Weekly ride recap

This week had very diverse weather. On Sunday and Monday temperatures were in the mid-80s.
Tuesday through Thursday was rainy with temperatures in the low 50's.

When the temperatures are hot, riding is harder to me. I don't handle being hot well.
Although, I whine about it raining this time of year when I start to expect dry, it makes the ride easier, since I don't have to worry about overheating.

Sunday coming back from Amtrak was uneventful.

On Monday, I came up with a route to bike class that would add distance and make for some exploration. I headed out the opposite direction (East and South) to connect up with the Springwater Trail, I could follow this 15 miles into Portland and connect with the Eastbank Esplande. The Springwater is nice for several reasons. It allows for riding with less car interaction, this means quieter and mostly safer. This trail has some problems though, the paving is poor through most of it, wavy and bumpy. Along the riverfront it can get very crowded when the weather is nice like the day I rode it. There were lots of mini-Lances straining to beat each other like there was some race going on. There are also LOTS of joggers. I joked to myself that they must be evacuating the city by foot. The combination of the racer wannabes and the joggers makes for an uneasy mix and takes away any enjoyment of the scenery.
The Esplanade is more casual but just by a bit. I noted a couple places on this stretch that will make for good hot weather escapes.
After the Esplanade I climbed up Lloyd to 15th and to class. NE Portland has a strange wind blowing. It was a swirling 25 mph wind, with a lot of dust in the air. I half expected there to be some funnel cloud forming.

Class was about servicing headsets. I cleaned and greased mine. There was enough leftover time to also replace my bottom bracket on this bike. It was very work out.
The ride home was quite an improvement to not have a creaking headset and sloppy play in the BB.
Total miles: 44

Tuesday was one of my rest days.

Wednesday I decided to ride up the gorge to Crown Point State Park. The ride is a steady climb to a vista with 800 foot cliffs down to the Columbia River. It is a great view and a very beautiful ride. It started raining at Corbett and kept it up all the way home.
Total miles: 36

one way to crown point

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Thursday was a rainy and cold ride downtown. I made my usual stop at one of the food carts for dinner then locked my bike and headed for the station. Train was on time and I got to Chehalis a few minutes early.