We found the greatest beach today! Alki seemed a bit too far for a bike ride so we drove over with our bikes in tow and rode once we arrived. It was the Summer Streets festival so the road was closed to cars, but even on a normal car-infested day, this is a great beachy area! It’s like Green Lake’s beachy dirty brother–it’s even got its own Duke’s and Spud to add to the family resemblance. It feels a lot like San Diego’s Ocean Beach, but slightly less dirty.
Archive | May 2009
Kidical Mass
Today was Bike-to-Work Day and there were a ton of activities. We kicked off the day by hitting the Cascade tent outside Gregg’s Cycles for free stuff. Technically, it was a pit stop for people biking on their way to work, but I figure Brandt is my boss and I biked him there so I deserved the free bike light and Clif bars.
Next up was Summer Streets in Ballard at 4pm. I thought it would be bigger than it was, but it was still fun and Brandt got an Undriver License he’s really excited about and everyone got free bananas. And we saw the Dutch Bike Company’s seven-seat Conference Bike. It was OK, but I felt obligated to tell them it wasn’t quite as cool as the similar bike I saw in Amsterdam a few years back that had more seats and several kegs in the middle.
Then the best part: Seattle’s first Kidical Mass! We met a bunch of other families at a park a block from Summer Streets and we all rode along the Burke-Gilman Trail to Gasworks Park for the purpose of increasing the visibility of family biking on Seattle streets. It was really fun and will hopefully be a monthly event. This was also our first visit to Gasworks Park and wow, it’s cool! It was great for boat viewing so I’ll definitely have to bring Brandt back down there. I’m a little worried next time I ride back home up Stone I won’t be able to make it without resting halfway, though.
Mother’s Day ride
This morning we rode the Burke-Gilman Trail the other direction to have brunch at The Dish in Ballard. It was delish, but the wait was awfully long. I’d love to go back, but only if we can get there earlier in the morning. The trail is flatter thisaway, too.
Burke-Gilman Trail
I thought this morning’s 3.5-mile March for Babies was exercise enough for today, but Dan really wanted to bike the Burke-Gilman Trail. I was worried about the climb back up Stone, but Dan wouldn’t let me whine my way out of it and said he could always leave me and Brandt at Gasworks Park and go home to fetch the car and retrieve us. Turns out I worried for nothing because Stone is not nearly as steep as 50th.
We just got a Burley bike trailer from Craigslist. It’s old (or vintage, if you prefer), but it works great. Dan pulled Brandt in the Burley and I was prepared to switch him to the Bobike if he didn’t dig it.
We saw a lot of cool stuff on our ride, including the very cool-looking Wallingford playfield park super close to home and the curious Wall of Death. Brandt missed it all in favor of napping in the Burley. We travelled east through Magnuson Park and back before Brandt woke up. On the way home we stopped at Tutta Bella for pizza and I am definitely going back when I can drink coffee because check this out: Caffe Cioccolato: Chocolate latte with Nutella, steamed milk and espresso. Yum!
Big wheel
Today coulda been so cool! Brandt and I were going to take the bus for the first time to go downtown to the Denny Park play area opening celebration, complete with face painting, balloon animals, and live band. It was also Seattle Yacht Club Opening Day with big boat parade, but due to the weather we skipped that, too.
I took advantage of the situation and napped much of the day while Dan and Brandt did who knows what. And I got a little outdoor time, too, taking Brandt for rides on his new (free!) bike at 7am and 4pm, in between rain showers. He doesn’t pedal yet, but he tries to now and again. And he loves pushing his way over obstacles, like the two cement curbs in the neighbor’s driveway. He loves this bike so (too) much that I’ve taken to leaving and entering the house through the back door so he doesn’t see the thing and insist on riding it.
Mayday
Thanks to an early nap we were able to race to the zoo for opening day of the Humboldt penguins. Being too cheap to pay $5 for parking, I decided to see if I could make it up the 50th Street hill on my bike. Holy penguin that was hard! Never again, pregnant and toting a toddler or no. But we made it to the exhibit by 3pm and after an hour I finally caught my breath.
Family Ride 