Post for May 21, 2021

I’ve enjoyed cycling in many places, on the tangled streets of London, gravel roads in the country, Downtown Minneapolis, paved country roads, and city neighborhoods. I’m comfortable cycling in all those places, but suburbs make me worry.

And tense again.

I have friends and family who I love and respect who live In the suburbs, but the streets there are made for fast traffic. That traffic usually does not include bikes. In suburbs, I sometimes break an important rule and cycle on the sidewalk to stay safe, but there’s often not a sidewalk. In this case, I put all my lights on, listen carefully, look around often, and glance in my mirror just as often. I had to do all that today since construction made suburban roads busier.

All that made the MRT feel much better when it changed from suburban road to bike trail, often next to the Mississippi River. At one point, I passed some cyclists going the other way, and one called out, “Are you touring?”

I replied “Yes, to New Orleans!” It felt great to cross paths with a kindred spirit. This little exchange comes up later in the pictures.

The song for this post, from my touring playlist, is Rexroth’s Daughter. The song is about looking for an elusive woman, kind of like I was looking for elusive safe places to cycle today. Ok, that might be a bit of a stretch, but it’s still a good song.

I bought a new Garmin about 2 weeks before cycling the MRT. I was happy to read what the odometer showed.

I met Brian while cycling on the outskirts of the suburbs, great conversation. He used to tour on a tandem.

When I saw this farm, I suspected the land that used to be fields was now used for new houses.

The foreground shows land that’s going to be developed like the houses in the background.

More houses under development. The sign on the right shows the price.

Traffic was tense soon after.

And tense again.

The left side shows part of tangled, fast, freeways. I was happy to pedal down the path less travelled on the right.

I felt like I was coming home when I saw the fuzzy skyline of downtown Minneapolis in the distance, although I have a few homes.

By this point, I was past the suburbs and into Minneapolis, which has many peaceful bike trails.

This is one of my favorite bridges in Boom Island Park, near downtown Minneapolis.

Me on the Stone Arch Bridge, which crosses the Mississippi River next to Downtown Minnapolis. One of my favorite places.

This is Paxton and Ross. I was resting by the Stone Arch Bridge, and she asked if I was the guy going to New Orleans. They were the people I passed on the trail earlier. They also go on long rides–and a lovely couple.

The Mississippi River while crossing the Ford Parkway Bridge, with Downtown Minneapolis in the background.