We like camping...a lot...and do freely admit that this is one of the very few things we miss about not having our own car. Time was, we would book a 3 or 4 day trip to a place like Sandbanks or Bon Echo in Ontario or even at Lac Taylor or Lac La Peche at nearby Gatineau Park in Quebec. Camping, for us, is a fun way to take an inexpensive holiday and one we were more than prepared to have to 'shift' when we got rid of our vehicle. Because we only went camping once a year, it was hardly a serious sacrifice - renting a car would fix that. However, we wondered if it were at least possible to find a local campsite, pack up our gear and...yes...cycle to the place. The answer was 'yes' to all three questions - with a few minor changes.
We love a challenge like this and so, earlier this year, decided to give it a try. We thought we would try to pack our camping gear into the various panniers and wheeled, human powered devices and head out to go camping. We would try to go for one night as an experiment and we would see how much work would be involved.
The place we found is in the city's west end of the greenbelt and it was called the Ottawa Municipal Campground. It's located just beside the Equestrian park and is very easily accessible by a combination of cycle paths and only a few not-too-heavily-travelled roads. So, last month, Adam made a reservation for one site for one night for the two of us. We were committed to going and, dagnabit, we were going to go.
As I said, we love a challenge like this and there were a couple of challenges before us. The first one was in finding a place to stop for lunch since we knew we would have to. I get fatigued fairly easily, despite the utter comfort of my catrike, so planning for breaks, including one for lunch, acquired a new significance. Normally, we would have packed a good lunch and made a picnic of it all; however, this would not work out because of challenge number two...cargo limits.
Camping, even for one night, still requires that you cart a lot of equipment with you. You have to, essentially, bring your house with you. Okay, it's only a tent and not bricks and mortar but a tent can still take up a lot of space which our one does. Then, there are sleeping bags, pillows and all the other gear you actually need. Determining what we would need, versus what we would like to bring with us, did take a bit of extra care and one area we shaved a lot from was food. With car camping, you bring most of your own food, a cooking stove and all the necessary pots, pans, utensils, cups, plates, bowls et cetera. But, for this trip, we limited our food to some trail mix, a couple of bags of lentil chips and a few cereal bars. We did bring our mini camping stove (a real sweetie of a thing that fits into a wonderfully tiny bag), some fuel and my tin cup in which was an envelope of coffee. However, we forgot to bring a pot to boil water in so I was relegated to my caffeine tablets I did remember to bring for this particular instance. We brought our toothbrushes, soap and dental floss as well as two very thin but useful beach towels. We were only staying for one night so that seriously cut down the amount of clothing we needed to bring. In short, we shaved off a lot from what we would normally have brought with us...
...but it still made for very full panniers on my trike and a very full trailer which Adam pulled on his bike. Still we felt as prepared as we could be and, best of all, as enthusiastic about the whole venture. We were going to have fun.
The weather was nothing short of magnificent the morning we packed our things. Sunny, warm and yet not too hot, we pulled away from our place at 10:20 with the intention of stopping for lunch at Britannia Park (a place we'd previously visited and enjoyed). We would buy lunch at the park's little 'burger shack', a charming place called 'Baja Burger' but it was well worth the nearly $25 for two burgers (served on gluten free buns...a bonus), a side order of fries which we shared, two pops and one of those super deluxe ice cream bars which we also shared. We sat down to eat by around 12:30 and continued our journey to the campsite about an hour later.
So far, the trip had been pleasant and the heat of the day wasn't too grim that we couldn't handle the final long uphill slog to get to the gate of the campsite itself which we arrived at by 2:20 - precisely 4 hours after we started.
The site we picked was right across from the bathroom/shower facility and there were a few other campers in sites right by ours. Although our site did have one tree on it, the set of sites was quite sparse in that regard. The gnats were pretty thick and annoying but nothing we couldn't deal with. Admittedly, it was somewhat amusing when Adam emerged from the campsite office with a tag which we were supposed to place in our windshield. Such is the general assumption most campsites make, eh? Instead, Adam simply kept the tag in his pouch and ready to show to any official who may ask whether we were legally authorized to be there.
Setting up the tent took a short time though I have to admit that it's a challenge to arrange the air mattresses, sleeping bags and associated liners in such a confined space. I did it anyway even though I had Adam's air mattress wrong-side-up. Oh well, no harm done.
So, what did we do after setting everything up? Well, we thought we'd try and go for a walk around the facility but the whole place seemed to consist of other clusters of winnebagos or other non-tent campers. There was a playground and I plunked myself onto one of the swings just to stretch other muscles. Otherwise, the whole place is fairly nondescript and devoid of anything much beyond individual campsites.
