I took a short, by the relative standard of the last two weekends, ride yesterday. With another sweltering day (approaching 100°), I had no desire for another long ride, but having felt "healthier" on there account I didn't want to skip the weekend altogether. I left modestly early (9:30 AM) to benefit from somewhat cooler temperatures. I head for a trail west of town, the Radnor Trail. It's nice two-mile rail trail with a good climb and descent, but a bit out-of-the way. I hadn't ridden on it yet this year so it seemed with too much reflection a good modest destination. I practice it still required a nearly 50 mile ride, which kept me out until 2:00 PM, well in to the heat of the day. I stopped at an ice cream stand as a reward. It's a good thing I didn't endeavor for a longer ride as a thunderstorm rolled through around 3:00 PM. It was followed by a long rain shower that would have had me in a quandary had I been caught in it.
Full Screen Version
Statistics
Length: 47.4 miles
Ride Time: 4 hours 4 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes
Avg. Speed: 11.6 MPH
Max. Speed: 31.6 MPH
Avg. Cadence: 56 RPM
Total Ascent: 2,250 ft.
Max. Elevation: 468 ft.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
The Ocean!
Up until about 9:00 AM yesterday, I had written off attempting to ride to the Atlantic Ocean from Philadelphia and back in the same day. Previously, I contemplated this possibility, but in planning a route, I could not find one under 125 miles, far beyound my self-assessed range.
Yesterday morning, after an early start on a ride to the Pine Barrens--an expansive swath of sandy-soiled, scrub forest that covers most of South Jersey--and with the wind at my back, I made excellent time. By the the time I reaching Chatsworth, a small village in the Pine Barrens. I was already reconsidering my route. I knew the wind that had helped me thus far would impede my return ride, but the over arching calculation remained: it was not yet 11:00 AM, I was already 40 miles outside of Philadelphia, and the Ocean was just 25 more miles away. That brass ring was with in reach. Instead of turning south, I continued east.
Four miles outside Chartsworth, I joined NJ Route 72, one of the major routes from Philadelphia to "the Shore." No more bucolic back roads. This journey was now all about getting to point B and then back to point A. Though heavily-trafficked, the road offered a wide smooth shoulder. After a respectable climb to 200 feet above sea-level, I cruised, still with the wind behind me, gently downward to Manahawkin, on an interior bay of the Atlantic. Just one obstacle remained, a dicey bridge over the inlet to the barrier island, which thanks to congested traffic was not as bad as I feared.
Full Screen Version
In Ship Bottom, I rode to the nearest beach access, took off my biking gear (shoes, gloves, and helmet) and waded triumphantly into the surf. Then, after drying my feet, I and headed off to find a place to get lunch. I wolfed down a BBQ dog that looked deceptively like a BBQ burger at Woody's before beginning the long ride back, as expected in to a wind, a wind that took back more than it gave up in the morning.
Staying on the main highway, I rode nearly thirty miles to where NJ-72 merges into NJ-70. Here a Wawa offered a convenient place to pick up some refreshments and rest a spell. While I laying in the shade near a Honda motorcycle, the owner came up to converse and offer free advice, such gems as never buy a Harley, never wear a black helmet, and put mudflaps (I assume he meant fenders) over my wheels.
The last last forty-plus miles were slower and unpleasant, but I pressed ahead. Finally, at Marlton, near the edge of the suburbs, I left the state highway for a quieter secondary street. I rode through the pleasant town of Haddonfield and stopped, a fifth and final time, at a park along the Cooper River in Collingswood. I arrived at the east entrance to the Ben Franklin Bridge Walkway at 8:05 PM, about an hour before it closed and just before sunset. My weary legs pushed up the long climb of the bridge and rewarded me with a beautiful view of a steel-gray skyline silhouetted against a yellow-orange-red sky. A nice coast down the west side of the bridge and two miles of stop-and-go riding through downtown found me back at my apartment at 8:34 PM.
Statistics
Length: 131.8 miles
Ride Time: 10 hours 26 minutes
Total Time: 13 hours 14 minutes
Avg. Speed: 12.6 MPH
Max. Speed: 23.6 MPH
Avg. Cadence: 55 RPM
Max. Elevation: 203 ft.
