Northwest Passage

[paul]

I am planning on riding the NW passage this Saturday. This will be my longest ride to date. Is this route marked in any way? I will survey it by car before Saturday but thought I would ask.
Also, any advise from those that have completed this route...warnings, suggestions, etc.

[Zonda]

Where is Skiffrun (http://www.trianglecycling.com/member.php?u=28) when you need him??:rolleyes: He knows the roads in this area very well.

You might want to consider sending him a Private Message. Click on his name above to go to his profile. Look on the right under Contact Info, then click "Send a Private Message to Skiffrun".

[paul]

Thanks Zonda!

[RickF]

In answer to your questions, if the route is marked in any way, it is left over from something else, and I would not trust the markings. Martin (Skiffrun) helped me create a varient of the Northwest passage that goes in the opposite direction and avoids some bad pavement on Kemp and Olive Branch roads. I think this is the route he prefers to the original Northwest Passage:

http://www.trianglecycling.com/showpost.php?p=183972&postcount=6

[paul]

Thanks Rick,
I'll ride them out this morning in preparation for tomorrows ride.

[paul]

I rode the original route today. I have to admit, I thought it was a tough ride. Some of the grades and hills were difficult. But I made it and enjoyed the ride. You are right, some of the pavement is pretty rough.

[skiffrun]

Congrats on successful navigation & completion!

Doing Rick's modified version would remove a couple tough hills on Kemp (as well as some ugly, heavily patched stuff) in trade for a few extra miles.

At least you didn't do what one person I know of did: he went to the Falls Lake Dam Visitor Center & then wondered why he couldn't find any signs pointing him to the route. :rolleyes:

Use Rick's cue sheets with confidence. Use some of the NCBC cue sheets with care. Ditto some of the Gyros cue sheets. (Sometimes NCBC cue sheets refer to road names of "sometime in the past" and sometimes Gyros cue sheets match the names as shown on Google, Yahoo, Mapquest maps, which are not always the same as on the the actual road signs on the actual roads.