Armed with a GoPro Hero HD helmet cam, we decided to document our travels aboard our long-travel trail bike, the Pivot Firebird. We hit Ashland OR (to our minds one of the most underrated mtb destinations), San Luis Obispo CA, the San Francisco Bay Peninsula, Santa Cruz and Aptos and finally Fairfax — the birthplace of mountain biking — in the heart of Marin County.

Because our favorite Northwest high country rides are still impossibly snowed in — closing in on mid-July no less! — we wish we were still south, riding our hearts and minds out. Instead we’re sitting at our desk, blogging away as Phil and Bob and the 2011 Tour de France drone on in the background.

So here’s to memories of rides recently past. Enjoy!

Ashland SuperD (partial). We rode part of the race course and had a blast.

Alpine Road, Palo Alto. Trail-blazed as an off-road cycling romp by the legendary Jobst Brandt before mountain bikes even existed, Alpine remains a fun jaunt downward.

Mount Madonna, San Luis Obispo. Praise the Lord! even though the “Madonna” has nothing to do with the Bible.

Mount Madonna Lemon Grove Loop, San Luis Obispo. A quick ride from town that you can extend into a two-hour workout.

Wilder Ranch State Park, Santa Cruz. Classic singletrack with the best sight lines you’ll find on two wheels.

Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, Aptos. Where some of the best slopestyle riders in the world hang out, and you can see why.

Camp Tamarancho, Fairfax, Marin County. Mountain biking got its start nearby, and Tamarancho is the must-ride not only for locals but mtbers the world over.

If you feel more ambitious and want to circumnavigate the mountain on mostly singletrack, you can peel off Lemon Grove Loop and ride across cow pastures to a gnarly rocky climb up the backside of Mt. Madonna. This ride is better done coming down off the top of the mountain (clockwise), but either way it’s a total hoot!

Here’s a preview of what awaits you on the Lemon Grove Loop itself.