But then, the whole point to this exercise wasn't to find exciting, distracting things to do but to just see if we could go camping without the use of a car. That goal was met, as far as I was concerned.
Part 2 tomorrow...no, really, I'll post it.
-Peace
Friday, August 19, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Happy bike lane news
Well, much to my delight, the dedicated bike lane on Laurier Avenue is being used. In fact, more than 40 thousand cyclists have used the bike lane, according to the online CBC article. This is exactly what I had hoped to read, especially because the dedicated bike lane on Laurier Avenue is just a two year pilot project.
The important point to know, as far as this pilot project goes, is that a feature not used becomes a feature removed. In other words, use it or lose it and I am pleased to see people using it. Equally pleasing, to me anyway, is that objections to the bike lane, seem to have disappeared or at least been reduced to a dull roar. What I am hoping comes soon is increasing pressure on city council to expand the dedicated bike lane so that anyone travelling west won't have to devise devilishly creative ways to connect to the Ottawa River parkway cycling path. As it stands now, cyclists who want to continue their travels westbound have to travel south on Bronson and find their way to Booth Street. Heading north on Booth Street, cyclists can intercept the bike path that goes just behind the war museum. Travelling north on Bronson is, technically, possible but the criss-crossing web of one way streets and the number of concrete staircases really makes it impractical for bicylists and impossible for those on recumbent trikes.
However, city council would not have anything to consider if the Laurier Avenue dedicated bike lane weren't already there so it's a very good thing it's being used. So, with about 3 and a half months left in the cycling season - unless you're a fanatic in which case I wish you the best as you put your winter tires on your bikes/trikes et cetera - I say keep up the good work everyone!
Wewt!
-Peace
The important point to know, as far as this pilot project goes, is that a feature not used becomes a feature removed. In other words, use it or lose it and I am pleased to see people using it. Equally pleasing, to me anyway, is that objections to the bike lane, seem to have disappeared or at least been reduced to a dull roar. What I am hoping comes soon is increasing pressure on city council to expand the dedicated bike lane so that anyone travelling west won't have to devise devilishly creative ways to connect to the Ottawa River parkway cycling path. As it stands now, cyclists who want to continue their travels westbound have to travel south on Bronson and find their way to Booth Street. Heading north on Booth Street, cyclists can intercept the bike path that goes just behind the war museum. Travelling north on Bronson is, technically, possible but the criss-crossing web of one way streets and the number of concrete staircases really makes it impractical for bicylists and impossible for those on recumbent trikes.
However, city council would not have anything to consider if the Laurier Avenue dedicated bike lane weren't already there so it's a very good thing it's being used. So, with about 3 and a half months left in the cycling season - unless you're a fanatic in which case I wish you the best as you put your winter tires on your bikes/trikes et cetera - I say keep up the good work everyone!
Wewt!
-Peace
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Just another...
...fun day at the beach...
Sunday was both sunny and warm but without that crushing, stifling humidity. The Alcatel-Lucent Sunday Bike day would be on in full force and we would be out there too - but with a slight difference.
Because my MS often results in me getting terribly fatigued by early afternoon and because Adam and I are morning people by nature we are very often some of the very first people to get to the closed-to-motorized-traffic barriers. Sometimes we get there before the scheduled 09:00 am closure and it's not uncommon for us to be on Colonel By and zooming down the road only to see the (very) occasional car trying to sneak off the road at the last possible second. This time, however, we were planning to head out for a picnic lunch, not at Mooney's Bay which is too close to our place to make it worthwhile but way the bejeepers at the beach of Lac Leamy. Lac Leamy is over the river into Gatineau but it's still not really all that far from our place. The beach/picnic area is 21.7 kilometres using a combination of the closed Colonel By Road and bike paths that trace curving routes around the area. At my current triking speed, we figured that if we left by around 10:30, we'd get to the beach at Lac Leamy by around noon.
This is precisely what happened. I packed a fairly light but nutritious lunch for ourselves and then headed out on a gloriously sunny mid-late morning. I have to admit that it felt a bit odd passing some familiar landmarks, like the Frank Clair Stadium, at such a late time of morning compared to when we would normally be there but it wasn't anything anxiety provoking.
We exited the Colonel By road and went right onto the Corktown foot bridge that crosses the Rideau canal, continued north towards the locks and found ourselves smack dab in the middle of some kind of festival featuring Celtic music and more tourists there than I was expecting even for a long weekend.
