  Over the past few years I've fallen in love with bike packing and try to explore new routes when ever I get the chance. There are so many great options just outside of the LA. I'd been promising to lead a beginner friendly camp out/intro to bike travel overnight for SWAT. I wanted to make it "mild" and not a total suffer fest, but also take folks somewhere they probably hadn't been before. Somewhere that you can only access by foot or by bike. Crystal Cove was the perfect destination.  Riders borrowed gear and made it work. Lynn carried all her stuff in her giant roadrunner backpack which Taylor nicknamed "the mini fridge". Jenn strapped a water melon to her rack. Rita aka Mary Poppins (another Taylor nickname) kept pulling everything and anything anyone asked for out of her magical panniers. Diana sewed her own frame bag following a DIY tutorial.  The Crystal Cove trail head leading to the back country campgrounds is only 25 miles south of Long Beach.  We stayed at Lower Moro. A three mile (not so mild but worth it) climb up from the coast on a well maintained gravel road offering 360 views.  This was the largest group of WTF folks I’ve ever camped with and the energy was contagious.I have Mad love for all of these riders. It was such an AMAZING group with nothing but good vibes. A mix of first time bike campers, bikepackers and tourers. Old friends and new ones. Stay tuned for a lot more of this in the future!  ANA  DIANA  JENN  ARIN  SARAH  TAYLOR  LYNN  SMAISH  MARTHA  GISELLE  RITA  BRIANNA  KYLA  SUSIE 
    Plan your own trip and take our route! Make sure to pack in water and pack out your trash. Ride with GPS route ridewithgps.com/routes/28103312 Ride Zine with Cue sheets Crystal Cove Back country site info http://www.crystalcovestatepark.org/camping-in-the-backcountry/  |
