Bicycling – Nomadic Noesis

Mother’s Day Bike Ride and a Robin

I have heard from both of my kids on Mother’s Day, one from halfway across the country and the other from the next room. I’ve also exchanged greetings with other mothers I know because we lift each other up. I’m so fortunate to have that.

The spouse and I took a bike ride this morning. Mother Nature supplied amazing weather plus a field full of buttercups.

Crushed limestone trail with green trees and green grass. — MKT Trail near the Hinkson Bridge

Green field with large patches of yellow buttercups. Trees in background. — MKT Trail near the Hinkson Bridge

On a separate Mother’s Day note, we are celebrating the hatching of three baby robins in a nest under our carport. It sits atop an electrical box attached to our storage shed. She was not in the nest when I snapped this photo, but we have named the mother robin “Barb.” Hubs and I both apologize every time we make a noise that alarms her.

Robin's nest built on top of electrical box attached to red corrugated sheet metal. — Robin’s nest under our carport

“Sorry, Barb,” we say several times a day. Judging by the amount of scolding we receive, I don’t think she understands that we are cheering on her little family.

I hope the day has been meaningful for you, dear readers.

On Today’s Bike Ride: Hungry Hungry Hatchlings

I’m trying to get out on my bicycle at least a little every weekend, even when I don’t have a great deal of time. Today’s ride wasn’t all that long, but I got to see some barn swallow babies at a shelter house.

Hungry, hungry hatchlings:

No rest for new parents!

On Today’s Bike Ride: New Trail and Blue Heron

After a brutal, snowy winter followed by an exceptionally wet spring, Freida and I are hitting the trails again. I was able to add a new experience to my new experiences list today thanks to the city adding a new section of trail into the network.

The Perche Creek Trail branches off from the MKT and eventually will extend to allow easy travel.

Paved bike trail approaching a bridge. Sign says Perche Creek Trail.

Oh, look! One of my favorite things–a bridge!

Paved trail bridge with tall rails on either side.

Scan the QR code to learn more. Phase 2 is scheduled to be complete in 2027.

Sign on bridge: "Perche Creek Phase 2 Development. — Anticipated opening of phase 2, Fall, 2027.

But for now, if you don’t want to lift your bicycle over a guardrail and continue on the road (which I know people have and do), it’s kind of a dead end.

paved trail ending at guardrail with road on other side. Red pickup on road.

But it’s a pleasant ride, and I got to see a blue heron.

Great blue heron in mud at edge of large puddle — Pondering

I hope to get out for a ride at least once a week and build my stamina back up. Today’s ride was 13-14 miles or so roundtrip. Not too bad. Here’s to more pedaling adventures!

On Today’s Bike Ride: Stronger Than I Thought

There are a couple of quick and easy routes from my house to the trail where I often ride my bike. Getting back home, however, requires an arduous climb coming back off the trail, either way I go. One is a shorter distance, but a steeper slope. That’s the one I took coming home today.

It’s only a block, but more vertical than I would choose. I have never yet had to get off and push the bike, but I do shift down into the very lowest gear. The saving grace to this stretch is that there’s usually little traffic, making it easy to ride in a switchback pattern. Today, however, people were getting in my way with their cars. I was forced to grind it out straight up the hill.

75% of the way, I questioned whether I would actually make it to the top, but I focused on each pedal stroke. One more and then one more and then one more. I made it! Not only that, but when I looked at my gear shifts, I discovered they weren’t on the very lowest setting. I had put them into the second lowest setting.

Whoa! I’m stronger than I thought!

I’m going to hold onto this thought as a truth. I’m stronger than I realize, and I’m accomplishing more than I give myself credit for. Even when stuff is hard, I can hang on.

You know what else is hanging on? These trees.

The bottom part of two trees with their roots exposed on one side. Fallen leaves on the ground.

Their roots are all exposed on one side where the ground is eroded and slants down to the trail. But they still seem firmly anchored, holding on strongly on the other side. Hang in there, trees! You’re doing great!

I found them along the Hinkson Creek Trail, a different ride than Freida and I usually take. We had a nice, peaceful time of it, encountering few other humans today.

Wooden bridge on trail. Sign listing various trails with directional arrows: Mu Rec, HInkson Creek, Greenbriar, MKT — Wayfinding

Stopping to rest in and take in the ambiance of nature.

Bicycle in foreground leaning against rocks. Gravel trail running into the distance with trees on either side. — Freida taking a little rest

Black bicycle with blue front basket leaning against rocks. Trees behind. Leaves on ground. — Freida taking a little rest

Hang in there everyone. You’re strong than you think and accomplishing more than you give yourself credit for.

On Today’s Bike Ride: Alt Universe Edition

Black bicycle with blue basket leaning on wooden bridge rail. — Freida looking out over Perche Creek

This week is feeling particularly alternative universe to me, of the dystopian variety in many ways. How could we have time looped back four years and be reliving the nightmare?

On top of that, I received a text alert this morning as I was leaving my house for work telling me not to show up because there was a fire at the building. WHAT? Fortunately, it was small and quickly extinguished. Unfortunately, it was in one of the air handlers of our HVAC system, so that distributed the smoke pretty well throughout the structure, requiring some mitigation.

