go down Alpha Road - which has a possibility of ending up in Washington. But here's a view from Highway 20 to Omega Diggings. It was all gated with private gates and no trespassing signs.
The dark ridge beyond the diggings is Gaston Ridge, upon which the road from Graniteville down to Washington runs.
Across the highway at Chalk Bluff Road (which runs all the way down to You Bet near Rollins Reservoir) is a newer staging area for motorcycles. There is an extensive trail system that runs around here.
Inspiration.
But with limitations.
All in all, a nice ride. I expected to go just a few miles, but instead racked up 32.
