40-wunderful kilometres

One of the more interesting challenges when it comes to the Lucent Alcatel Sunday bike days is in connecting from one closed-to-motorized-vehicles road to another. From our home in the city's south end, it's just a matter of a small trike trip through a few nearby streets to get to the very welcome barrier on the corner of Hog's Back and Colonel By Drive. From there, it's a good 10-15 kilometres to the end of the run right by the University of Ottawa campus and the Rideau Canal. Normally, we would either pop into a nearby Second Cup for a java or else just turn around and head home. However, this time, we thought we'd continue our trek beyond our usual turnaround point.

This wasn't a new idea or one we'd never done before. A couple of earlier Sundays saw us doing just that, heading west, intercepting the Champlain bridge and then easing onto the cycle pathways in Quebec and enjoying a fantastic picnic lunch at the Aylmer marina. However, this particular venture would see how far west we could go staying on the Ontario side of the river. This particular Sunday, as slightly cool and misty as it was at the start, saw us following our normal route up to Mooney's Bay ->Hog's Back ->past the barrier and onto Colonel By. From there, we rode all the way to the end but rather than turn back eased up the Corktown pedestrian/bike bridge. That put us on the west side of the Rideau canal and allowed us to trike past what looked like preparations for the TDBank summer jazz festival. I had to make a quick trip to the washroom and so found a Starbuck's within a very short walk. Relieved and armed with the purchase of a couple of baked goodies (you can't just use the washroom without making *some* kind of purchase...right) I got back to Adam who had been guarding both trikes. We then continued our trek towards the bottom of the locks at the canal. Adam had spotted something interesting. From there, it was just a small matter of veering west and reintercepting the Ottawa River parkway. By that time, the clouds were lifting, slightly, and the mistiness seemed to have receded.

We got to the war museum and had to travel quickly on a regular ol' road before getting to a cycle-only road. By then, we were seeing a few other people out on bikes which meant that the morning was wearing on. I'm guessing that if the weather had been sunnier, we would have seen a lot more people out there.

Our trikes performed flawlessly and so we sailed along until we got to a little place called Remic Rapids. By then, we were both hankering for the baked goodies I bought from Starbuck's. So, we pulled over and mostly did some people watching while I enjoyed my oat bar and Adam savoured his blueberry square. We decided this would be as far as we would go today and so we turned around and headed back. Because it was still morning, the roads were still closed to cars so we didn't have to worry about having to contend with them.

By then, the sun was actually starting to emerge from the thinning clouds, burning off what fog we had had from the previous night and it looked as though the day could get quite hot and humid. We travelled past the war museum and got back on the bike path itself. Within a short while, we were back at the Rideau Canal locks. Remember that "something interesting" that Adam had spotted on our way down towards the locks? Well, it was a sandwich board advertising ice cream at the Bytown Museum and that was a sufficient reason to stop for one.

The museum has a nice collection of tables and seats for watching boats ease their way through the many locks and that is precisely what we did while enjoying a well-deserved cold treat.

Refreshed and rested, we hopped back on our trikes and eased our way up the hill and back onto the pathway. Crossing the Corktown bridge saw us deposited on the east side of the canal and back onto Colonel By Drive - still closed to motorized cars but with only about 45 minutes left before it would be reopened. We charged down Colonel By Drive and, at one point just north of Mooney's Bay, we found a park bench and pulled out the lunch we had made for this trip. That would be the last rest for us. We stayed on the bike path as opposed to the road as much because it would be easier to get into and through Mooney's Bay. Retracing our steps, we got through the park, avoided major roads as far as possible and got ourselves home. It was a 40 kilometre fun trip.

I should probably emphasize here that while it may look as though all we did was "pull over for a bite" the fact is that we cycled a lot and only ate when we were hungry.

My ultimate triking goal for this year is to trike from here in South Keys all the way out to Kanata and back - a roughly 80 kilometre venture.

while the sun shines...

It's supposed to rain tomorrow so we picked today to shoot some videos of us catriking. In both these videos we are zooming through the Sawmill Creek Constructed Wetlands, a recreational path and drainage facility a mere 900 metres from our home. Even the red winged blackbirds didn't seem to mind either of us there.

Catriking the Sawmill Creek Constructed Wetlands

Catriking in Traffic

A new record!

Today turned out to be sunnier and lot nicer than forecast from a few days ago. Then again, the weather is not required to conform to the forecast so we were *very* impressed with the sight of bright blue skies and awesome sunshine.

Today was the ever popular Alcatel-Lucent Bike Day here in Ottawa. Each Sunday from Victoria Day to Labour Day, certain select roads are closed to motor vehicle traffic from 9:00am to 1:00pm and cycles have free run of the road. To be sure, the bike paths are still used on Sunday bike days - even when the road is closed to motor vehicles - but this day is really for cyclists of all stripes to head out and get some fresh air and exercise...so we packed ourselves a good lunch and headed up to one of the closed off roads. Our destination today was Aylmer, Quebec - in particular the yacht club there as there is a gorgeous park right next to it where we would be able to enjoy the lunch I made.

