They fish, I ride

Of the nine of us here for the fishing outing weekend, I am the lone one who does not fish. That is true of any of the fishing outings I go to with Susan. I usually get in some kind of bike ride, but this outing holds many beautiful riding opportunities for me. Today was another bucolic day in the saddle.

The bike map we had bought in Bend on our first day here has proven to be a gold mine with several wonderful routes to explore. It helps to have a local (Renee) to show the way to the starting point and to tell me which streets to avoid that had steep hills. From her house she directed me to the nearby path in Box Canyon.

 

I found my way there with no problem. The trail winds past a dog park and people parks, tennis courts and sport fields, through a tunnel and up a stair case (you can see the wheel gutters on each side that help transporting your bike up or down). The sage brush heightens the deep red/brown of the rock walls.

 

At the edge of town I was reminded that there is homework...

 

 

Once out of town I was immersed in more country that I never tire of.

The llama was hunkered down under the shade of the tree against the heat of the day.

 

These little burros were too cute to not take two photos.

 

And this beautiful horse was totally ignoring me.

 

Even my wrong turn (which added about 6 miles to my day) was enjoyable and I got to see another part of the area.

 

My route was simply beautiful, offering views of the Three Sisters mountains and peaceful country fields, homes and ranches.

 

 

Folks find lots of use for the rock around here, a barn and a self made "Stonehenge" are two samples.

 

P

 

 

This being a "fishing" weekend ...

 

 

My sadness of the day was seeing the two ranch hands loading a trailer full of calves, and hearing the mamas loudly crying out for them. Two mamas stood close to the trailer (outside of the fenced off area where their babies were being corralled into) looking in at the calves that had been loaded. Heartbreaking and almost (almost) enough to make one become a vegetarian. The most I do for them is not eat veal!

 

We are now packing up to leave the warm home and hospitality of Renee and Tim. It has been a grand time for fisher people -- Susan caught another one yesterday -- and for cyclists! I was pleased to have Renee join me on my first day of riding, and she says I have inspired her to ride more -- and longer. She will have no problem as she is strong and could be outriding me with regular days in the saddle.

 

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