The city wanted to build affordable (???) apartments here, but they also wanted to preserve the teetering walls (that’s all that remains) of the historic cannery building. So the plans retain the old walls, and construction is underway along the Greenway. Not sure if the graffiti stays.  More at Bill Bikes

I was already resigned to no more rides this month, I even finished my website monthly ride page and published it two days ahead of time. Today I revised it. The sky brightened and when the temperature went up to +3C/37F, I grabbed my camera and went for a last ride in January. My camera … Continue reading "January Challenge Day 18"

Another cold ride We have had snow and wind and ice and I hadn’t ridden my bike in nine days. However, I think it was mostly the dreary grey sky that kept me off my bike, not all days saw snow and ice on the roads. Today the sky was dreary grey, too, but there … Continue reading "January Challenge Day 17"

The Diamond Back was so exuberant to get out for another ride it went off road blazing thru a ditch full of snow! Here it stands quite proud of its Ogre-like accomplishment

Water bottle running dry. Good opportunity for refill.

A lovely day, hitting at least 70° F, so I scooted downtown to see the new “Unum” piece at Courthouse Square. Very nice, although a crew was working on it and blocking my shots. Unfortunately, no sign of our ice sculpture contest. A little more at Bill Bikes

The morning started out with a hazy sun, no wind and pretty warm air (28-degrees F). The roads have even been clearing themselves of ice. I daresay, the riding was quite pleasant. That’s a darn good thing too, because this weekend I’ll be waking up to sub-zero temperatures again. Oh well, whatever. I had ridden … Continue reading "Hastings, Minnesota: Serving You Heaps of Snow Since 1867"

Holy Smokes!!!  What is THAT??  The Sun?? Better take advantage, even though its cold and windy — they say a winter storm is coming Short ride south to the North Fork Diamond Back just west of the North Fork on 4000N There goes Skinny Schwinny headed back to town — the greenish tinge is winter … Continue reading "A Short Ride!"

This weekend, I rode downtown and couldn’t help but notice there was more activity going on than usual on a Saturday morning. I conducted an investigation (which involved nothing more than asking a guy on the sidewalk what was going on) and learned the annual Hastings Chamber of Commerce Ice Sculpting Contest was taking place … Continue reading "MY Town Celebrates Ice"

The rain stopped a few days ago. Santa Rosa Creek much reduced in flow. But tons of debris remain on and along the Greenway. The photo shows piles of detritus covering the banks of the creek at Willowside Road. 

Lots and lots of snow today and it’s still going strong. So I guess yesterday was really the last day on my bike for a while. It was kind of a borderline day. The roads and paths were clear, at least the ones I chose, and it was around 2C/28F. With some snow from above … Continue reading "January Challenge Day 16"

When I looked at the weather forecast yesterday, I said to myself, well no riding my bike for the next ten days. The temperature wasn’t expected to rise above freezing and snow was predicted. So the snow and -6C/21F this morning didn’t surprise me. But it didn’t feel that bad when I was out on … Continue reading "January Challenge Day 15"

Nancy wrote a great story yesterday about the tree stump in her neighborhood that is frequently redecorated to fit every occasion. That reminded me of a similar story in my own neighborhood. This story is more recent in its development, but what it lacks in history, it makes up for in gaudy flamboyance. This particular … Continue reading "Yo Ho Ho, and a Bottle of Rum / A Pirate’s Life for ME . . ."

Two days of 2C/36F. Monday we had a touch of sun and with all my warming winter things on it felt okay. Today at 9:00 it was still below freezing and I again couldn’t face getting on my bike for the ride to tai chi. In the afternoon I made up for it and took … Continue reading "January Challenge Days 13, 14"

The sun rose at 7:45 a.m. to reveal a clear blue sky. Plus, the air temperature was already 33-degrees ABOVE zero with a predicted high of 37-degrees. WEIRD! I doubt the spring-like thaw will completely take care of MY Town’s ice problem, but it should put a little dent in it. Either way, I was … Continue reading "What’s That? Blue Sky?"

Just another loop for ride 10, and again mild weather. The woods are looking so drab these days. The paved path through the forest in the featured picture is what we call the autobahn. It’s a popular route leading out of Munich to the south and is teeming with cyclists in good weather. Ride 11 … Continue reading "January Challenge Days 10, 11, 12"

I’ve been making an effort to get out for brief rides in the rain, of which we’ve had no shortage for the past three weeks. I have reservations for an expedition this summer, pedaling that will probably feature plenty of wind, rain, and chill. So I gotta test various combinations of gear in similar conditions … Continue reading "More riding in the rain"

It has been a different kind of winter here in MY Town. True, the cold temperatures have been pretty normal, and the amount of snow hasn’t been too far above the average. The main difference has been the ICE. Almost every snowstorm has been preceded by freezing rain. Then the snow covers the frozen rain. … Continue reading "More Winter Stuff"

But we do have a break in the rain today.

I pedaled just far enough for a photo and a soaking.

In my previous post I also wrote Day 9, but I was getting ahead of myself, in other words confused. Anyway, today’s ride was Day 9 for sure. Kind of grey, but on and off we had some pale sun, so it wasn’t a bleak grey, and it was warm enough that I didn’t need … Continue reading "January Challenge Day 9"

It hasn’t been sunny every day, but we have had a couple of very bright days. If January would just continue in this vein. January 6 is Three Kings Day. I have no pictures of the three kings making their rounds, but there were a lot of cyclists out in the mild weather. Janos’s bike … Continue reading "January Challenge Days 6, 7, 8"

It has rained practically every day for almost two weeks, and more rain is forecast for tonight and beyond, but today should be dry. That means I need to mount up and pedal out the Greenway to see how Santa Rosa Creek is doing…. More at Bill Bikes

I got back from my monthly trip to Iowa yesterday. I was down there for five days this time instead of the usual two days. In addition to his cancer treatments, now my dad has some cardiac issues to be dealt with, including a valve replacement surgery. That means quite a few more trips to … Continue reading "Waterfalls and the Aftermath of a Winter Storm"

Forecast for today and next nine days in Santa Rosa. Gotta get a hydro-bike.

No waterfalls yet, but we didn’t get rained on either. And if you don’t know what to take a picture of, a selfie is always good in a pinch. Again I didn’t need my heated gloves. Today we had 9C/48F which didn’t feel that warm with the cold wind blowing. I was glad to get … Continue reading "January Challenge day 4"

Well, as you can see, it was a rainy day. I wasn’t willing to face a ride to tai chi at 8 a.m. Janos drove me. I’m getting soft, or softer. But in my defense, I did get on my bike for an afternoon ride, 6C/44C, and threatening rain. Janos declined the invitation to join … Continue reading "January Challenge day 3"

We are still having exceptionally warm weather, around 16C/60F, and although I have removed a couple of layers from my cycling outfit I am still over dressed because I never quite believe it could be that warm. But I would rather be too warm than too cold any day. I was expecting the forest paths … Continue reading "January Challenge 1 and 2"

Days of rain behind us. Days of rain ahead of us. But today is dry and sunny. Happy New Year!

Not only will I be displaying scenes FROM the trails, there will also be photos OF the trails themselves. What more could anybody ask for? My New Year’s resolution this year, as it has been every year since about 1990, was to ride my bike on the first day of the year. Beyond that, I … Continue reading "Scenes From MY Town’s Trails"