There is one lock which will allow users to transport their bikes across but it is a bit more of a challenge for recumbent trikes and my Catrike was no exception. However, it wasn't all that horrendous and the free flow of boat traffic was in no way jeopardized by my having to take a little longer time getting across. We were prepared for the next major event of this trip...crossing the Alexandra Bridge.
The last time we crossed the Alexandra Bridge on our trikes, the condition of the bike lane was - well - alarming. The lane itself seemed to consist of a washboard set of rumble strips whose effects were as tough on a trike as they were on one's body. Specifically, cyclists of all kinds would have to stop once on the other side to allow one's eyeballs a few minutes to stop bouncing around and this is what we both expected. However, we got a really nice surprise.
Someone, somewhere got it in their minds to perhaps fix the bike lane on the bridge so that people wouldn't have to put their internal organs back in the right place and our crossing over the Alexandra Bridge went very smoothly. Our next step was to maneuver around the Museum of Civilization, which lies just at the end of the bridge itself on the Quebec Side which is what we were expecting. What we were up against, instead, was a sign proclaiming the bike lane closed "due to construction". A minor annoyance, to be sure, but that did mean we'd have to cycle up to the traffic light and cross Rue Laurier to regain the bike lane.
There is a park there and bike lanes course and meander through it. We found ourselves there and immersed in some kind of art display. We're not Philistines per se but do object to the idea of someone passing off what looks like scrap steel painted in bright colours as art. No matter, the day was sunny with a few building cumulus clouds and continued warmth. The beach/picnic area at Lac Leamy wasn't too far away and we were both getting hungry.
From the park, the trail curves, climbs and settles through a lightly treed forested area until one emerges from the green forested area, goes under a few highway overpasses and then comes out by the beach. There were a number of other people there but the place wasn't packed to capacity.
We enjoyed our lunch, despite our having forgotten a couple of items in the fridge at home, and took a few minutes to just relax after a good 21 kilometre venture, crossing a much improved bridge and negotiating the very public display of scrap metallic...things...
Going home was a simple matter of retracing our steps back with the sole exception of not re-joining Colonel By Road after crossing at the Corktown foot bridge, for the road had been re-opened to motorized vehicles. That meant we would be relegated to the bike path only which neither of us minded at all.
We pulled back into our driveway at around 2:45pm, having left precisely 4 hours and 15 minutes earlier. Our total distance was 42 point something kilometres and, frankly, we were both ready for a shower.
-Peace
Sunday was both sunny and warm but without that crushing, stifling humidity. The Alcatel-Lucent Sunday Bike day would be on in full force and we would be out there too - but with a slight difference.
Because my MS often results in me getting terribly fatigued by early afternoon and because Adam and I are morning people by nature we are very often some of the very first people to get to the closed-to-motorized-traffic barriers. Sometimes we get there before the scheduled 09:00 am closure and it's not uncommon for us to be on Colonel By and zooming down the road only to see the (very) occasional car trying to sneak off the road at the last possible second. This time, however, we were planning to head out for a picnic lunch, not at Mooney's Bay which is too close to our place to make it worthwhile but way the bejeepers at the beach of Lac Leamy. Lac Leamy is over the river into Gatineau but it's still not really all that far from our place. The beach/picnic area is 21.7 kilometres using a combination of the closed Colonel By Road and bike paths that trace curving routes around the area. At my current triking speed, we figured that if we left by around 10:30, we'd get to the beach at Lac Leamy by around noon.
This is precisely what happened. I packed a fairly light but nutritious lunch for ourselves and then headed out on a gloriously sunny mid-late morning. I have to admit that it felt a bit odd passing some familiar landmarks, like the Frank Clair Stadium, at such a late time of morning compared to when we would normally be there but it wasn't anything anxiety provoking.
We exited the Colonel By road and went right onto the Corktown foot bridge that crosses the Rideau canal, continued north towards the locks and found ourselves smack dab in the middle of some kind of festival featuring Celtic music and more tourists there than I was expecting even for a long weekend.
There is one lock which will allow users to transport their bikes across but it is a bit more of a challenge for recumbent trikes and my Catrike was no exception. However, it wasn't all that horrendous and the free flow of boat traffic was in no way jeopardized by my having to take a little longer time getting across. We were prepared for the next major event of this trip...crossing the Alexandra Bridge.
The last time we crossed the Alexandra Bridge on our trikes, the condition of the bike lane was - well - alarming. The lane itself seemed to consist of a washboard set of rumble strips whose effects were as tough on a trike as they were on one's body. Specifically, cyclists of all kinds would have to stop once on the other side to allow one's eyeballs a few minutes to stop bouncing around and this is what we both expected. However, we got a really nice surprise.
