Pushing The Pedals

Last weekend Hubby Tony and I used our new bike rack to get across town for a nice ride. This weekend we packed our lunches, filled our water bottles, and did it again (twice)

Saturday

On Saturday we started at Tower Grove Park. a 20 minute drive to the southeast of us. When we pulled into the park there was a lot of traffic for a Farmer's Market. I parked far enough away that the congestion was gone, and we got the bikes off the rack and headed south. Our destination was the St. Louis Hills neighborhood, an area with tidy houses, lots of mature trees, and large parks. Tony had mapped out a route ahead of time, relying on a city map of bikeable streets. However, we found out that one of those streets catered more to cars than bikes; trying to cycle in that part was pretty intimidating. However, we finally made it. We rode around the neighborhood, stopped for a snack, then hit the road again.

Next, Tony's route took us to a greenway that ran east. We made a couple more turns, and when I saw the windmill vanes of the Bevo Mill restaurant I knew we were coming up on the "Little Bosnia" neighborhood. (Fun fact. Did you know that the St. Louis metropolitan area has the largest Bosnian American population and largest Bosnian population outside of Europe?)

I started dreaming about Bosnian food, but our route took us off the main drag and the road we rode on didn't have any restaurants. I decided it would be worth it to make a trip back there soon.

We meandered our way back to Tower Grove Park, where we ate our lunch at the Chinese Pavilion, one of the park's 32 pavilions (most dating from the Victorian era). After lunch we rode through the park and back to the car, ending our adventure for the day.

Back at the condo, we decided to leave the bikes on the car in case another ride was in our future.

Monday

Yesterday was filled with activities, but this morning when we rolled out of bed we decided to take advantage of the Labor Day holiday by going out on two wheels again. Today our destination was the Monarch Levee Trail in Chesterfield, which wraps around the commercial area of the city (including the world's longest strip mall) and protects it from the Missouri River.

 The first part of the trail paralleled the Interstate, but after about seven miles it turned, went under the highway, and came out on the other side. The second half was more scenic, with farmland on one side and greenery on the other.

We passed a small fenced in graveyard, which I learned was the Bayer-Kroenung Cemetery, moved to that location after a massive flood in 1993.

Find A Grave.com

At the far end of the trail we stopped and ate a snack, used the port-a-potty, and headed back. When we got to the highway, instead of turning to take the route under the road we followed the trail onto a dedicated pedestrian path on the highway bridge over the Missouri River and into St. Charles County. That trail connected with the Katy Trail, which goes three quarters of the way across the state. We were both getting tired, so we doubled back over the highway and to our car.

Back home, this time we took the bikes off the car and put them away in the storage area. I enjoyed both rides, but I'm ready to take a break from cycling for a little bit.

Five years ago today: Repairing And Healing