Bright side – it was a gorgeous fall day with temperatures in the upper 50s. My favorite weather. Might as well take advantage of the surprise day off to get Freida out of the shed and hit the trail, away from news and worries and automotive traffic…

Sign on trailside reads "Caution, construction ahead, trucks may be present, please use caution on trail, please slow down" — A truck was present, driving down the trail.

Okay, trucks on the trail today. I understand it’s for good reason, just unusual.

Still had a pretty good ride and enjoyed the views.

Creek with trees lining both sides. Blue sky. — Thank you, the Schmidt family, for this comfy bench!

Wooden bridge over creek, connecting to trail. — Thank you, the Schmidt family, for this comfy bench!

Things seemed comfortingly normal and natural until I checked for the temperature on my phone screen and saw some news headlines:

News headlines. 1. "This black hole just did something theoretically impossible." 2. "Residents warned after 43 monkeys escape research facility."

Uh, yeah, we’ve slipped into an alternate universe.

On Today’s Bike Ride: Hello Little Skink

Today I told my husband I was going on a short bike ride and then didn’t come back for three hours. I didn’t know how much activity I could manage because I woke up with allergy symptoms and a headache. But thanks to OTC medicines and suddenly mild weather, I felt pretty good after I’d been pedaling a short while.

I felt so good, I kept going and made a half day of it, stopping occasionally for water/snack/photo breaks. In fact, I set a new personal record for miles ridden in one day with a 24-mile round trip.

Freida and I made a friend along the way.

Five-lined skink curved in a u-shape on some cement. — Skink investigating.

Skink on rock stretching its head toward a bicycle water bottle on a bike frame. — Skink investigating.

Curious five-lined skink gets to know Freida

In my quest to have new experiences, I explored a part of the Katy Trail I’d never been down before. It was a lovely, mostly level, mostly shady stretch.

Wooden shelter over benches with sign reading "McBaine, MO" — Trailhead / reststop on the Katy Trail

Signpost surrounded by brush with words "Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area" — Trailhead / reststop on the Katy Trail

One highlight was when I saw a couple of eagles flying circles in the sky. But I only had my phone camera and couldn’t capture an image.

For many years, I never had the time for this kind of excursion, certainly not to be made on the spur of the moment. I try not to take it for granted.

Happy trails!

On Today’s Bike Ride: Achievement Unlocked

I finally did it.

Bicycle leaning against a massive bur oak tree. Blue sky. — Freida (my bike) at the Big Tree

I achieved my bicycling goal of making it all the way to the nearly 400-year-old bur oak, the one my husband visits every weekend. That’s about a 22-mile round trip. I’ve been working on building my cycling stamina, riding a little farther each outing. Today, I just kept going until I was there. The hubs was kind enough to slow his pace so I could keep up. Then I left for home earlier than he did.

I will admit the last three to four miles of the return trip were a struggle. I imagined myself the subject of one of those old times folk ballads about a person on an arduous journey who makes it through all sorts of hazards, only to drop dead within sight of their destination. But instead, I’m here at my keyboard, writing my own story.

A couple more photos:

Look up into the canopy of bur oak tree.

Sign about Williamson Bur Oak: Nearly 400 years old.

Happy trails!

On Today’s Bike Ride: Juneteenth Chickadee

We are in a two-day lull between brutal heat waves, so I seized the day and took a little bike ride this morning. I made a brief stop near a creek to drink some water (from my water bottle, not the creek) and heard an unmistakable sound, the first one in this video.

I’m not well acquainted with many birdcalls, but I do recognize a chickadee when I hear one. Has a more adorable looking bird ever existed? When I was pregnant with my second child, I started calling my baby Chickadee as a placeholder name until he was born. I don’t remember the reason I latched onto this particular nickname, but my fondness for the little critters remains.

I looked up when I heard the call. Aha!

Chickadee in oak tree — Black capped chickadee in oak tree.

I choose to believe it was calling out “Happy Juneteenth” in its own way.

On Today’s Bike Ride: Beware the Poison Hemlock

Despite seasonal allergies, a slightly sore back, and the need to report to work this afternoon, I got out on my bike for a short ride this morning. I ended up at a wetlands area I frequent because there’s a nice shelter house, yet it’s at a spur off the main trail, so few people seem to stop there.

Thanks to a recent Facebook post from a friend, I realized this morning that there’s an abundance of poison hemlock growing there, and not harmless Queen Anne’s lace as I had always thought. I used the Seek app to verify the species. Since I don’t aspire to die like Socrates, I’m glad I never touched any back when I was misidentifying it!

One clear way to tell the difference between the two plants is the stem. Poison hemlock has smooth stems with purple spots. Queen Anne’s lace has hairy stems with no purple. I found a helpful article that provides more information.

Now you know. If you see this plant, make like anyone who is not Socrates and avoid it.

On Today’s Bike Ride: 72 Degrees on Christmas Eve

Unseasonably warm is becoming more the norm. It was 72 degrees F here today on Christmas Eve. Nothing for it but to hop on a bicycle. My husband, son-in-residence and I rode together far enough out of town that we had to dodge cow patties on the trail.

It was one of my longer journeys with Freida at nearly 13 miles round trip. After being sidelined for medical reasons earlier in the year, I’m doing everything I can to stay healthy in the hopes she and will be able to keep increasing our range.

Happy holidays!

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