Someone, somewhere got it in their minds to perhaps fix the bike lane on the bridge so that people wouldn't have to put their internal organs back in the right place and our crossing over the Alexandra Bridge went very smoothly. Our next step was to maneuver around the Museum of Civilization, which lies just at the end of the bridge itself on the Quebec Side which is what we were expecting. What we were up against, instead, was a sign proclaiming the bike lane closed "due to construction". A minor annoyance, to be sure, but that did mean we'd have to cycle up to the traffic light and cross Rue Laurier to regain the bike lane.
There is a park there and bike lanes course and meander through it. We found ourselves there and immersed in some kind of art display. We're not Philistines per se but do object to the idea of someone passing off what looks like scrap steel painted in bright colours as art. No matter, the day was sunny with a few building cumulus clouds and continued warmth. The beach/picnic area at Lac Leamy wasn't too far away and we were both getting hungry.
From the park, the trail curves, climbs and settles through a lightly treed forested area until one emerges from the green forested area, goes under a few highway overpasses and then comes out by the beach. There were a number of other people there but the place wasn't packed to capacity.
We enjoyed our lunch, despite our having forgotten a couple of items in the fridge at home, and took a few minutes to just relax after a good 21 kilometre venture, crossing a much improved bridge and negotiating the very public display of scrap metallic...things...
Going home was a simple matter of retracing our steps back with the sole exception of not re-joining Colonel By Road after crossing at the Corktown foot bridge, for the road had been re-opened to motorized vehicles. That meant we would be relegated to the bike path only which neither of us minded at all.
We pulled back into our driveway at around 2:45pm, having left precisely 4 hours and 15 minutes earlier. Our total distance was 42 point something kilometres and, frankly, we were both ready for a shower.
-Peace
I don't photograph well and that's evident in this picture. I am actually enjoying the ice cream; it just doesn't look like it.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Citizen Ruth
From reading a few cbc.ca articles on the Laurier Avenue segregated bike lane, I couldn't help but notice the high level of whining from members of certain groups about it. Apparently, the installation of a simple 1.3 kilometre segregated bike lane meant the end of the world for some people despite reality. The details are not as important as the response to some of those complaints...which is where I came into the scene.
The city of Ottawa, like many other modern cities in the world, has provisions in place to assist people who are in wheelchairs get from their homes to work, doctor's appointments, schools, shopping and any other place. However, the segregated bike lane here in Ottawa has meant that some of these people would have to be picked up and/or dropped off in a slightly different location than what they're accustomed to. This, it seems, has been interpreted by some as yet one more adaptation they are forced to make and that this forcing victimizes them even further. That's the part I can't understand, especially since a minor change like having to be dropped off 50 feet from their "usual" place doesn't actually prevent people in wheelchairs from being able to get where they're going.
This is where I threw my hat - or bike helmet - into the ring - as it were.
I am a person who has a disability. In fact, as I write this entry, my left leg is not working and so I am not out triking today despite the beautiful weather. I have actually been in a wheelchair and may very well wind up there again. So, I am very empathetic to issues around disabilities, access to services and mobility in general. However, more than anything, I detest the endless whining I hear from certain groups of people. I don't mean just people with disabilities but any group in particular.
So, I wrote a letter to Ottawa's mayor and all city councillors showing my wholesale support for the bike lane itself. One of the councillors wrote back to me, asked me to submit a letter to the editor of a newspaper and to, otherwise, continue showing my support for this bike lane.
So, I did.
I wrote a letter to the Ottawa Citizen...and got a phone call from one of the editors there. Apparently, my letter of support and written by someone with a disability provided enough of an interesting take on the issue that they sent out a photographer to both take a picture of me on my trike and to make a small video. The main caption on the item erroneously identified me as someone who is in a wheelchair but both the letter I wrote and the video that was made clearly indicates that I am NOT currently in a wheelchair...but that I have been in one.
I am not heartless or flippant about the issues facing those of us with disabilities. I am not out triking today, despite the gorgeous weather, because my left leg isn't working properly. However, I will not gripe and slobber endlessly about it as much because there isn't anything that can be done about it as it annoys the hell out of everyone else.
Luckily, the weather is only supposed to get a little damp for the next couple of days but I am quite sure I will be back out on my trike in short order...and, yes, taking advantage of that awesome segregated bike lane on Laurier Avenue.
-Peace
The city of Ottawa, like many other modern cities in the world, has provisions in place to assist people who are in wheelchairs get from their homes to work, doctor's appointments, schools, shopping and any other place. However, the segregated bike lane here in Ottawa has meant that some of these people would have to be picked up and/or dropped off in a slightly different location than what they're accustomed to. This, it seems, has been interpreted by some as yet one more adaptation they are forced to make and that this forcing victimizes them even further. That's the part I can't understand, especially since a minor change like having to be dropped off 50 feet from their "usual" place doesn't actually prevent people in wheelchairs from being able to get where they're going.
