Tour de Lopez

The past weekend was the Tour de Lopez which was either a 10, 17 or 31 mile ride around scenic Lopez island. The island is really great for those who haven't been there I really recommend it and travel by bicycle is especially great since you won't get stuck in line waiting through the weekend ferry traffic like the cars do. After bailing out of work early on Friday we all piled in the cars and headed north. First stop after breaking most speed laws in the area was at Breadfarm to buy some cookies and potato bread. After that we headed to the Rhododendron Cafe in Bow, for some dinner and then on to Anacortes.

Saturday started off with a mad dash to buy ferry tickets and then stampede aboard the boat to contribute to the growing pile of bicycles that were stacked up like firewood all along the upper part of the car decks. Nice little bonus for the state to get so many extra riders on the ferry Saturday morning, unfortunately they didn't anticipate that people may want to eat and only had one poor worker in the kitchen that was chef, cashier and busboy.

Finally arriving on Lopez we joined the rest of the cattle herd in trying to get down the stairs and unwind about 200 bikes that had all been stacked together like a bunch of firewood on the upper parts of the car deck. Just when I thought the fun of getting that sorted out was over, we walked off the ferry and I realized that the first of many hills featured on the days ride was right in my face before we even got to the starting point down at Odlin Park. After a pretty good start KJ and I decided to ride the 17 mile route rather than the 31 (actually closer to 36 mile when you add riding to and from the ferry) mile one as we had planned. This was a good thing since there were some just killer hills in the first 10 miles that pretty much gassed my legs that aren't used to such treatment.



Following the ride, well the first part if you count the 5 miles back to the ferry there was a good lunch and chance to buy some cookies and stuff at the local bakeries and lay around hoping the sun would poke through which it eventually did. That evening we all headed off to dinner at Adrift in downtown Anacortes. The food was great but it was a bit warm in the restaurant and as a result I nearly fell asleep at the table. Up early on Sunday morning, we went back to Bow Edison to visit the Farm to Market Bakery for the Polenta cake, and then doubled back south to take in some tulips before heading home.



All in all a great weekend and I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a good weekend escape this time next year. If you want to check out the rest of the photo's go over to my smug mug site