Bike Everywhere month is underway. I am riding for tacos. It's Friday night and I am a few tacos short of my goal. We vacation to Bellingham spend the first night at the casino run by the Lummi Nation. The next morning, I blast down a lovely route into downtown Bellingham and meet my taco goal. It's mostly on designated bike path. The paths are not new, but they are clean, solid and smooth. I ride among the trees, the marshes, and I hear the bird song the whole way. I cannot be happier. Impeccable, perfect weather blessed us all. I think I enjoyed the perfect sun and mild temperature the most of all, speeding along the quiet country, far away from the sounds of the city. This ride feels as close to euphoria as one can get.
The next day, I ride from the viewpoint at the top of Chuckanut drive, down through Bow and Mt. Vernon, finishing at The Angel of the Winds Casino in Arlington. It's a little warmer, and the ride is a bit more stressful than the day before. Chuckanut is especially scary after driving the road and seeing how close cars have to get to bikes. It's mother's day and cars congest the roads stopping at every eatery possible for brunch. Google Maps crashes several times and I pedal past my turns, unawares that Google can't tell me where to go. I forget my sunscreen and my skin burns a little in the blaring sun. But, I am blessed with a tail wind the entire time. I ride through country I road through on the dreaded Tulip Pedal ride that had nothing by headwinds. The ride is mostly downhill, and I fly, still enthralled that I am lucky to live in this beautiful country.
