Bicycle weather

The weather here in Boerne has been pretty good. For the first few days the weather was on the windy and cool side with lows in the 20s and highs in 30s and low 40s. But for about a week now, winds have decreased and lows have moderated to the 40s and 50s and highs are in the 60s and 70s with mostly sunny skies. Mornings are usually cool enough for a jacket and the afternoons warm up nicely. It has been a welcomed change. The below zero weather up north is now only a distant memory (but not that distant).  It feels like spring here.

Trying to take advantage of the warm up by spending time outside, we went to the local tourist information center and asked about bicycle trails. We were assuming that like Wisconsin, we would be directed to abandoned rail corridors that one could pedal for miles and see the countryside at a leisurely pace. Our inquiry found the attendants confused. They weren't sure if there were bicycle trails in the area. Oh yes, they found something, but it would be sharing the highway with other vehicles or perhaps bicycling was allowed at a golf course? Not sure. Maybe we could ride on a pedestrian path? Three people were involved in attempting to answer our simple question. Finally they determined that we could ride on the "Old Number 9" trail in the city. It was a 1.4 mile gravelled path on an abandoned rail line that once served the community. We thanked them for the information and left without knowing anymore than what we had entered with.

Bicycling on most roadways (except for residential streets) is quite a challenge here. Roads are busy, traffic is fast and shoulders are rare. It is possible to ride but the risks are too high for us. Few bikers are in evidence.  The Number 9 trail is suitable for bikes but far too short to even consider. It would take less time to ride the trail than to remove the bicycles for our truck carrier. I suppose we could ride back and forth on it ten to fifteen times. What fun. We walked the trail instead. We met several other hikers and dog walkers. Nice trail but very short.

We also walked along the Cibolo Creek at River Road Park. This is a narrow, linear park just east of downtown Boerne. Parking is on the street and somewhat of a challenge. Challenging not because of the width or condition of the street, but because of the mass of geese rushing to our door begging for food.   They run  toward parked vehicles like salesmen at a used car lot. We moved the truck to a distant point away from the mass, and walked the sidewalk along the picturesque creek.

However, one needs to not only dodge waterfowl on the walkway, but also their droppings littering the path. It was a challenge but a nice part of the city nevertheless.

We are still searching for an approriate place to saddle up and do some pedalling.