2019 Tour De Lopez

Are we going for a ride!?

This post almost didn't happen because this ride very nearly didn't happen.  I was home sick on Tuesday and Wednesday with a stomach bug and if I had been able to cancel my registration for a refund I would have, but the deadline had passed so I was still in the game.   I checked the forecast Friday night, most of the week it had been indicating rain on Saturday and if that had been the case I would have most likely bailed, I saw nothing but Sun in the forecast so I prepped Friday night for an early Saturday departure.

I got up at O dark thirty Saturday morning to drive 90 miles north and catch a 7:30 am sailing from Anacortes to Lopez Island.  The forecast had not lied to me, it was freaking gorgeous out and I would have regretted missing this ride.

Early on I was just enjoying the fact I was doing the ride, that the bike was working as expected and I was even getting up the modest hills in the the middle ring and of course taking in the lovely Island vistas.

I did take advantage of rest stops as I was in no hurry and not in tip top shape.

I had the opportunity to turn for town early and ride the very short route which is what I did in 2017. Instead I pushed on and was rewarded with a cool gravel section through the woods, this would have not been so fun in wet conditions but on this day it was perfect.

Mostly I got up the hills, but there was one that was steeper than anything I had ridden to date and I didn't have an issue, or much choice lol, walking it - you can see above I wasn't the only one.

I got to the Village having ridden 20% farther than my longest ride to date.  I had been so efficent that I was there before they were set up to serve the BBQ that was included with the registration, it helped I did the short and not the medium or long routes.

Fortunately for me the beer garden was ready ahead of the rest of the food, this day just keeps getting better!  Hand crafted local micro brew.

I started out with the IPA and when I ordered I asked for the Hester Prynne, they just looked at me blankly.  Philistines!

Since I had the time I went back for the Lager which I mostly got just so I could say Highway to Helles.

Another reason for the 2nd beer is that I had already run across the Island transport.  It wasn't part of the original plan but for $5 getting a ride for me and the bike seemed like a great idea.  I made the early ferry I wanted, didn't extend the ride beyond my fitness and sidestepped the one mile climb that would have ended the ride back to the ferry.  The van was packed btw.

I ended up doing the green and purple parts of the ride although I started from the top of the island where the ferry lands.  I was very happy I went a bit farther than last time, saw some new parts of the Island, but stopped at enough rather than pushing on to too far.

I saw tons of bikes but no old steel until I parked near this old Peugeot in the waiting area for the return ferry.  I suspect this is an Island bike that someone with a getaway on the Island leaves by the ferry so they can walk on in Anacortes rather than drive on -which is much cheaper and doesn't require a reservation.

bye Lopez

It was a great day.

Ride in a beautiful place on a beautiful day. Drink hand crafted beer. Grin. Repeat!