Another excursion out in the Sonohmish County foothills. I'm not too happy with the blurriness in some of the photos, and will make sure to take multiple shots each time from now on, as I had been doing in the past.
And, of course, some related albums:
More after the break…
Outbound
I started at about 05:00, and didn't forget my camera! I took the typical route north out of Seattle and King County.
Good weather so far.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@inertiald When? pic.twitter.com/uT1DndZ2BC
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
I was happy about being able to locate and trigger all of the stoplight sensors in Shoreline. It's been a pain point for me for years now.
At some point, Shoreline redid the lights along their Interurban route so that I'm able to trigger them. #seabikes
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
After last week's ride and discovery that the leather part was more comfortable, I did indeed get the new seat post. Unfortunately, moving onto the leather significantly changed the fit, which would be a problem throughout the ride.
With my sit bones now ahead of the metal part of my saddle, the bumps in the pavement are significantly less jarring. #cycling
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
When I got to Everett, I took a different route to Snohomish, this time on the north side of the Snohomish River. This also involved using the Hewitt Avenue Trail for a bit.
I then followed little roads along the way. I had to do a bit of manual wayfinding, though.
My #Garmin eTrex 30 has a limitation in its firmware where only the first 160 GPX route points are shown before truncating.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
I normally split the routes so they never get past that limit, but it looks like I forgot to this time.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
I also saw a familiar sight, though from the other side of the river.
The road along the river seemed to be a victim of washouts, as there were gravel bits along the way.
After going over a notable hill, I made my way into Snohomish proper. There was a bit of a bike trail. While in that area, I saw a group ride go by.
I saw the Snohomish group ride heading the other way just as I got into town.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
It started to drizzle a bit, then it died down. Just as the forecast predicted.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
Wayfinding today is going to be a minor challenge, but I know the area.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
I ended up skipping Rock City Cafe and got a smoothie at a trailside cafe thing inside of a small gym.
I'm at Beetle Juice & Java Cafe in Snohomish, WA https://t.co/WCjakv47no
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@MikeTurmenne Kneecaps feel funny, but don't get worse. Too much pressure on feet.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@MikeTurmenne Kneecap discomfort goes away when climbing hills.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@MikeTurmenne Tried moving the saddle in multiple directions including straight up (incl. moving forward). Only made it worse.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
I then proceeded along the Centennial Trail, leaving it at Machias Way and headed out towards Forest Glade along the little road out there.
Next, I continued to Robe Menzel road, where I hung a left to head north. It's really quiet around that area.
(I do realize there's overexposure in the above photo, and will be mindful when using manual mode for panoramas in the future.
I eventually made it to Granite Falls, where I stopped at the local supermarket for water and a caramel apple.
From there, I followed the South Fork Stillaguamish on Jordan Road and stopped at the familiar pedestrian bridge.
I continued north along the road, taking note of the same waterfall I saw last time.
The Jordan Road bridge now is two-way with wide shoulders.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
It was under construction last time, likely for the widening.
Eventually, I made it up the last two big hill climbs.
Some sort of siren is sounding in the distance. Sounds stationary.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@inertiald I'm sweating up here.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
And then got on SR-530 at an intersection where the lights were out.
Traffic signals were out on the highway.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@librarianbikes Well, the highway traffic didn't stop if that's what you're asking.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
@librarianbikes@wsdot It's a 3-way with Arlington Heights Rd ending at SR-530.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
Thankfully, I didn't have much trouble making the left as traffic was light.
Before the last climb into Arlington, I stopped by Twin Rivers Park.
And then I stopped at Legion Park for water as usual.
Yep, my bike's drive train will need a good scrubbing very soon.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
Didn't have any trouble making it back to known territory.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
Inbound
The ride back south was a lot lower-stress. I even had the privilege of taking off my muddy shoe covers!
Rode through a lot of rain earlier, but none is falling now.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 24, 2015
As always, the trail was really easy. Due to the earlier rain, there weren't too many folks out. At this point, I had figured the trick of pointing my toes up in order to temporarily 'fix' the fit.
Figured out a trick to keep the current fit from killing my knees. The need of this trick indicates that the saddle is a good deal low.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
I'll mess with it more once I get to the BGT. I won't have a chance to do so until then.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
I hit the Rock City Cafe for coffee as has been the norm. The barista recommended I get a punch card, and even punched it a few times extra since she knew I stop by the shop fairly often.
I'm at Rock City Cafe in Snohomish, WA https://t.co/KjViq6xpvA
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
I then headed south via SR-9, before making a right onto SE 152nd St. Unfortunately, the street dead-ended despite what my directions said, but I was able to hang a right to make my way to Cathcart Way instead of having to backtrack.
I would like to thank Snohomish County for adding a bike lane to the length of Cathcart Way. It's wide and in the right place. #cycling
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
It was indeed quite nice. I was able to take the bike lane all the way to Bothell–Everett Highway, where I made a left onto another bike lane which I took all the way to Bothell, where I stopped to visit my parents.
Great weather out here!
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
Stopped by my parents' place on the way home and they gave me some fried chicken to eat. Yum.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
Then, I headed to downtown Bothell via the same highway. Things sure have changed a lot over the past few months! If it hadn't been so dark, I would've taken some photos. There are certainly chances in the future for that.
Downtown Bothell has really changed!
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
@Charles_B_STB Too dark when I was there.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
Once I got to the BGT, I did indeed start fiddling with the fit.
Bike fitting is really hard. @MikeTurmenne
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
Unfortunately, I didn't have much luck due to being afraid to go too far in any direction.
Still haven't figured out the fit despite all the time I put in on the way home. I'm not happy.
— 竹下憲二 (@takeshita_kenji) January 25, 2015
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