Blossoms and bikes and yard work

We’ve been really weather lucky lately here in the DC area. We had five days in a row with high temperatures in the 70s. That means SHORTS! Yes, baby. And shorts mean longer rides. Yay.

I have switched to The Mule in the hopes that it will help my neck problems. So far it seems to be working. My range of motion is better and the pain is less. Fingers crossed.

The week of riding started with a two-wheeled recon ride to DC to check out the status of the famous cherry blossoms. Alas, I was a few days early but at least the trees on the way to Hains Point in East Potomac Park were putting on a show.

The next day I rode mostly trails to the Kenwood neighborhood of Bethesda, Maryland. Conveniently located a block from the Capital Crescent Trail, Kenwood is lined with decades-old cherry trees. Alas again, the trees were still in winter mode. After a stop for an everything bagel in the downtown Bethesda, I rode home clocking my first 50 mile ride of the year.

Next up was a family auto tour of the DC tree scene. Once again we were disappointed. As a consolation, we drove to Great Falls Park in Maryland to check out the raging waters of the Potomac River where it passes through Mather Gorge. We followed a path out to Olmsted Island in the middle of the river and saw and, even better, heard the deluge as it passed all around us. After the drive, I did a 30-mile jaunt on The Mule in the area near home. During the ride I spotted the head of a bald eagle peaking above its nest in a tall pine tree in the backyard of a McMansion.

Next was my Friday morning trek to Coffee Club. My route conveniently passes the Tidal Basin on the awesome new cycletrack. The trees were starting their bloom.

On Saturday, I rode to the Lincoln Memorial then back along the Potomac on Ohio Drive in DC. Once again I skirted the Tidal Basin. Now the trees were starting to put on a show in earnest. I managed 31 miles before spending the rest of the day weeding the garden.

Sunday brought what I call my perimeter ride. I ride on neighborhood streets around Mount Vernon. I stay off the bike trail and do mostly right turns on local streets. No tourists. No root bumps. No cold breezes off the river. Just beaucoup spring colors from southern magnolias, forsythia, yoshino cherry trees, weeping cherry trees, bartlett pear trees, daffodils, and tulips. This 30-miler was also followed by a stint working in the yard, doing maintenance on my drainage ditches.

Monday was officially the start of peak bloom in DC. I rode into a headwind to the Tidal Basin and reconnoitered with my wife and daughter who had driven into town after a dental appointment. They were just about done with their clockwise walk around the basin. I continued on, walking my bike counterclockwise around the basin. After passing the Jefferson Memorial I saw a group of people in business attire walking toward me. A few of them were rather large humans. In the middle of them was Merrick Garland, the US Attorney General. He had surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis about six weeks ago so I was happy to see him walking perfectly upright without a cane. The rather large humans were likely with the Secret Service. (Why is it called the Secret Service? A better name would be the Obvious Service.) This was my first DC celebrity sighting in quite some time. The ride home made for another 30-mile day.

Sadly over 100 cherry trees are scheduled for imminent removal as the National Park Service rebuilds the area around much of the Tidal Basin and West Potomac Park. Stumpy is doomed but most of the trees near the MLK and the FDR Memorials will be spared. Eventually, the perimeter of East Potomac Park will be restored as well. Depending on who you ask, either the water level is rising or the parkland is sinking. Either way, it’s going to be quite a mess for the next couple of years. I do hope that in the process the jersey barrier farm near the Jefferson Memorial will be removed. It’s been there for over 20 years. Other DC monuments had their security barriers upgraded years ago.

Today was cold and blustery. My daughter was headed back to law school so I decided to take the day off from riding to see her off and get more yard work done. I managed to spend about four hours edging the rest of the gardens and clearing and widening the drainage ditch across the back yard. It is safe to say that I used muscles I forgot I had. It’s going to be an ibuprofen night.

I have started to think some about my summer bike trip. I need a few things. A simple water filter, a bigger pillow, a power pack for my phone, and some sort of noise maker (for warding off dogs). I might take The Mule in for a tune up and buy a new tire or two. The front tire still has plenty of tread after over 5,000 miles of touring. My rear tire has been going strong since my flat near Sisters, Oregon in 2022. They may ride like rocks but Schwalbe tires last a very long time.

I still haven’t decided on a route. Three possibilities would involve the eastern most section of the TransAmerica Trail. The fourth possibility is a ride out west in bike over country. Stay tuned.

After driving to DC to see the blossoms with my family,