Getting from our suburban townhouse in Ottawa's South Keys area to Quebec is not difficult at all. It's about 10-15 kilometres to the Ottawa river and it's only a matter of taking whatever bridge is most convenient to cross over to Quebec and today would prove to be one of the simpler jaunts. Today saw us ride our trikes down Hunt Club Road, up McCarthy onto Southmore and, eventually, at Walkley Road. A few minutes later, we found ourselves at Mooney's Bay and, within another few minutes, we sidled right past the barriers blocking cars, trucks and other motor vehicles, and turned right onto Colonel By.

What struck both of us was just how quiet things got and in short order as well. We both know that a lot of the noise of urban life can be attributed to cars, trucks and buses but it's something else to experience that transition from frantic noise (even for a Sunday morning) to serene, calming peace. Smiling as we were, we continued along Colonel By Drive and headed towards the city centre.

We exited Colonel By right at the Corktown pedestrian bridge - the one that goes over the Rideau Canal. Negotiating that twisting, inclined plane isn't really a tricky venture so much as one in which vigilance is crucial. Anyone can come barreling down from the other side, not see you and collide...and collisions are *never* fun now are they?

Once on the other side, we sprinted behind the NAC and were quickly caught up in the tourist pedestrian traffic behind the Bytown Museum. It did slow us a bit but we were on the other side of that and heading west along the Ottawa River Parkway.

Travelling along the parkway, we saw other cyclists - of course as it was a gorgeous Sunday morning - smelled the delicate scent of the clusters of wild roses and felt quite good to be outside. In almost no time, we were at the war museum. Knowing that part of the road was also closed to motor vehicle traffic, we turned left and headed for the barriers, rather than continue on the pathway which we could have done.

We cycled along the road until it was time to turn up to meet the Champlain Bridge and head into Quebec. The Champlain Bridge is one of Ottawa's best bridges for bikes and trikes. It has a very wide set of bike paths and controlled car lanes so we both felt very safe zooming along the bridge. Halfway along the bridge, we passed into the province of Quebec and I felt a subtle but very real change in the way Quebeckers view cycling and cyclists in general.

For my money, I find that car drivers tend to view cyclists as honoured compatriots when it comes to use of the road. In contrast, I find that Ottawa drivers view bicycles as either an irrelevance to be ignored while cutting one off or an annoyance to be endured and derided. But, in Quebec, cyclists are - well - maybe a little more respected. I find Quebeckers tend to treat bicycling as a family activity and our venture today through some of the most astoundingly gorgeous pathways bore that impression well.

The pathway had us meandering through some of the most interesting ecosystems I have seen in awhile. I saw meadows, bullrush festooned grounds and kilometre upon kilometre of overhanging branches cooling us on our way through the increasingly warm morning.

Eventually, we got to the park right by the Aylmer yacht club around 11:30 and were both ready for a good lunch. We were treated to all manner of families on bikes, roller blades and even a few skateboards. Some of the those bikes were pulling youngsters in trailers but I am very happy to note that everyone were wearing helmets. Like I said, Quebeckers tend to see cycling in a more positive manner.

Eventually, it was time to head home so we reversed our route almost exactly as we had come. The only exception was that we stayed off the roads as it was after 1:00 pm and so the Sunday Bike day was done for the week.

When we got home, I checked my trip odometre and was pleased to note not just that I had gone 66.7 kilometres but that I beat my record one day trip of 54 kilometres which I did last early October.

Indeed, I will sleep very well tonight...

The heat goes on and the joys of sharing...

...although it's a dry heat so far so that means perfect triking weather. Actually, it's been really quite dry here in the nation's capital so I'm hoping we get some rain fairly soon. According to CBC Ottawa's meteorologist, Ian Black, the humidity levels are expected to rise next week so I figure I should get out while I can. I can deal with heat, MS notwithstanding, and I can even deal with humidity (I like the snow and rain) but the combination of heat and humidity just doesn't work well for me when it comes to getting any outdoor exercise. Like anyone else, I just wilt into a sweat infused puddle...kinda like the flame festooned critter above.

With that in mind, I went out yesterday for a quick 10.5 kilometre solo trip. With a light easterly breeze under blazingly sunny skies, conditions were more than perfect to be outdoors although I didn't really see too many others out until I got to the bike paths a couple of kilometres from home. What others I did see were mostly city crews fixing the potholes on roads but that wasn't anything I couldn't deal with. One city vehicle had parked itself pretty much squarely in the middle of a small suburban road necessitating me to creep around the large and smelly truck at a little faster than a gentle walking pace. Once I made it around the other side, I was off in almost top gear and headed for one of the city's many wide bicycle paths.

