What's new

Ride Sunday 8/11: tanzawa groadery

sean-e

Maximum Pace
Mar 4, 2019
254
590
Last minute plan but in case anyone is interested in joining... I'm thinking of riding something inspired by this old semi-gravel route from @Karl down near Tanzawa https://tokyocycle.com/threads/tanzawa-and-beyond.7105/ :


Probably will ride out down the Tama (but not on the paved part :-D ) starting around 7 over Takao to Sagami Lake, then heading down rt 76, which apparently has some gnarly sections. Negotiable if anyone is else interested in meeting up somewhere. Will be on 40mms , might be overkill, will see :) Might make it a loop instead of taking the train back.
 
you're not going alone into that wilderness are you? Sunday eh? might be tempted if I finish building the gravel bike tomorrow. I see your 40mm and raise it to 47 mm ;)
 
I'll pass by takao station if you want to join there. Good luck with the bike build :tup
 
thanks @sean-e but don't wait for me tomorrow. it is taking a bit longer than I thought, mainly because I'm such an anal perfectionist and have to take 300% time with everything before proceeding. still choosing which of the two handlebars I'll go with. current estimate, tomorrow evening bedding the brakes and getting the steerer cut at the LBS, Monday short first test ride
 
Probably will ride out down the Tama (but not on the paved part :-D ) starting around 7 over Takao to Sagami Lake, then heading down rt 76, which apparently has some gnarly sections. Negotiable if anyone is else interested in meeting up somewhere. Will be on 40mms , might be overkill, will see :) Might make it a loop instead of taking the train back.

Did you do this today?
 
Yes, and yes :) Thanks again @Karl and @Half-Fast Mike for the 2016 and 2008 route info. 2019 status report:

Started off late around 10 (ate too many giant squid on a stick yesterday) and rode down the Tama sidepaths. Climbing over Takao then up around 413 in big tires was a bit of a slog, some significant traffic around Sagami lake due to the holiday.

The gravel climb through rt 76 more than made up for it - truly wonderful experience, only wished it was longer. Saw just one hiker past the closed-to-cars-gate, who was kind enough to gift me some hydration tablets. I lost momentum and had to unclip a few times early on, but it was largely rideable on 40mm with my limited off-road skillz. Slow climbing on some of the rocky bits but no new showstoppers in terms of rockslides since last report. In fact, the descent southbound might have been cleaned up a bit recently? It's still closed off by a gate from cars , but aside from a few fallen rocks, I was able to take the corners at speed and enjoy the views.

Alas, past the south gate is a giant car-and-tent camping city which kills the vibes from the prior climb. In fact I stopped at a vending machine there and the guy said it was for campers only - boo! I would consider camping on the north side in the future, since the facilities are much more barebone and there are much fewer people on that approach.

Anyways, due to the late start, decided to take the 3 car train back from Yaga instead of a round trip. Will have to search the forum for similar future routes... :)

And pictures!

IMG_0752.JPG

IMG_0748.JPG

IMG_0754.JPG

IMG_0753.JPG

IMG_0765.JPG

IMG_0764.JPG
 
Congrats! It is beautiful up there. Doing that ride just after Tomin, and in this heat (and after so much squid-on-a-stick) is a real feat. Sounds like you had a great day.

So there are no rock slides or washouts to deal with? Did they still have the rocks dumped at the south entrance to the tunnel?

Glad to hear you made it out safe and sound. And, thanks for the update.

*FWIW, I'm buying some 40mm tires (Gravel Kings or Nano's) and will try to head up there again in early fall. Hopefully I can improve on my previous effort and do a bit less walking. The ride up around Otsuki area is another one I'd like to try to get in before winter comes. The gravel bug has bitten.
 
The gravel bug has bitten.

looks like they're all over the place, gravel bugs. I'm suffering a particularly nasty bite these days. be sure to let us know of any off-road riding eh!
 
So there are no rock slides or washouts to deal with? Did they still have the rocks dumped at the south entrance to the tunnel?

The tunnels were clear, I only took one pic of the last one but you can see right through it!
IMG_0757.JPG

The paved part down southbound mostly looked like this:
IMG_0758.JPG
 
Nice. I guess they decide to put rock barricades at the tunnel entrances as soon as they detect I'm going to ride the route. :innocent: . Anyway, good info on the route conditions. Vielen dank.
 
Back
Top Bottom