Yesterday morning, after an early start on a ride to the Pine Barrens--an expansive swath of sandy-soiled, scrub forest that covers most of South Jersey--and with the wind at my back, I made excellent time. By the the time I reaching Chatsworth, a small village in the Pine Barrens. I was already reconsidering my route. I knew the wind that had helped me thus far would impede my return ride, but the over arching calculation remained: it was not yet 11:00 AM, I was already 40 miles outside of Philadelphia, and the Ocean was just 25 more miles away. That brass ring was with in reach. Instead of turning south, I continued east.
Four miles outside Chartsworth, I joined NJ Route 72, one of the major routes from Philadelphia to "the Shore." No more bucolic back roads. This journey was now all about getting to point B and then back to point A. Though heavily-trafficked, the road offered a wide smooth shoulder. After a respectable climb to 200 feet above sea-level, I cruised, still with the wind behind me, gently downward to Manahawkin, on an interior bay of the Atlantic. Just one obstacle remained, a dicey bridge over the inlet to the barrier island, which thanks to congested traffic was not as bad as I feared.
Full Screen Version
In Ship Bottom, I rode to the nearest beach access, took off my biking gear (shoes, gloves, and helmet) and waded triumphantly into the surf. Then, after drying my feet, I and headed off to find a place to get lunch. I wolfed down a BBQ dog that looked deceptively like a BBQ burger at Woody's before beginning the long ride back, as expected in to a wind, a wind that took back more than it gave up in the morning.
Staying on the main highway, I rode nearly thirty miles to where NJ-72 merges into NJ-70. Here a Wawa offered a convenient place to pick up some refreshments and rest a spell. While I laying in the shade near a Honda motorcycle, the owner came up to converse and offer free advice, such gems as never buy a Harley, never wear a black helmet, and put mudflaps (I assume he meant fenders) over my wheels.
The last last forty-plus miles were slower and unpleasant, but I pressed ahead. Finally, at Marlton, near the edge of the suburbs, I left the state highway for a quieter secondary street. I rode through the pleasant town of Haddonfield and stopped, a fifth and final time, at a park along the Cooper River in Collingswood. I arrived at the east entrance to the Ben Franklin Bridge Walkway at 8:05 PM, about an hour before it closed and just before sunset. My weary legs pushed up the long climb of the bridge and rewarded me with a beautiful view of a steel-gray skyline silhouetted against a yellow-orange-red sky. A nice coast down the west side of the bridge and two miles of stop-and-go riding through downtown found me back at my apartment at 8:34 PM.
Statistics
Length: 131.8 miles
Ride Time: 10 hours 26 minutes
Total Time: 13 hours 14 minutes
Avg. Speed: 12.6 MPH
Max. Speed: 23.6 MPH
Avg. Cadence: 55 RPM
Max. Elevation: 203 ft.
CR-532 West of Chatsworth, NJ
Chatsworth Lake
The best traffic congestion I've ever seen.
NJ-72 over Manahawkin Bay
NJ-72 over Manahawkin Bay
Manahawkin Bay from NJ-72 Bridge
Can't ride any further in that direction...I guess I have to turn around.
West NJ-72.
Philadelphia Skyline at sunset,
a welcome site after riding 129 miles.
a welcome site after riding 129 miles.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Perkasie
I didn't plan on taking a long ride last Sunday. I was out of town for the previous three weekends. Though I did complete a respectable ride from Niles to South Bend, I had not completed any over 50 miles since my Levittown ride in early April. Additionally, I wanted to reprise my leisurely Saturday with a relaxing Sunday. I didn't really want to take a ride at all, but since I had not been out for so long I dragged myself from bed--twice--early in the morning so I could complete a 30-40 mile ride before Noon. Once on the bike, I began to contemplate a few far-flung goals. Twelve hours after leaving my apartment, I returned having ridden 107 miles, my first century of the year!
I started north through Fairmount Park into the unwelcome melee of some organized race, not a good beginning. After being directed like cattle through the teeth of the staging area, I continued up through Wissahickon Gorge and out of Philadelphia proper, where my ambition gear clicked in, "I've already ridden this far, I might as well try to make Souderton." Souderton is a town more than halfway to Allentown. My brother lived near there for a few years. I almost reached it in 2008 and it was on my list for 2010.
