Seattle To Everett And Back

I felt a tad ill this morning, so I "called in sick" (actually it was just an e-mail) - but by 11 or 12, I was feeling good. So why not just play hooky? It'd been a while anyway. The sun was out, and though it was about 38F outside I really wanted to ride! So I set out at 12 PM to see how far north I could get before it got dark. (Which is at about 4:30 PM these days!)

I rode the Ciocc for the first time in a while, it's still a great bike, of course. A lot stiffer than the Pacer it seems, although the "racy" position it puts me in isn't as comfortable as the Pacer's more upright setup.

Some Photos From The Ride

The Ciocc & I-5, just north of Seattle on 185th St:

The first sign for the Interurban Trail, in Lynnwood (on 76th Ave):
One downside to the Interurban trail up north is that it gets broken up almost ever mile it seems - and while there are mostly signs to point you in the right direction, some of the signs are in weird spots or faded beyond recognition. Maybe a DIY touch-up job is in order?

Start of Interurban trail:

Nice part of the trail:

Tiny offroad section of the trail:

View of the Cascades & Everett (I think):

Now heading back to Seattle - due to a mix of navigation skills & dumb luck, I ended up exactly where I wanted to be! Highway 99 heading south:

Heading on to Aurora-proper at sunset:

View of The Mountain from the U-District:

OK, this one is really blurry, but I like the colors. This is looking west off of Capitol Hill:

Now at home, on Broadway: (which has sharrows finally, by the way):

Start Time: 12:00 PM

End Time: 5:10 PM

Distance: roughly ~110km, based on this ride

In other news, I'm shooting for about 8,000 miles this year, which would be the most for me in a year so far (last year was 4-6k). Right now I'm at 12,091 km, or 7,513 miles for the year!

Interestingly, I've "only" ridden about 160 rides this year, and will probably finish with about 180 rides in total. (Average right now is 46 miles per ride). You can see the details on my rides log.

Ride Report: Capitol Hill To Everett & Back

I ventured out with the goal of riding North, and with light rain and temps around 45 or so, it was a perfect day for it! Since I was on the Bianchi, w/ a handle-bar bag, I could carry more food than usual, a rain jacket, and my camera! I wasn't out to break any personal speed records, just to get some miles in, Randonneur style.

Distance: 109 km
Rolling time: 4 hrs 48 minutes
Avg Speed: 22.5 km/h
Start Time: 11:55 AM
End Time: 5:30 PM

Here's a series of photos, starting with me on Capitol Hill at about 3 km into the ride: (I-5 is the big road in the center)


15 km into the ride, at 5th Ave NE & 130th St

Not as fast as the Ciocc, but the full fenders & handlebar-bag make for a comfortable ride! I slapped the Brooks on it, since the original Bianchi seat is horrible, just horrible. This is at a little quickie-mart at 5th Ave NE & 165th St, 25 km into the ride:


Once I hit 76th Ave just North of Shoreline, I started seeing signs for the Interurban Trail. It goes about 20 km from Lynnwood to Everett more or less, but I've always had problems finding it. Well eventually the signs stopped, and there I was, in the middle of Lynnwood without a map. What I do at that point is to find the nearest Ave (North-South) that isn't a "dead end" and just take it. I did that for 5 km or so, and eventually ran into the trail!



This creepy drive-up movie theater looks abandoned, but was apparently working as recently as 10 years ago. Interurban Trail is on the left:

Eventually some construction ended my joyride on the Interurban, and it was back to the streets. I knew at that point that Aurora was my best bet, so I headed towards it, and eventually found it.

Aurora Ave/Highway 99 (called Pacific Highway at this point) - this is where the traffic really gets crazy, but there's at least a turn-only lane that allows bikes! But a painted bike lane? Check back in 20 years, maybe then.


Rolling into downtown Everett, about 55 km into the ride:


Finally, some rest! This was at the little park off of Grand Ave in Everett, with Marysville in the background.


Looking North-East into the Cascades - looks chilly!

Looking West over the bluff:


Heading back towards Seattle, this is "downtown" Everett, WA:


Now back on Aurora, at about 75 km into the ride:


Ahh, Seattle! This was from the top of Capitol Hill looking West towards Queen Anne. Crappy pic but you get the idea:

Next time I'll probably bring some actual maps to avoid getting thrown off-course, but then again, getting lost is entertaining! And educational, I'm really getting to know the backroads of the Puget Sound!