Inaugural Bicycle Ride in Idaho

Yesterday I finally got my bike stuff unpacked, and today I took my first bicycle ride in Idaho!

Considering that I am out of cycling shape and haven't ridden at all since last year (when I only rode a couple of times), it was kind of ambitious.  I needed to ride downtown to the bike store to get a minor repair done.  The moving company had managed to put too much lateral pressure on my kickstand, and one of the bolts holding it on was bent, and the other sheared off entirely.

The ride down was easy, and absolutely beautiful.  We live on a ridge about 2600 feet above sea level, and Lake Coeur d'Alene is at about 2100 feet.  The first 1.3 miles of my ride was a long fast downhill coast to the lakeshore, where there is an excellent paved bike trail.

Looking down Sunnyside road towards the lake, just after turning out of our neighborhood. The intersection with the trail is at the bottom of the hill, a little ways past the I-90 bridge.

  

North Idaho Centennial Trail

This trail is 23 miles long, mostly along Lake Coeur d'Alene and the Spokane River.  It connects with a similar trail in Washington, so that you can ride about 50(+) miles on dedicated paved bike trail past some beautiful lakeside and riverfront scenery.  We live very close to the eastern terminus of the trail at Higgens Point, and it's an easy ride from our home into the city of Coeur d'Alene.

A portion of the trail.  It's still early spring so the trees are just getting their leaves.

The city of Coeur d'Alene, as seen from the trail.  The hill in the center of the photo is Tubbs Hill city park.

The bike store is on East Sherman Avenue in CDA (local shorthand for Coeur d'Alene), and is exactly six miles from my front door:

Vertical Earth

I rode to the bike store, and they were able to remove the sheared-off bolt and replace both with new bolts.  I was grateful they could take the time to fix it, as this is their busy season and they are backed up for a couple of weeks on repairs (although somewhere in my subconscious I think I was sort of secretly sort of hoping they'd have to keep the bike, as I was not especially looking forward to the ride back up the hill).  

I put on my elastic knee support sleeve, as my right knee was already talking to me, and I headed back home. The first 4 1/2  miles back east along the lake were easy and beautiful.

One of the trail markers along the lake shore.  We live near the northern end of Lake Coeur d'Alene, which extends about 25 miles south.

One of the historical markers along the trail.

The last 1.3 miles were a different story.  I had no expectation that I would be able to manage the 500-foot elevation gain on my first ride of the year.  I fully expected to be walking my bike up the hill  somewhere on Sunnyside or Shiras - the only question was when I would have stop and get off.  

The interstate bridge as seen from the trail.  Sunnyside Road turns off and goes up the hill under the bridge towards our neighborhood.

I started up Sunnyside Road from the trail along Coeur d'Alene Lake Drive, and very quickly had to downshift into my lowest gears.   I found myself working hard but feeling OK, and I decided that I was absolutely not going to quit before I got to Shiras, the road leading up into our neighborhood.  This is about halfway up the hill to our house, and I felt this would be a respectable stopping place for my first ride.

When I got there, I decided to just keep going.  I walk the .6 miles down the hill from our house to the intersection of Shiras and Sunnyside and back up every morning, so I know that part of the road very well.  I just kept chugging along in first and second gears, and at some point decided I was just not going to quit.  

Shiras, the street I walk down and back up every morning.   This was my first time riding it on a bicycle, which was not nearly as relaxing as my morning walks(!)  

When I finally rounded the corner into our cul-de-sac, I felt a great sense of accomplishment.  It's not really much (certainly no Tour de France!) but it felt very good for the first ride of the year (and my first ride in my new home state).  Today was a Very Good Day, and bodes well for my prospects of enjoying future cycling trips through the mountainous country surrounding us here.

Mood:  Happy

Music:  BTO - "Roll on Down the Highway"