Thirty miles out, I connected with Limekiln Pike, which I would ride for another eight miles as close to a due north direction as you find in Pennsylvania. You can make good time, when you don't have to think much about navigating. North of Chalfont, I passed Peace Valley Road, which reminded me that there was park of the same name in the area I wanted to see. A short while latter I took my first rest in that serene park surrounding Lake Galena.
Full Screen Version
Outside Peace Valley Park, I climbed to 630 feet above sea-level, among the highest elevations I ever reached starting from sea-level Philadelphia. Then I began a wonderful long coast down PA-313. At the bottom of that run, I reached the most northerly point on the ride--the most northerly of all rides save NYC--and turned left in search of the Liberty Bill Trail, which I followed all the way to the Perkasie Dairy Queen for refreshment.
After that second rest, I sought out some areas I remembered from earlier visits to see my brother, St. Agnes Church, his old condo complex, and the towns of Telford and Souderton. I was sixty miles in to the ride and really beginning to feel my limits and the heat of the day, but I was confident the Perkiomen Trail, a shady, level and shady path connecting with the shady, level Schuylkill Trail all the way to Philadelphia, lay just a few miles to the west. Eleven-and-a-half miles and a few too many climbs later I finally reached the deceptively distant trail.
I pressed on to Lower Perkiomen Park with one stop at Wawa for provisions (water and energy bars). After a final rest in that park, I started the final leg. Despite the number of miles behind me, I managed to force myself to maintain above normal speed for a pretty good stretch--9.5 miles from Valley Forge to Coshohocken. After one more, much shorter run, to brought me near Manayunk, I no longer cared about style. I just wanted to be finished, but that mindset did not prevent me from appreciating the ride through Fairmount Park just before sunset.
Statistics
Length: 106.8 miles
Ride Time: 10 hours 17 minutes
Total Time: 12 hours
Avg. Speed: 10.3 MPH
Max. Speed: 31.1 MPH
Avg. Cadence: 54 RPM
Max. Elevation: 641 ft.
I started north through Fairmount Park into the unwelcome melee of some organized race, not a good beginning. After being directed like cattle through the teeth of the staging area, I continued up through Wissahickon Gorge and out of Philadelphia proper, where my ambition gear clicked in, "I've already ridden this far, I might as well try to make Souderton." Souderton is a town more than halfway to Allentown. My brother lived near there for a few years. I almost reached it in 2008 and it was on my list for 2010.
Thirty miles out, I connected with Limekiln Pike, which I would ride for another eight miles as close to a due north direction as you find in Pennsylvania. You can make good time, when you don't have to think much about navigating. North of Chalfont, I passed Peace Valley Road, which reminded me that there was park of the same name in the area I wanted to see. A short while latter I took my first rest in that serene park surrounding Lake Galena.
Full Screen Version
Outside Peace Valley Park, I climbed to 630 feet above sea-level, among the highest elevations I ever reached starting from sea-level Philadelphia. Then I began a wonderful long coast down PA-313. At the bottom of that run, I reached the most northerly point on the ride--the most northerly of all rides save NYC--and turned left in search of the Liberty Bill Trail, which I followed all the way to the Perkasie Dairy Queen for refreshment.
After that second rest, I sought out some areas I remembered from earlier visits to see my brother, St. Agnes Church, his old condo complex, and the towns of Telford and Souderton. I was sixty miles in to the ride and really beginning to feel my limits and the heat of the day, but I was confident the Perkiomen Trail, a shady, level and shady path connecting with the shady, level Schuylkill Trail all the way to Philadelphia, lay just a few miles to the west. Eleven-and-a-half miles and a few too many climbs later I finally reached the deceptively distant trail.
I pressed on to Lower Perkiomen Park with one stop at Wawa for provisions (water and energy bars). After a final rest in that park, I started the final leg. Despite the number of miles behind me, I managed to force myself to maintain above normal speed for a pretty good stretch--9.5 miles from Valley Forge to Coshohocken. After one more, much shorter run, to brought me near Manayunk, I no longer cared about style. I just wanted to be finished, but that mindset did not prevent me from appreciating the ride through Fairmount Park just before sunset.