This is where I threw my hat - or bike helmet - into the ring - as it were.
I am a person who has a disability. In fact, as I write this entry, my left leg is not working and so I am not out triking today despite the beautiful weather. I have actually been in a wheelchair and may very well wind up there again. So, I am very empathetic to issues around disabilities, access to services and mobility in general. However, more than anything, I detest the endless whining I hear from certain groups of people. I don't mean just people with disabilities but any group in particular.
So, I wrote a letter to Ottawa's mayor and all city councillors showing my wholesale support for the bike lane itself. One of the councillors wrote back to me, asked me to submit a letter to the editor of a newspaper and to, otherwise, continue showing my support for this bike lane.
So, I did.
I wrote a letter to the Ottawa Citizen...and got a phone call from one of the editors there. Apparently, my letter of support and written by someone with a disability provided enough of an interesting take on the issue that they sent out a photographer to both take a picture of me on my trike and to make a small video. The main caption on the item erroneously identified me as someone who is in a wheelchair but both the letter I wrote and the video that was made clearly indicates that I am NOT currently in a wheelchair...but that I have been in one.
I am not heartless or flippant about the issues facing those of us with disabilities. I am not out triking today, despite the gorgeous weather, because my left leg isn't working properly. However, I will not gripe and slobber endlessly about it as much because there isn't anything that can be done about it as it annoys the hell out of everyone else.
Luckily, the weather is only supposed to get a little damp for the next couple of days but I am quite sure I will be back out on my trike in short order...and, yes, taking advantage of that awesome segregated bike lane on Laurier Avenue.
-Peace
Friday, July 15, 2011
Recce trip and why it's good.
Actually, for me, any trip in my Catrike is good but yesterday's trip (July 14th) was especially great.
One of the reasons Adam and I like our Catrikes is that we can carry quite a lot of items relatively easily. Heading out for a picnic is a very simple exercise, logistically and literally. We can stow all kinds of items and travel for greater distances without the worry of dropping anything or of having to try and balance items in panniers as we would have to do on bicycles.
However, one of the ventures we have yet to try is going camping using our trikes. These days, I am good for about 50 kilometres before fatigue puts all that to a stop for the day. So, we were mighty impressed at the discovery of a campground located within city limits, not to mention my own. We had passed by its entrance last year when we did our 80 kilometre round trip to Kanata but only this year did we think about doing an overnight trip there.
The distance isn't so much of an issue for me - at least this year - but one of the issues we need to consider is cargo. As I said, we can carry quite a bit on our Catrikes but that doesn't mean we need not be judicious with our items. Camping is an especially item-intensive prospect unlike any other holiday. If you are travelling to a place you generally don't have to bring your own bed or house with you but, with camping, you do. Most campers pack up their vehicles and head out but it's not generally a huge issue with gasoline powered cars or trucks. It is, however, a massively different issue when one is packing a Catrike and it is this area where we are attempting to keep our loads as light as possible.
One of the ways we are dealing with this is to see how little we can get away with bringing. We both tend to pack very lightly anyway so, for us, Catrike camping is possible but as we've never done it before still an unknown quantity.
Enter yesterday.
We thought we could reduce the number of things we would need to bring with us by, for instance, eating out instead of bringing food with us. However, as our planned route doesn't really take us past too many restaurants nor are we keen on the idea of leaving our trikes unattended to eat we thought we would follow our planned route up to the point where we would want to stop and eat. At that point, we would see what was around and plan accordingly. We weren't certain we would be able to find much more than a variety store but we lucked out at Britannia Beach. While we did bring a picnic lunch with us yesterday, did note that there is what looks to be a half-way decent burger joint on site. No, it's not top nutrition but, under the circumstances, will certainly work. That means we won't have to pack a lunch with us and, thus, will have more room for camping supplies.
The day was sunny, very warm but - whew - not that wilting humidity that reduces everything to gelatinous puddles. That's not due here 'til Sunday.
We rode up to Hog's Back and crossed at the Hartwell locks. I got lots of help lifting and carting my trike over the top and, for all that, I am extremely grateful. I could have done it but it was still nice to get help there.
Our route took us through the Experimental Farm, a completely delightful and serene place. We followed its pathway well beyond the western edge of the farm itself and eventually found ourselves deposited to a point just south of the Iris transit station. The day was now getting wonderfully breezy which, when experienced in some of the more wooded areas of the bike path, felt magnificent.
