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Vancouver Island
We enjoyed our biking adventure in western Canada this year. We flew into Victoria, a city in British Columbia on Vancouver Island. Before the trip, I did not know the difference between Vancouver and Vancouver Island; I had to ask a local. Vancouver is a major city in British Columbia. Vancouver Island is home to the city of Victoria and Victoria is the capital of British Columbia. Geographically, we were about 60 miles from both Vancouver and Seattle, Washington. We were in the southern portion of Canada, below the 49th parallel.
We began our journey, stopping in Montreal and arriving in Victoria after dark. A wonderful city, easy to walk and fun explore, was ready for us to see. To acclimate to the time change, being out west, we walked and enjoyed all Victoria had to offer for a full day prior to the beginning of our biking tour.
We had in mind prior to our visit to see the Craigdarroch Castle in Victoria. It was a bit of a long walk; we enjoyed the neighborhoods along the way. The “castle” was a good stop. The building itself had been a private residence and at one time a college.
The highlight of our first night on Vancouver Island was exploring the Butchart Gardens and seeing their final fireworks show at the garden for the season. Walking around the gardens at twilight and evening with lights on the pathways lent a different feeling to the gardens. We really enjoyed the experience and were glad to take part in it.
Pictures do not do justice to the grand fireworks show. It was unlike any I had seen. Sometimes it looked as if the fireworks were walking across the garden. I saw several YouTube videos filmed during one of the shows. Even they do not do justice to the amazing show set to music. They do provide some sense of the show.
At night the capital building is all lit up and looked terrific. We were staying in a hotel next to the capital building.
This is not the first adventure for our group of dedicated biking friends. VBT does a wonderful job arranging the trip and providing bikes. We show up, enjoy the tour and pedal.
Our biking group for Canada: Vancouver Island
We all started walking in downtown Victoria waiting for the bike adventure to begin. We had previously been on a bike tour to the Florida Keys and had our picture taken at Mile Zero in Florida. We were happy to have that landmark for us to walk to as we traveled around Victoria.
Our first ride was just around the streets of Victoria. It is a pretty city and we enjoyed the ride. We saw a giant totem pole, and we all stopped at the Mile Zero marker this time in our biking gear for a picture. We also pedaled though a park. They have beautiful gardens in Victoria.
On the second day we biked to the ferry and took it to Pender Island. We then rode across the island to our hotel.
Near the hotel, riding from the ferry, my wife and I could not resist stopping at the Enchanted Forest. You would have stopped as well. We took a hike to the forest after our biking adventure the next day. It was a fun place; we spotted several faerie doors hidden throughout the forest. If you find yourself on Pender Island, the view from the forest was worthwhile as is the path through the forest. It was a fun day.
I really enjoyed our time at Poets Cove Resort & Spa on Pedler Island. We could not get enough of the view from our room and the resort. The food was terrific and the accommodation was wonderful.
My wife loves kayaking. Part of this journey was a sea kayaking guided tour. We were treated to sweeping views of Boundary Pass, the Strait of Georgia, the San Juan Islands, and Mount Baker. I did not bring my phone on the kayak. But I am happy some of our friends did.
After kayaking, we went for a quiet bike ride to Brooks Point Regional Park. It was the shortest day of biking for us. We did have wonderful views and took our bikes over to the Enchanted Forest.
We were almost sorry to leave Poets Cove Resort, but we were looking to ride more and explore. We rode our bikes back to the ferry and back to Vancouver Island. After leaving a small island for a larger one, we were back on the bikes. We went to the family owned Sea Cider Farm & Cider house. After a fun lunch, we pedaled to the Oak Bay Beach Hotel in Victoria. We enjoyed taking a dip in the hotel’s heated seaside mineral pool.
We had a fun breakfast with the group and a final briefing on our last day’s big ride.
