Bike Friendly

It was another day of mistaken expectations, but in a good way this time. Our route was from Folsom, California, to Fairfield, paralleling Interstate 80 through the Sacramento metro area. We both expected it to be a slog through congested areas with heavy traffic, with the only redeeming quality that it gets us 80 miles closer to the finish line.

In fact, remarkably, it was just the opposite, turning out to be one of the best rides we've had on the trip. What made that possible is that there is a fantastic bike/run trail that runs through the entire Sacramento metro area. We were on that trail for 50 miles, starting right in Folsom and ending a few miles southwest of Davis.

The awesome bike and run trail from Folsom

It being Saturday, the trail was moderately busy with other cyclists, runners, and a few walkers. The convention on the trail is that pedestrians stay to the left (just as when walking on a road). But it means that when riding, you pass other bikes on the left, but runners going the same way on the right. It's a little confusing at first but after 50 miles we finally had it figured out.

The trail follows the American River which runs through Folsom and joins the Sacramento River. It was quite scenic and we saw rowers, pleasure boaters, and fishermen.

I'm not sure if this qualifies as "pleasure boating" or not

Tom got a flat tire, his first in over 2000 miles. How ironic that he rode all those highways full of nasty debris and then got a flat on the little ol' bike path!

After about 30 miles we stopped at a park in the shadow of downtown Sacramento. You would never know you were in the middle of a big city except for the occasional glimpse of the freeways and downtown buildings. As were stopped, a couple Vietnamese guys came up to ask about our bikes. "Carbon Fiber?" one of them asked. "No, titanium," I said. "How much it weigh?" "About 17 pounds (without all this luggage)," I said. "What about that one," he asked, indicating Tom's bike, "carbon fiber?" "Yes," I said, that one's carbon. "How much it weigh?" And so the conversation went. It turns out the were self-proclaimed beginning cyclists, who had apparently been brainwashed by the bike industry's marketing hype that you gotta have the lightest bike possible even at the rank beginner level.

This replica bridge in Sacramento fooled us for a moment. We thought we were done!

Sacramento's answer to the Kemah Boardwalk

Eventually we reached Davis, California, home to UC Davis and one of the most bike-saturated places I've ever seen. There were bikes everywhere, far outnumbering the cars. Even bike parking was scarce. There was a farmer's market going on and it seemed rather festive so we decided to stop for lunch. Just as we did we realized we had stopped right in front of the US Bicycle Hall of Fame. How about that?! We stepped in and snapped a couple pictures but did not look around, since our main priority was lunch.

Three adventure cyclists

I would not want to go cross-country on this

The thriving farmer's market

About 10 miles past Davis the bike path ended but by then we were on quiet back roads that wound through a series of apple orchards and vineyards. We continued to see other cyclists all day; in fact I am certain we saw more cyclists today than the other 37 days combined. We even had another road called Pleasant Valley Road; unlike yesterday, this one lived up to its name.

A pleasant stream in the pleasant valley

California living to up its Golden State moniker 

Heading into Fairfield. We had our own private road alongside the super-busy I-80.

The only downside of today, if you could call it that, was that I was feeling a bit sluggish all day. I am blaming it on not having had my usual fit-for-a-king breakfast. Last night we decided that in the interest of getting an early start, we would pick up breakfast stuff and eat in our room. The only grocery was a discount place that was closing just as we walked in. So I hastily grabbed a box of Cocoa Puffs and some milk. It seems that I chose poorly; I should have got Lucky Charms instead!

In spite of that, it was a great route, and a great day to be on a bicycle. As our last full day, it was a super way to cap off the trip. We got in to Fairfield early, so it's nice to have a bit more of a relaxing afternoon than the past few days. And, we are finally allowing ourselves to admit that we are gonna make it. It's pretty exciting.

Today's ride: 80 miles, Folsom to Fairfield, mostly flat.

Sought... and found