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| Leaves are turning. Best time ever to ride here. |
It's happening.
You can feel it in the early mornings.
The heat is starting to yield to a pinch of cold air before the sun comes up.
The days are getting shorter, and the air is drying out a bit, which means you won't have to listen to the electric droning of the air conditioner anymore to sleep. The mosquitos will dissipate. The trees are already dropping leaves by the branch-full.
Riding time is upon is in the north.
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| Bridge over the Cuyahoga near Sagamore Hills. |
In a couple of weeks, I get to take a group of fellow riders up to Ohio City, and spend the weekend camped out in The Cleveland Hostel. We will be riding (as usual) on Saturday through Cuyahoga National Park and back. There will be a LOT of beer from Great Lakes Brewing Co., Nano Brew, Market Garden Brewing, etc. Sunday we ride to Rocky River, followed by more bad choices. The National Park is ablaze with color at that time.
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| The old Coast Guard station in Cleveland. |
The old Coast Guard station stands watch over the mouth of the Cuyahoga River, one of very few that flew north in North America, thanks to the Continental Divide that lifts the land just north of Akron. This is my favorite time to ride in Ohio, and probably my favorite place to ride this time of year.
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| So much of this is coming! |
The old towpath trail is about 85% dirt. Most people think that a road bike has tires too small for this, but that is not true. A soft hand on the brakes is all you need, and a road bike will steam away through the park trail network. Rolling through the valley floor, you see old mills, barns, the mighty river, and even ride through the middle of the old lock network which allowed boats to deliver goods along the river at the turn of the century.
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| The days are getting shorter, but the views will get better. |
The routes around Hoover reservoir are also nice this time of year. Any water left in the lake will freeze solid once again, leaving a starkly beautiful landscape to absorb while churning away in the biting wind of fall and winter mornings. In a few months....snow.
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| It won't be long until months of this happens. |
This is the only truly pleasurable time to ride here.
I am looking forward to it.