We made it to Britannia Beach in a little under 2 hours (including the couple of breaks enroute). We then sat back and enjoyed a fantastic lunch. I tell ya, you can eat a peanut butter sandwich (which I did) and it'll still taste like a 5 star dish after 2 hours of triking.
Heading back, we just travelled east along the Ottawa River parkway bike path, stopped at the ByTown museum at the foot of Parliament, enjoyed a well deserved ice cream and did some people watching for about half an hour before heading back.
We travelled 48 point something kilometres and had an extremely fantastic time of it. I am sure one overnight camping trip will be just as enjoyable (she said, hoping the weather deities hear her and take the hint).
-Peace
One of the reasons Adam and I like our Catrikes is that we can carry quite a lot of items relatively easily. Heading out for a picnic is a very simple exercise, logistically and literally. We can stow all kinds of items and travel for greater distances without the worry of dropping anything or of having to try and balance items in panniers as we would have to do on bicycles.
However, one of the ventures we have yet to try is going camping using our trikes. These days, I am good for about 50 kilometres before fatigue puts all that to a stop for the day. So, we were mighty impressed at the discovery of a campground located within city limits, not to mention my own. We had passed by its entrance last year when we did our 80 kilometre round trip to Kanata but only this year did we think about doing an overnight trip there.
The distance isn't so much of an issue for me - at least this year - but one of the issues we need to consider is cargo. As I said, we can carry quite a bit on our Catrikes but that doesn't mean we need not be judicious with our items. Camping is an especially item-intensive prospect unlike any other holiday. If you are travelling to a place you generally don't have to bring your own bed or house with you but, with camping, you do. Most campers pack up their vehicles and head out but it's not generally a huge issue with gasoline powered cars or trucks. It is, however, a massively different issue when one is packing a Catrike and it is this area where we are attempting to keep our loads as light as possible.
One of the ways we are dealing with this is to see how little we can get away with bringing. We both tend to pack very lightly anyway so, for us, Catrike camping is possible but as we've never done it before still an unknown quantity.
Enter yesterday.
We thought we could reduce the number of things we would need to bring with us by, for instance, eating out instead of bringing food with us. However, as our planned route doesn't really take us past too many restaurants nor are we keen on the idea of leaving our trikes unattended to eat we thought we would follow our planned route up to the point where we would want to stop and eat. At that point, we would see what was around and plan accordingly. We weren't certain we would be able to find much more than a variety store but we lucked out at Britannia Beach. While we did bring a picnic lunch with us yesterday, did note that there is what looks to be a half-way decent burger joint on site. No, it's not top nutrition but, under the circumstances, will certainly work. That means we won't have to pack a lunch with us and, thus, will have more room for camping supplies.
The day was sunny, very warm but - whew - not that wilting humidity that reduces everything to gelatinous puddles. That's not due here 'til Sunday.
We rode up to Hog's Back and crossed at the Hartwell locks. I got lots of help lifting and carting my trike over the top and, for all that, I am extremely grateful. I could have done it but it was still nice to get help there.
Our route took us through the Experimental Farm, a completely delightful and serene place. We followed its pathway well beyond the western edge of the farm itself and eventually found ourselves deposited to a point just south of the Iris transit station. The day was now getting wonderfully breezy which, when experienced in some of the more wooded areas of the bike path, felt magnificent.
We made it to Britannia Beach in a little under 2 hours (including the couple of breaks enroute). We then sat back and enjoyed a fantastic lunch. I tell ya, you can eat a peanut butter sandwich (which I did) and it'll still taste like a 5 star dish after 2 hours of triking.
Heading back, we just travelled east along the Ottawa River parkway bike path, stopped at the ByTown museum at the foot of Parliament, enjoyed a well deserved ice cream and did some people watching for about half an hour before heading back.
We travelled 48 point something kilometres and had an extremely fantastic time of it. I am sure one overnight camping trip will be just as enjoyable (she said, hoping the weather deities hear her and take the hint).
-Peace
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
How many planets do we live on?
Of course it's a silly sounding question and the answer is obviously 'one'...but you'd never know it in listening to some people.
I'm referring to the new segregated bike lane on Laurier Avenue which just opened up this past Sunday and we decided to give it a try and see for ourselves what it's like. In a word, the bike lane is FANTASTIC! Time was, cyclists of all kind had to share the road with cars which isn't a problem in itself except for the fact that many automobile drivers don't like bikes on "their" road and many cyclists never bother to follow the rules of the road either. That often meant an uneasy relationship between cars and cyclists and any collisions of any kind were always much worse for the cyclist than the car driver - no matter who was to blame.
