Ride to Red Rock

I have been on a bicycle since I was 3 years old. From BMX to mountain bikes and now a gravel bike. I love riding bicycles, it’s my escape, reset, and balance setter. For months I have been wanting to do this ride from my house that is a big loop, 50+ miles and 7000+ feet of altitude into the Santa Ynez Valley. So on a whim, I went. Looking for adventure and inspiration.
The first hurdle came on Gibraltar road. After all the rain we have had parts of the road had to be repaired and I was stopped for a solid 40 minutes waiting for the crew to clear the road of their machines. I made it to Camino Cielo and dropped down the unpaved Gibraltar road into the Santa Ynez Valley towards Gibraltar Dam. Fun downhill, even on the gravel bike. Quick stop at the dam which I considered to be the furthest point out on this ride. My plan was to go along the river until I hit Arroyo Burro fire road and then climb that road back up to Camino Cielo. Arguably quite a challenge especially since there is further climbing on Camino Cielo once you get there… But for the most part, it’s cruising slightly downhill along the river for a while until Arroyo Burro fire road.
Then I hit Red Rock and the first of 5 river crossings. Water was flowing but I figured I’d make it through no problem. I was wrong. The crossing is a concrete road and it was covered in super slippery algae making the surface like ice. Even with “only” 12-15 inches of water flowing over it there was no holding on to the road. I had zero desire to get washed away down the river with my bike and all my gear so after testing it for 6 feet or so I turned around. Well aware of there being at least 4 more crossings, all of them longer and deeper. I was stuck. My only option was to go all the way back up the way I came. A solid 12 miles of steep uphill on dirt, climbing probably 4000’ of elevation.
I’ll take the humbling…