I head out the back gate at about 6:45 AM. It's fully light by then, but the sun is still low.
I take the paved descent through my neighborhood down to the lake.
To me, biking isn't exercise, or a way to get where I'm going. Biking is fun. If riding helps me keep my weight in check, or lets me get to work on time, well, that's just icing on the cake.
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I head out the back gate at about 6:45 AM. It's fully light by then, but the sun is still low. I take the paved descent through my neighborhood down to the lake. |
| Turn onto the lakeside trail, | |
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down to the water, |
| and along the lake. | |
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It is possibly a Perfect Morning. |
| This lakeside section of my commute cuts off a two mile stretch of hilly road filled with commuters trying to get out of the only entrance to my development. | |
| This is the dam. It is a 600 ft. long earthen berm dam. | |
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The lake is four miles long with 13 miles of shoreline. |
| This is the pool behind the dam. Forgive the sloppy merge. At the right, you can see the remains of the bridge that washed out 25+ years ago from the rains brought on by hurricane Agnes. There is an effort underway to secure the funds to repair this bridge. That would really have a negative impact on traffic around here. | |
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| Up a short paved hill, | |
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and through an area with more houses. |
| The pavement ends and the road turns into a construction entrance to the new houses. Just a little more up hill now. | |
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The hardiest puddle in Maryland. Its possible that our drought problems could be solved by this one spot that refuses to ever dry out (Update: It does eventually empty, but refills every rain or snow). |
| Into the woods. I was just a few seconds too slow to get a half dozen deer in this shot. | |
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At the end of the construction road, I come out on a much busier road that acts as a feeder to the east side of Frederick. Still, most drivers are pretty good about passing me. I love this view of the Monocacy Valley, with Catoctin Mountain and the Frederick Watershed (Great mountain biking) in the distance. |
| The hills turn to fields in a few short miles. | |
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Finally, into town. Down an empty street (no parking on trash days), |
| around the block, | |
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and into the alley behind my office. I bring my bike inside with me. Its about 7:30 AM. |
There is only one problem with this whole arrangement. The ride home is almost all uphill.
Distance: 9 miles