It's been quite a long time since I last posted anything here, huh? COVID-19 has made my usual treks a lot more difficult due to those requiring frequent water and restroom stops, which may not be safe with the presence of said pandemic. With that being the case, I bought a Honda ADV 150 in late August and worked towards getting my motorcycle permit a couple weeks back. Now I finally have an easy way to get out of the city!
More after the break…
Outbound
Since it's only a motorcycle permit, it meant that I needed to start well after sunrise, as the permit doesn't allow me to ride at night. I wouldn't want to do so anyway, to be honest. It had been drizzing all night, leaving the pavement went, making all of the Ship Canal crossings with grated steel bridge decks very sketchy on a motorcycle, so I decided to cross via the Aurora Bridge instead. Doing so was my first time going over 45 MPH on the scooter, during which I discovered that turning my head for shoulder checks is very difficult because of the high wind speeds. A windshield would be something worth looking into!
I had a number of options for getting through downtown Seattle, but I ended up deciding on 2nd Avenue followed by 4th Avenue S, and eventually East Marginal Way S. There was almost nobody else out, which is always the ideal road condition. While investigating route options for this trip, I was unsure of how to get from East Marginal Way S to SR-181, but research revealed that the two roads are continuous with each other. Despite that, I remembered by unsureness and started the motions for making a left on SW Grady Way before realizing that I didn't need to go that way.
SR-181 eventually became 50 MPH near Kent, which I was fine with for a while, but I felt anxiety creeping in at the back of my mind. I was reminded of some mornings during my scooter practice with my dad after drinking coffee, so I thought it'd be a good idea to take a break and drink a lot of water.
Between Kent and Auburn, I had to do a bit of wayfinding since I wasn't too familiar with the area. As I neared my turn off to leave Auburn, I discovered that traffic light sensors are as bad for motorcycles as they are for motorcycles: I ended up waiting for three light cycles at one light before having to give up and make three rights. I guess this specter is something I won't ever be able to escape on two wheels!
Based on my motorscooter time today. pic.twitter.com/l4VojdcBZk
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
Once I made my way to R Street SE, I started getting the familiar feeling that I'd been here before, and I had! The street continues as SE Auburn–Black Diamond Road! The good feelings didn't last, though, as a beater luxury car zipped past me going at least 15 MPH over the speed limit because I wasn't willing to do the same. I guess double yellow lines don't mean anything to that kind of person.
After turning off on SE Green Valley Road, I was treated to the beautiful scenery I'd been desperately missing for months because of this pandemic. Not only that, the somewhat windy road provided some fun for being aon a scooter.
When I arrived to Flaming Geyser State Park, I realized that I needed to get a Discover Pass, as I was on a motorized vehicle. I was worried since I didn't have cash, but that worry was assuaged when I discovered that they'd modified a cred card-accepting parking meter to print out the pass. It even still had the big Ⓟ on it! I was a little wigged out by the slick-looking speed bump past the booth, so I walked my scooter over it before being on my way.
Had to buy a Discovery Pass for the first time. #motorcycle #scooter @ Flaming Geyser State Park https://t.co/w6i8FjJE9J
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
Flaming Geyser State Park was sure a sight for sore eyes! Trees with turning leaves surrounded the vast expanses of green grass. Families were enjoying the park, as well as a couple of older men with large model airplanes they were getting ready to fly. Even the smells of the vault toilets was nostalgic!
It's been too long. (@ Flaming Geyser State Park - @wastatepks in Auburn, WA) https://t.co/qDWStL0vZZ
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
After a little while of taking photos, I went further into the park to rest at the main parking lot.
And while out there, I discovered that people had been stealing the hand sanitizer from the park due to fears of the pandemic. Not too surprising, unfortunately.
Aside from Flaming Geyser, I also had a mission for this trip: visit the Black Diamond Bakery & Restaurant and bring back pastries. That involved climbing one of two steep roads out of the Green Valley, and I chose the faster and straighter of the two: 218th Avenue SE. I'd been wondering about the limits of the little 150cc motor in my scooter for a while, and this gave me a chance to test them on the 9% grade. I wasn't disappointed at all: I was able to maintain 43 MPH up the entire time without opening the throttle up all the way. It's amazing what one can do with so little! I did end up missing my turn on Morgan Street, but didn't have to contend with too much traffic when backtracking on SR-169.
There was a line outside of the bakery, which I joined for a while before I realized that the line was for the hopping dining area! Thankfully, the line for the bakery itself was rather short and I was in and out in the space of only a few minutes. After exiting, I noticed a bright red Subaru Crosstrek with a "RIDE WA" bicycle license plate, which I asked some folks in sporty cycling gear about. They said they knew that the owners were into bicycles, but not much more about them.
Also been too long here. #scooter #motorcycle @ Black Diamond Bakery Restaurant https://t.co/lPGk6srXOU
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
I'm at Black Diamond Bakery and Restaurant in Black Diamond, WA https://t.co/aYKhhSeVBv
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
I had quite the time trying to stuff the box of pastries into my scooter's under-seat storage compartment. The box ended up being partially crushed when I did get it jammed in there, but the pastries were thankfully only a little scuffed up. Time to look into a top case!
Inbound
I took the same route in reverse to get back to the bottom of the Green Valley. Along the way, I sow a bunch of road cyclists at the intersection of SE Auburn–Black Diamond Road and 218th Avenue SE. They were standing in a group with a few bikes laying down. I wonder what happened? The descent was a bit interesting: I didn't gain speed without throttle, which was very different from my experience when cycling. Different efficiency goals?
SE Green Valley Road was just as nice as before. As I neared Auburn, a couple of sport bikes zipped around me. Is everybody in a rush out here? Rather than using SR-181, I took Centra Avenue S and its siblings all the way back up to Renton in hope of finding a grocery store where I could bui a small deli sandwich. Restaurant food is far too heavy and salty for me!
I ended up stopping at the Fred Meyer in Renton to eat a little picnic beside my scooter, which reminded me of all of the times I'd done similar during my bicycle tours over the years. It made me realize how similar this little adventure was to all of those times in other ways as well. It's certainly not an identical experience, but it certainly scratched the itch a whole lot more than being stuck in the city would!
Picked up a sandwich to eat while sat next to my scooter. Really reminds me of the bicycle I was doing before COVID-19! (@ Fred Meyer in Renton, WA) https://t.co/19VvOdV8Bm
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
I didn't want to deal with downtown Seattle traffic on the return leg of my trip, which left me with two options: go over First and Capitol Hills, or take the Lake Washington Loop route including Lake Washington Boulevard. I chose the former, which was a pretty easy time, before crossing the Ship Canal via the University Bridge. The pavement had all dried up by that point, so the steel grated deck didn't bother me much.
While at a quick stop at Gas Works Park to drink water and relax after feeling a little more of that anxiety, I looked into the lack of the bicycle layer in my eTrex 32X GPS. It turned out that the micro SD card was missing, which was very strange since I'd never left it unattended. It must've fallen out when I most recently changed the batteries in it. Thank goodness the cards are cheap!
Took a quick stop at Gas Works Park before finally heading home.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 17, 2020
The SD card that was in my Garmin eTrex 32X is gone. I'm thinking it might've been knocked out when I changed the batteries most recently, since I've never left it unattended. I haven't paid much attention to what's on the screen after powering it up since then.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 18, 2020
I arrived back at home in the early afternoon, my head full of the scenery of the day. Can't wait for the next adventure!
My scooter gets 85 MPG!
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) October 18, 2020
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