Seattle trip wrap-up.

Okay, so the last time I left you I was wrapping up my first two big days in Seattle (and the small first night.) This left Thursday, my last day in town. Originally I was supposed to meet up with Doug in the AM when we’d ride to do a “coffee outside” type thing. (This is why I brought all my coffee-making stuff.) Alas, this was not fated to be, but we agreed to get coffee at a cafe near King Street Station before my train departed.

I decided to take a southerly ramble to see some spots that I hadn’t yet seen on this trip. I headed out to Lake Washington via the I-90 Bike Tunnel, a portal I had been through only once. The views on the lake side were great, Mount Rainier trying to peek (peak?) through clouds to the south, Bellevue pretending it’s Vancouver BC to the east. I rode along the lakefront to Seward Park, where I made some coffee. A nice setting for coffee, I do say so.

Then further south through some never-explored-by-me neighborhoods towards Rainier Beach, and back ’round towards central Seattle via the Chief Sealth Trail. The ride was a little over 20 miles total. I made it back just in time to have coffee with Doug at the Zeitgeist, where of course we talked about bike stuff, of course.

The train trip south was uneventful and sorta boring. (The problem with taking the evening train during winter months is that you don’t actually see anything.) I got off at Vancouver, Washington instead of Portland. While the ride from here to my house (6 miles) was slightly longer than from Union Station in Portland (4 miles), it shaved off travel time, and gave me an excuse to hang out at Niche wine bar where Mr. Boulanger awaited.

Overall, I had an amazingly good time in Seattle. The weather was decent, I got some good riding in (100 miles over 3 days), got to finally meet people I only knew over “teh interwebs” (Robert, Doug), got to see someone I haven’t in a long time (David), and got to hang out with comix folks, also something I haven’t done in a long time. I needed something different to start this new year, something different that what I’ve done the previous three New Years. And this trip didn’t disappoint.

I-90 Bike Tunnel

Mount Rainier hides under clouds.

I-90 floating bridge.

Chief Sealth Trail.

King St. Station, ready to go home.