July 9, 2005 ... Five riders attended the Wabaunsee county ride July 9th. The riders were Chris Greenhoot Lawrence, 04' KTM 625SXC. Gordon Polston, Herington, 87' KLR 650. Steve McAtee, Topeka, 04' DR650. Tim North, Emporia, 00' XR650L. Myself (Larry McGillivary), Manhattan, 04' Vstrom 650. We lost one rider on the way in, hope you made it home OK, Clark. We started from Alma on a western loop through Wabaunsee county. By chance, the route I created took us by the ruins of a old military fort. A highlight on this loop was Little Egypt Road south of Volland, another old abandoned canyon road with an "iffy" trestle bridge. We looped back to Alma for lunch and fuel. Chris and Gordon were able to assist a lost damsel in distress, and that was the topic of conversation several times during the afternoon stops. Steve noticed a low tire while getting fuel. What luck, only 50 feet from the air hose. After adding a can of 'Slime', he was good to go. Our afternoon loop took us into the backroads of eastern Wabaunsee county. We made our way to Hessdale and Soloschied road. The first water crossing is now a little deeper than last year, approaching 16 inches ( this road has a total of six water crossings). I led the group as far as I could on the Vstrom, and sent them on their way down one of the best abandoned roads in the county. Of course there was brief delay for a agitated bull that was dominating the trail. A fence was recently put up across this road about 1/2 mile from the west end. Most folks like to ride it both ways, anyway. After sacrificing a few parts to the "Motorcycle Gods", the group backtracked towards Hessdale. Next we headed to Box Turtle road and sacrificed a few more parts. The south end of the "road" has really deteriorated. I wouldn't suggest anyone try riding this alone unless you want to be found later as a faded bike and a pile of bones. We headed towards Eskridge where three riders headed for home. Steve and I headed north towards I-70 on some roads that really keep you up on the pegs. The total loop distance was 90 miles by my GPS. Wabaunsee county is still one of my favorite places to ride especially with a bunch of good backroads touring pals. Click on a thumbnail to view a larger image. Use your browser's "back" button, or the "left" arrow in the navigation bar to return to this page.

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