I don't ordinarily travel on the bike paths by myself. Call me paranoid but many a tragedy has occurred on suburban bike paths that the unwary had presumed were safe. However, as there were lots of kids (shouldn't they have been in school?) on bikes, skateboards and otherwise running around under glorious sunshine, I felt at least a little safer. So, my trip along the bike path took me to the Greenboro branch of the public library. There, I discovered many other people, mostly city workers, out and about milling around. It was almost right out of Sesame Street with the happy people going about their happy business doing happy things.

Just past the library, I had a choice of continuing on the bike path or else turning onto Lorry Greenberg Drive - yet another suburban road - and heading east towards Conroy Road and into another suburban area. Ottawa is laced with suburban areas so there is no shortage of places to go. The houses all look the same and they're all on streets with names like Horsdal Pvt. and Pittaway Ave. So, enjoying the sunshine, I rode to Blohm Drive, circled around to Karsh Drive and reintercepted Lorry Greenberg. From there it was only a matter of retracing my route back home.

Ten and a half kilometres. Not bad.

I should take a moment or two here to mention an interesting incident that happened to me. I was travelling along Lorry Greenberg when a large passenger truck pulled up beside me. The passenger opened his window and immediately proceeded to hurl all manner of abuse at me. With the foul language extracted from the utterance, the young man shouted something like, "Get that (blankety blank)ing piece of (blank) off the road!!" Of course, I was right up against the curb and travelling at around 20 km/hr. I was not blocking traffic at all in any way. I pretended I couldn't understand what he was saying so he shouted more loudly at me until the opportunity for him to turn right and onto a small road presented itself. Then, he and his friend zoomed away never to be seen again.

This highlights the very real problem that cyclists and motor vehicle operators can have. There seems to be this understanding that cars and bikes do not mix well together on the road. While it is true that any collision between cars and bicycles/trikes is always bad news for the cyclist the fact remains that cyclists have the same right to use the road as cars do. However, the right for cyclists to use the road comes with responsibilities and so it is up to all cyclists, whether we ride bicycles, trikes or even quadracycles (yes, we have one of those as well) to share the road with motor vehicles. Stay to the far right of the road. Always be aware of what the traffic is doing around you. Make eye contact with drivers, especially at busy intersections where left turning traffic may not see you.

Remember what you were taught in driver's ed? Car drivers are looking for other car drivers. They often do not see pedestrians or cyclists. Trikes pose an even dicier problem because we sit so low to the ground. Even the tall, bright orange flag is often overlooked by an impatient driver who's inattentive for whatever reason. However, the message is the same, SHARE THE ROAD! Give plenty of space and scope to the car who's driver is clearly preoccupied with something other than operating a motor vehicle on a public road. Cyclists, too, need to share the road. Just because we have a right to use the road doesn't mean we can do whatever we want. Ride in the lane. Signal your turn. DO NOT RUN RED LIGHTS OR STOP SIGNS. Most importantly, stay safe. Yes, that may sound trite but it's no less true.

This upcoming weekend is the first of the Alcatel Sunday bike days of the season. with showery weather in the forecast, it should be an interesting trip and the first I will do on my trike. Looking forward to it!

-Peace

Get lost!

It wasn't supposed to work out that way but it did.

The original idea was for me and Adam to take our trikes to les Bicyclettes de Hull - where I bought my trike last September - and pick up a spare tube for one of Adam's trike wheels. We had a good lunch, packed extra water (ice water in one container) and told my daughter, Rachael, to have a good day and that we wouldn't be gone for longer than a few hours. Then, we rode away on a gorgeous, sunny, warm early afternoon.

The traffic was light and the going easy. Even the construction on some parts of the bike path around Hog's Back wasn't anything more than a minor annoyance and we managed to find a bathroom around the NAC. It didn't take us too long to get downtown.

Our path followed the canal and we made it to the locks in short order. From there, the Alexandra bridge was plainly visible. There is major renovation/maintenance work being done on the Alexandra bridge but, again, nothing more than an inconvenience for us.

The Alexandra bridge is an interesting object. There is a wide boardwalk style lane solely for cyclists and pedestrians and traversing the bridge isn't a problem. I should add, though, that travelling across the bridge quickly on a catrike will result in you having to take an extra few minutes' break on the other side so that your eyeballs can stop dancing around. The lane's wooden 'planks' are like a rattly set of speed bumps such that zooming along is an invitation to unnecessary pain. So warned, I went first and yet still found myself going at a fairly decent pace. I got to the other side, turned left and went to the side to await Adam.

I never saw him.

I waited, and waited...and waited...and checked my watch...and looked around...and waited... and then decided to move on and look for him as I figured I must have missed him.

