Skagit Valley Un-Tulip Pedal
The longest ride I’ve done all year was 5o miles - completely unimpressive considering it’s May and Nick and I are planning on riding STP in a day in July. In order to build some base miles, I thought a relatively flat ride in the Skagit would be a good idea. Eileen’s climbing plans changed, so she decided to join us for what turned out to be a most excellent ride.
We were about a month late for the tulips, but we considered that a mixed blessing. The flowers tend to attract boat-loads of tourists that clog the roads and make riding dangerous. Instead, we had the roads all to ourselves. It was delightful!
We left La Conner around 9:45 a.m. and rode north to Samish Island where water views were plentiful.
From Samish Island, we headed over to Edison, which has become quite the bakery town. I counted at least three (with cyclists at each one). Chuckanut Drive gave us the opportunity to practice cruising in smooth three-person pace line. We “toodled” at 19 mph south towards Mt. Vernon and Conway. About 45 miles in I started to drag a bit, but Nick and Eileen’s good company kept my spirits up. (Or maybe it was the promise of beer and pizza at the La Conner Brewing Company?)
It took me a few tries to get the next shot. Sometimes I can get my helmet and the riders behind me in the same shot. It was all helmet or no helmet today, though.
If you’d like to repeat the ride, here’s the map. Use the + and - to zoom in and out, or click on the name at the top and go to the site where you can download the cue sheet.
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Comments:
Glad you liked the ride. That Samish Island loop is great, isn’t it?
Can we use your nice day as a plug for future rides?
Thanks!
Bill
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