Playing Hookie - A Bike Ride on the Lakeview Wildlife Trail and Beach

Finally got a chance to type this up. The week before last week the weather reports seemed to be pointing toward there being an extremely nice day, so I decided to just do something for myself and take a few relaxing hours to myself. I always feel guilty; there's so much to do, so much work to do, even on weekends I'm thinking about what I could be doing. Anyway...

So the day came and it was looking overcast, and like it might be heading toward a rainy day but for the time-being it looked good.




So I attached my bike carrier to the car, secured the bike to it, grabbed lots of water and a small easy-to-carry lunch (and my camera and GPS, of course!), and drove down to the Lakeview Wildlife area. The beginning of the trial is on a small lake, and the trail curves around this and then out through the protected dune system and finally to the open beach.

Only one truck was there in the entrance parking lot, and no sign of anyone.

The trail itself was nice, cool, and the day was good for riding. The trail itself is fairly good riding, a few ruts, lots of leaves this time of year but not hiding anything big but the occasional stone.

Once through the wooded trail it was over the elevated walkway and onto the beach.

I headed down to the very edge of the water, and rode right along the interface between sand and fluid. Incredible, something I guess in the back of my mind I had always wanted to do - though I thought perhaps it would be ocean I'd be riding along.

Next time we take a trip to the ocean I'm taking my bike...maybe.

The sand was nicely packed away from the sand dunes and easy riding. I went right first, until I reached one of the Southwick Beach parking areas and then rode back in the other direction - passing where I had exited the elevated walkway.

After riding for a bit I found another elevated walkway (pic below, right), I hauled to bike up the short steps and rode down the short walkway until I reached the other end - a small very-low-water-level lake (or large pond) called Lakeview Pond. After a long look along the shore of the other side I picked out the canoe ramp and then the truck and my car in the parking lot.

I hauled the bike up the stairs and rode down and back to the beach again. Propping the bike up I took a few pics, and unstowed my lunch and sat on a large fallen tree and sat back to unwind. When was the last time I'd taken a real vacation? Years. This wasn't the same of course, but nice for a few hours.

In the distance, in the direction I was heading, I could see a person and a dog getting closer.

After packing my lunch back up and back into my bike's pack, I headed out again. After a bit I passed by the guy with his dog, a polite wave and a glance from the dog. He had walked quite a long ways from the Southwick Beach area or the Lakeview trail.

I continued, at times, speeding up, other time's barely crawling. Even the seagulls didn't really mind me, I rode through the middle of them a few times and they just skipped away without much fear or concern.

Further down I ran across a place where someone had had a fire and likely a party, from the looks of it.

Above this place balanced a piece of wood on another tall piece of wood, an old tree stripped of it's limbs or something. I messed around with it, trying to figure out how it was balanced. It spun, but didn't fall off. Someone must have nailed it on, and then set the whole thing up. Strange (see pic at bottom).

Finally, I had biked far enough, I could have went miles from the looks of it. The day was perfect, not too warm, not too cool, overcast but not dark, and the water was misty enough so that I could only see a short distance - not even the Oswego nuke plant could be seen.

On the way back I rode even slower for the most part, and stopped at the walkway to the small lake again.

After getting back to the main walkway I took the dogleg left toward the Southwick Beach area, biked that, and then headed back.

It was one of those unexpectedly relaxing days, and I neither bike enough nor relax enough so it was certainly welcome. A nearly perfect trip (after packing my stuff back in and on the car I got in and went to adjust my mirror, which promptly dropped off. Now I have to get some mirror glass glue for it, ergh).

Nice day and trail and ride, and if you have a bike I highly recommend it.

