Discovering new trails opens you up to new adventures. When you find a new road or trail that’s close to one of your normal routes, you wonder why you haven’t opted for this detour and where will it lead. Often, these detours are old Jeep tracks that wind through the woods connecting logging roads and snow mobile trails.

Over the last few years, while in the Delaware State Forest, I’ve passed a trail marker for Elbow Swamp Rd and Irishman Swamp Trail. Today, I needed to get deeper into the woods, a little further from civilization than I normally go. Although I’ve been riding solo, I needed to pedal aimlessly through the unknown.

Just south of Standing Stone Trail, off Silver Lake Road, Irishman Swamp is a long double track trail that sits extremely low, taking on more than its share of water. I rode a couple of miles in to an area called Bald Barren, a thick patch of land that sits between Flat Ridge Road and Silver Lake Road. I did not have time to investigate how I could connect to the Burnt Mills Trail system or Flat Ridge Road. Further exploration is imminent.

Being there brought back memories of the places I’ve rode in the last year. Traveling for work has brought me ample opportunity to ride in virgin territory. These thoughts are not good. They’re making me want to explore, like nothing is going on in the world. Like everything is normal, “the old normal”. But, as the sun goes down, I glide out of the forest and back into my community, face mask on, bottles covered, happy I could venture out once more and hopeful I can do it again.

What’s Playing (What am I listening to while writing or what’s dancing around in my head while riding), today – Frida – I Know There’s Something Going On (1982)