Statistics
Length: 106.8 miles
Ride Time: 10 hours 17 minutes
Total Time: 12 hours
Avg. Speed: 10.3 MPH
Max. Speed: 31.1 MPH
Avg. Cadence: 54 RPM
Max. Elevation: 641 ft.
Lake Galena - Peace Valley Park
Stone Farmhouse
Liberty Bell Trail
Soybean Field in Hilltown Township
Telford Train Station
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Poconos
Late in June, I took a weekend trip that started with stop a Sagamore Hill, Teddy Roosevelt's home on Long Island, before heading back to Pennsylvania for a few stops in and around the Pocono Mountains.
By starting at 6:30 AM, I reached Sagamore Hill, now managed by the National Park Service, in time for an early house tour. The ranger leading tour, who reminded me of John McCain, gave an excellent presentation. His stories ranged from events at the house to personalities of those around Roosevelt. I especially enjoyed the personal belongings he highlighted like the elephant foot trash can.
Spoiled with easy morning drive to Sagamore Hill, the return to New Jersey was painfully slow through the thick Long Island traffic, but I arrived at Edison National Historic Site with time to visit both the laboratory and his nearby estate Glenmont. The highlight of the audio-tour guided lab was the library office, which like Sagamore Hill, included many personal belongings, among them the first academy award.
Full Screen Version
I stopped at Grover Cleveland's Birthplace in Caldwell on my drive to the Falls of the Passaic in Patterson, After seeing the falls and walking around the old mill sites, I drove west to stay overnight at a cheap motel near Scranton. I ate dinner a Viewmont Mall, a property for which I have some responsibility at PREIT.
Sunday morning, I visited a two transportation landmarks, Starrucca Viaduct and the John Roebling-designed Delaware and Hudson Aqueduct. I read about the former in William Least Half-Moon's, Roads to Quoz. In the early afternoon, I took a third and final house tour. Grey Towers was the estate of Gifford Pinchot, the first head of the US Forest Service, who has done a very nice job maintaining it and keeping it open to the public. I ended the day with two hikes, one in Big Pocono State Park and another along the Appalachian Trail near Allentown.
By starting at 6:30 AM, I reached Sagamore Hill, now managed by the National Park Service, in time for an early house tour. The ranger leading tour, who reminded me of John McCain, gave an excellent presentation. His stories ranged from events at the house to personalities of those around Roosevelt. I especially enjoyed the personal belongings he highlighted like the elephant foot trash can.
Spoiled with easy morning drive to Sagamore Hill, the return to New Jersey was painfully slow through the thick Long Island traffic, but I arrived at Edison National Historic Site with time to visit both the laboratory and his nearby estate Glenmont. The highlight of the audio-tour guided lab was the library office, which like Sagamore Hill, included many personal belongings, among them the first academy award.
Full Screen Version
I stopped at Grover Cleveland's Birthplace in Caldwell on my drive to the Falls of the Passaic in Patterson, After seeing the falls and walking around the old mill sites, I drove west to stay overnight at a cheap motel near Scranton. I ate dinner a Viewmont Mall, a property for which I have some responsibility at PREIT.
Sunday morning, I visited a two transportation landmarks, Starrucca Viaduct and the John Roebling-designed Delaware and Hudson Aqueduct. I read about the former in William Least Half-Moon's, Roads to Quoz. In the early afternoon, I took a third and final house tour. Grey Towers was the estate of Gifford Pinchot, the first head of the US Forest Service, who has done a very nice job maintaining it and keeping it open to the public. I ended the day with two hikes, one in Big Pocono State Park and another along the Appalachian Trail near Allentown.
Sagamore Hill
Edison National Historic Site
Glenmont
Grover Cleveland Birthplace
Falls of the Passaic
Starrucca Viaduct
Delaware and Hudson Aqueduct
Grey Towers
View from Camelback Mountain in Big Pocono State Park
Panorama from Appalachian Trail near Allentown, PA
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