I rejoined the path and cycled along while a few people verbally admired my awesome trike (it really is awesome) but still there was no sign of Adam at all. I figured he went on towards les Bicyclettes de Hull so I thought I would follow suit. Surely, I mused to myself as I continued on the path and really enjoying the great weather, he didn't go too far up the way. I never learned where he was because I just never saw him. I just didn't. I looked around the Museum of Civilization, which is where the path from the Alexandra bridge joins with the rest of the path in Gatineau. Not wanting to run out of energy, I took a deep breath and eventually decided to just turn around and head home.

I reversed my route, traversed the noisy Alexandra bridge (noisy due to construction), and took a little break on the other side to enjoy some Cracker Jack. I crossed the microthin path over the canal itself with no problems and idled my way through the NAC properties.

I reintercepted the bike pathway and headed home under glorious bright sunshine, powder blue skies, fresh, warm southerly breezes and with the knowledge that a cold front and associated weather was approaching.

When I got home, Rachael told me that Adam had phoned, worried about where the blazes I was. We sat outside and waited for him to get home. Within about 30 minutes, we three were reunited in one big, fat, sweaty hug.

Whenever I get separated from my party, I always put some effort into relocating the party. If that doesn't work, I just turn around and go home. Today, I got lost, looked for a bit, turned around and went home and put on 38 kilometres for my efforts.

Now, the skies are gloomy and an eerie calm has befallen the city of Ottawa. With storms in the forecast, methinks today's comedy of errors will be augmented by a much needed thunderstorm.

A warm Saturday and all that smoke!

With the spasticity in sufficient abeyance, I decided to do a quick 11 k trike trip on my own this morning. The weather forecast was calling for rain and possible thunderstorms later in the afternoon so I thought getting out earlier would be better than later.

So, I got ready and headed outside and only noticed then a rather thick pall of black-grey smoke hanging in the skies just to the east of home. Being a curious sort, I thought I would head out and investigate the source of said smoke. Traffic was light, thankfully, and I soon found myself zooming along the quieter streets in the neighbourhood. Always visible was that pillar of smoke - you know, the kind that often gets featured on the covers of such respectable journals as The National Enquirer or Weekly World News and in which Satan's face is visible. Well, Old Nick was nowhere to be seen but, looking at the moving smoke, I was able to ascertain that the easterly winds were pretty brisk and that meant I would have a good headwind at the start of my trip.

In short order, I noticed the smoke had waned and, eventually, dissipated. By that time, I was a good 5 kilometres from my house. The day was heating up and I was getting hungry for some lunch. Plus, the skies were already starting to cloud over and the last thing I wanted was to get stuck in some random, nasty downpour. So, I headed home and that involved my travelling along Hunt Club Road, one of the busier streets in Ottawa's south end.

Personally, I have no problems whatsoever riding my trike on roads; they're for my use too. I follow the rules of the road, use my mirror a lot and am always aware of what other traffic is around me. That didn't stop a few other drivers from shouting silly remarks to me as they zoomed past me in their cars (by 'silly' is meant 'obscene' but you probably knew that). However, approaching the street where I had to turn left, I put my arm out to signal and two automobile drivers were very kind to let me in front of them thus allowing me a smooth and simple lane change. For that, I am grateful and may those drivers enjoy the merits of their act.

While I have no problem riding on roads, I gotta admit that I felt better once I got away from the thick of traffic. Cars don't scare me but I don't really like just how noisy busy roads get.

-Peace

Very minor setback...

Well, here it is, April 23rd. It's sunny in the nation's capital, warm and even the north wind isn't too cold.

But, I am not out triking; in fact, I haven't gone out in awhile. True, we have had a few less-than-ideal days but the weather hasn't been that bad. So, what gives?

Well, the problem is that my MS is acting up. Thankfully nothing too serious but it's been enough to keep me from getting in those fabulous long trips that I am wanting to do. Luckily, it's only April and the season here tends to go on until late October or even early November so I'm not too worried about missing out.

But, still, I do not like not being able to do the things I enjoy. Certainly, I can adapt (you have to when you have any chronic illness). I do have a few crocheting projects on the go and those are my back-up activities. But when it's sunny, warm and otherwise gorgeous, it's hard not to feel that pull to "shoe" up (yes, I'm using a noun as a verb but so what) ease into the seat of my Catrike Trail and zoom away.

What I can say, even from here and surrounded by skeins of black and bright purple yarn, is that the trike has been performing flawlessly. The brakes and shifters are all working perfectly and show no signs of breaking down...

...if only my legs would follow suit.

Oh, I am healing up. These sorts of "relapses" occur fairly regularly and the result is really that I need to take a week or two off from any heavy physical activity but it's the waiting that gets to me after awhile. "Patience," I remind myself as I shuffle along looking like a 3 year old child that's just woken up. "It will pay off!"

Now, back to my rows of dcx100 twice before yarn colour change!