Olmstead Trail re-visit

Olmstead Trail Re-Visit

I decided to try out the Olmstead Trail once again (see my NNY Trails page about it here, with some more pics). I hadn't been on it for quite awhile, and I had heard that it was expanded. The trail, the last time I rode on it, was a pretty good trail - hills, some rocky parts, etc., and I'd explored all the trails branching out from it, including the ones that go around the perimeter of the zoo. I'd found the ruins of the original Public Square fountain that they were talking about restoring or something, and had even scared some Asian people who were out for a walk (the older lady actually picked the kid up and held onto him as I rode by). Actually, I'd been riding toward them so I didn't scare them so much as they were apparently scared of me in general, even though I gave them a wide berth as I passed. Oh well.

So my wife and sister and nieces were participating in a benefit to help an Alzheimer's walk by renting space at the benefit for selling their crafts. As we'd done the year before we loaded the craft stuff as well as my bike into Jenny's Pontiac Aztek Rally Edition (truly a versatile vehicle, as the ads used to mention before they discontinued this vehicle).

After I helped them set up the crafts and stuff, I headed out on some of the black-topped trails to warm-up, then down onto the Olmstead Trail.

It was about the same and, once again, I scared the crap out of someone. A lady was walking along, I could just barely see her through a curve and figured if I yelled she might not hear me so I waited until I got a bit closer. Unfortunately I got a little TOO close before I yelled a hearty "Hello!". She heard the bike; which to her possibly sounded like a stealthy approach by an attacker, at the same time I yelled. She jumped straight off the ground, did a little turn in mid-air, half-raising her hands in a purely instinctual-looking quasi-karate/quasi-defensive move. Oops, I should have yelled earlier. I apologized and she said she never saw anyone out there and hadn't expected me. I went on my way, feeling a bit bad but still stifling a bit of a laugh - I couldn't help it.

Finally I reached the place where the trail had previously stopped. It now continued on a single track sort of thing, lots of rocks and logs to jump and go over. Even a few places where someone made some nice mountain biking-style things to ride across. I continued on and it got challenging with hills, more stone and logs, and trees so close together that the handlebars of the bike barely fit between them.

In other words - a mountain biker's favorite riding. I'd say it was one of the best mountain biking trails in the area that I had ridden on.

I continued for what seemed like miles. I knew I didn't want to spend all evening and wanted to get back to the benefit in a reasonable time, but each trail leading back in the direction I wanted to go lead out onto the golf course.

Finally, I had spent a lot of time and had traveled down the hill a way, being able to see the ski area on Dry Hill, and getting further and further away. Some of the branching trails were badly maintained.

My bottles of water had even run out, I always bring enough water! Heading back would take even longer, going up the sometimes steep rough hills. And the trees were close together, cutting any bit of wind and making the trail hot as hell. I was soaked in sweat and getting kind worn out as I had biked full-speed through the whole thing to this point.

Jeez - I'm not actually 25 anymore - I realized. High time to head back.

So I took the next branching trail that lead toward where I wanted to go (popping out of the woods and onto the edge of the golf course I could see the water tower, quite a ways in the distance).

Unfortunately there were some older gents standing by and leaning against their gold carts, swinging their clubs around distractedly, and discussing something that sounded suspiciously like Big Business talk. Wow, even this cliche didn't impress me at the time.

They stared as I tried to give them lots of space, knowing I probably wasn't exactly supposed to be there. But, well, they weren't exactly going to catch me on their golf carts and I wasn't doing anything destructive.

I watched for flying balls, golf carts, trotting caddies, and the like. I made my way as quickly and unobtrusively as possible toward the treeline.

At the treeline I found a trail through it, thinking I'd come out at the obstacle course area. Nope, another field of golf courses. I headed off again, occasional people glancing my way. But they didn't seem to be awfully upset and I was keeping well away from anyone.

At the next tree line I passed by large coolers of water, possibly set out for the golfers? I wanted some real bad, being soaked in sweat as I was and no reserve water left. But I kept going, finally getting to the next treeline and finding yet another path through it. This time I was at the obstacle course and made my way back to the 'Tek.

Anyway, great trail but if you continue on it make sure you're in for the long-haul. Sometime I'll go back and ride the whole thing and find out where the end comes out. Across from the other overlook perhaps? Something for another time.