This segregated bike lane, all 1.3 kilometres of it, means that cyclists and motorized vehicle drivers can travel on the same road in relative safety. Car drivers need not worry about cyclists suddenly darting out in front (yes, many of them do) and cyclists need not worry about car drivers passing unsafely (yes, many of them do).
This plan to convert the parking lane on Laurier Avenue to a dedicated bike lane was revealed as far back as late last year. Yet, there are certain groups of people who, faced with the rapid approach of its grand opening, decided to complain bitterly about the changes they would face. People with disabilities who use wheelchairs were complaining that the new segregated bike lane would make it so much more difficult for them to get to work because the ParaTranspo bus would not be able to drop them off at the front of their destinations. Another person with a disability was worried that the existence of the tiny concrete barriers (which is not one long continuous thing, by the way) would increase her chances of tripping as she has a leg problem.
Puh-leez...
The installation of a segregated bike lane in this case has meant that one would be dropped off a short distance from one's usual place, not in a different city. The city has also removed some of the barriers to address this situation. As for the other complaint, what had been on Laurier Avenue previously was a long line of parked cars which would be just as hazardous as the existence of these shorter, fewer concrete curb-sized barriers.
The complaints are really without basis and I am speaking from the position of one who has a disability. I may not be in a wheelchair at the moment but I have been in a wheelchair and neither I nor the doctors knew whether I would get out of it or not. I have faced barriers to movement and may very well face those same ones in short order.
However...
You have to look a little more closely at the effect that something like the installation of a segregated bike lane will have on the city overall. In other words, it's not about you. It's not about me either - it's about all of us. A segregated bike lane improves accessibility for cyclists, eases the worries of car drivers who are rightly afraid of the sudden appearance of a bicycle (it's happened) and helps to promote the city of Ottawa as a bicycle friendly city. We even made a small video showing just how open and unobtrusive this lane is. Change is inevitable and it is totally unreasonable to expect the entire world to stop evolving because someone (or a group of 'someones') doesn't personally like it. You have to look at the overall effect that something like segregated bike lanes has on society.
We live on one planet, not planet 'you' and a whole bunch of other planets. If you cannot or will not adapt to the reality of positive changes, even if you don't personally feel you will benefit outright, then please move aside and let the city evolve into something a little friendlier for those of us who don't drive.
It is not that I have no empathy for people with disabilities. Trust me, I have all the empathy in the world for us. What I have no empathy for is what I see as people with disabilities who play the 'disability card' and act as though any decision anyone makes for the betterment of us all is a personal affront to them and a sure sign of their repeated victimization.
Get over yourselves.
We live on one planet and we need to find a way so that everyone gets their needs met as much as possible...not just yours and not just mine either but everyone's. Okay? Everyone.
-peace
I'm referring to the new segregated bike lane on Laurier Avenue which just opened up this past Sunday and we decided to give it a try and see for ourselves what it's like. In a word, the bike lane is FANTASTIC! Time was, cyclists of all kind had to share the road with cars which isn't a problem in itself except for the fact that many automobile drivers don't like bikes on "their" road and many cyclists never bother to follow the rules of the road either. That often meant an uneasy relationship between cars and cyclists and any collisions of any kind were always much worse for the cyclist than the car driver - no matter who was to blame.
This segregated bike lane, all 1.3 kilometres of it, means that cyclists and motorized vehicle drivers can travel on the same road in relative safety. Car drivers need not worry about cyclists suddenly darting out in front (yes, many of them do) and cyclists need not worry about car drivers passing unsafely (yes, many of them do).
This plan to convert the parking lane on Laurier Avenue to a dedicated bike lane was revealed as far back as late last year. Yet, there are certain groups of people who, faced with the rapid approach of its grand opening, decided to complain bitterly about the changes they would face. People with disabilities who use wheelchairs were complaining that the new segregated bike lane would make it so much more difficult for them to get to work because the ParaTranspo bus would not be able to drop them off at the front of their destinations. Another person with a disability was worried that the existence of the tiny concrete barriers (which is not one long continuous thing, by the way) would increase her chances of tripping as she has a leg problem.
Puh-leez...
The installation of a segregated bike lane in this case has meant that one would be dropped off a short distance from one's usual place, not in a different city. The city has also removed some of the barriers to address this situation. As for the other complaint, what had been on Laurier Avenue previously was a long line of parked cars which would be just as hazardous as the existence of these shorter, fewer concrete curb-sized barriers.
The complaints are really without basis and I am speaking from the position of one who has a disability. I may not be in a wheelchair at the moment but I have been in a wheelchair and neither I nor the doctors knew whether I would get out of it or not. I have faced barriers to movement and may very well face those same ones in short order.
However...
You have to look a little more closely at the effect that something like the installation of a segregated bike lane will have on the city overall. In other words, it's not about you. It's not about me either - it's about all of us. A segregated bike lane improves accessibility for cyclists, eases the worries of car drivers who are rightly afraid of the sudden appearance of a bicycle (it's happened) and helps to promote the city of Ottawa as a bicycle friendly city. We even made a small video showing just how open and unobtrusive this lane is. Change is inevitable and it is totally unreasonable to expect the entire world to stop evolving because someone (or a group of 'someones') doesn't personally like it. You have to look at the overall effect that something like segregated bike lanes has on society.
We live on one planet, not planet 'you' and a whole bunch of other planets. If you cannot or will not adapt to the reality of positive changes, even if you don't personally feel you will benefit outright, then please move aside and let the city evolve into something a little friendlier for those of us who don't drive.
It is not that I have no empathy for people with disabilities. Trust me, I have all the empathy in the world for us. What I have no empathy for is what I see as people with disabilities who play the 'disability card' and act as though any decision anyone makes for the betterment of us all is a personal affront to them and a sure sign of their repeated victimization.
Get over yourselves.
We live on one planet and we need to find a way so that everyone gets their needs met as much as possible...not just yours and not just mine either but everyone's. Okay? Everyone.
-peace
Monday, July 4, 2011
50K on a gorgeous day...
Every July 1st, Adam and I make it a point to get out to Rockcliffe as much to see the visiting airplanes as to get some exercise. In years past, we had taken the bus(es) to get there and then walked from there to downtown. We have made this trip through coolish days and even managed to get caught in a "sudden" deluge one year. This year, however, the weather was picture perfect for a trike trip. Sunshine, bright blue skies, light winds (if any) and even lighter traffic.
We packed a lunch and left the house around 8:30 after a good breakfast - of course. Our route was the same one we use for the weekly Sunday Bike day with one major difference. Once at the north end of Mooney's Bay, we veered to the right and headed towards Vincent Massey Park. Since the city re-profiled the path itself, it's been a lot smoother to sail downwards. It's also made the return uphill trip a lot less daunting, too.
The day was warming up very quickly as we rode along the pathways and even the occasional foray onto suburban streets as we transited from one pathway to another was an easy one. There were very few cars on the roads where we were even though the combination of it having been Canada Day and the presence of TRH the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge made Ottawa a huge attraction. In fact, the various pundits had predicted there would be close to 500,000 tourists milling about the city itself.
We stayed away from the downtown area and quite understandably so. We did encounter a few more vehicles along Sussex as we sailed the final few kilometres east to Rockcliffe but drivers and other cyclists were generally very well behaved.
So, we made it to Rockcliffe - a journey of about 24 kilometres by the pathways where I stayed with the trikes and Adam wandered around the collection of light aircraft, snapping pictures and taking movies. These made me smile. Our annual saunter to Rockcliffe is one of the rituals we do to - more or less - welcome summer and I was quite relieved that we were able to continue this tradition and on trikes no less.
After about half an hour, we decided to head back, stopping at Rockcliffe Park for our picnic lunch. The only minor glitch in all this was that the ice cream stand was not open and didn't look like it would be open this season at all. Getting an ice cream is a part of this tradition so we wound up racking our brains to come up with an alternative. Adam snapped his fingers recalling that the ice cream stand at Hog's Back is open. We knew this because we stopped there on the way out with me looking for a bathroom (long story).
So, we finished lunch, climbed into our trikes and continued our return trip by reversing our original path. Mostly, the day was getting quite hot but the low humidity made for a very pleasant journey. We got to Hog's Back and enjoyed a small ice cream all to the sounds of South American music belting out over the speakers. It was a lot of fun as people there were gearing up for Canada Day celebrations. In short order, though, it was time to make the final 20 minute trip back to the house before the day got even hotter.
An interesting thing did happen once we had maneuvered through Mooney's Bay heading south - I heard the first cicada of the season. I make it a point to note the date of the first cicada. That telltale buzzing of those elusive insects is a surefire sign that summer is, indeed, here.
The only other sniggly point I noted was having encountered a motorized medi-scooter in the bike lane on Hunt Club...going the wrong way. Please, people, bike lanes follow the same pattern as motor vehicles. You wouldn't drive a car the wrong way on a road, would you? It's no different in bike lanes so, please, follow the rules...
Okay, I'm done.
-Peace
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