We took our longest ride from Victoria to the Butchart Gardens. We enjoyed the scenic ride and managed to get a little lost on the way; we found our way back to the path with the help of our guides and fellow bikers. We started early so we could have plenty of time to explore the gardens.
We enjoyed our second visit to Butchart Gardens. It was all in the daylight and we were able to take our time and see some of the sights we missed on our first visit.
Some of the members of our group wanted to ride the Rose Carousel. The carousel is comprised of 30 hand-carved wooden animals and two chariots. The artwork was very pretty, and it was a fun diversion from biking and walking around the gardens.
The gardens are the main attraction, and you will have to visit. It is well worth it. A beautiful layout of flowers, trees and shrubs. Every garden just flowed and it was hard to put the camera down.
We eventually got back on our bikes and pedaled back to our hotel. It was a good day at the gardens, and we were happy to visit twice.
We managed another day of wayfaring around Victoria prior to our plane leaving in the evening. The parks and inlets are gems. We enjoyed taking in the sights in and around Victoria, including palm trees in the yards.
It was sad to say goodbye to Vancouver Island. It is a place to visit again. Fortunately for us, we have signed up for another bike tour in 2026.
Other fun:
I was able to go on a few runs in and around the area. One of my favorite runs was along the water in Victoria and crossing bridges.
I was also able to run on the other side of Victoria after our return from Pender Island.
Of course, we prioritized stopping for ice cream. Or was it dinner? It was good, especially after a fun day of biking.
Getting in shape for our ride, we took a few rides on our local bike path.
See you on the road.
Celebrating 40 Years Together
We were married in the early springtime 40 years ago. It is hard to believe how quickly the time has gone. We are living our great love story, my wife and me. A great love story is sweeping and dramatic. This is a simple travel blog. We decided it would be delightful to travel to celebrate our 40 years of marriage in Florida so we could bike ride together. We are happy to celebrate, and we feel excitement in reaching this milestone. Together, we are also looking forward to other milestones to celebrate.
It was enjoyable planning this trip so that our 40th anniversary would be special for the two of us. My thought was to look through some old pictures, write a little about each year from our 40 years together and put it in a book for a gift for my wife. I ended up giving her a page a day, with each page representing a specific year, leading to our leaving for our trip. On each page I wrote what was going on in the world that year, in our lives that year and one thing we could look forward to doing on our trip. I started just before Valentine’s Day, and my wife looked forward to opening a letter each day. The letters ended one day prior to our driving to Florida.
So, every day, for 40 days, my wife received a letter and pictures about each year of our marriage. It was gratifying to put together and even better to share. I enjoyed the daily rhythm of the look back at each year of our time together.
We drove on this trip, bringing our bikes. Our first stop, just south of Atlanta, was to McDonough, GA. We could not drive all the way to the Orlando area from our house, and this was a good stopping point. Also, I wanted to be mostly through Atlanta traffic starting off on our drive to Florida.
In my letters I spoke about the nice weather we anticipated in Florida. It was very nice. For the first few days it was almost exactly twice as warm in Florida as it was back home. That was a great change for us.
One of the first anniversary activities was to go into Orlando to see a show. We had a good dinner and appreciated the Sleuth’s Mystery Dinner Show “The Show Must Go On.” The action was entertaining, and it was an amusing evening out and something we talked about for a while.
My wife really enjoys kayaking. We had never been kayaking at night; we had a blast kayaking on Lake Ivanhoe, right near downtown Orlando, in clear kayaks. It was highly entertaining to be on the water at night. Although we were right near downtown, it felt as if we were miles away. I did not take out my phone to take pictures on the lake; I wanted to have a phone the next day. Thank you Epic Paddle Adventures for an epic encounter with nighttime paddling.
We took the idea of biking on this trip from our last tour in the Winter Garden area. It was near Christmas, and we thought Winter Garden was dressed up nicely for the occasion. We re-did several of the bike rides that we had done in and around the Winter Garden area at the end of 2023. Our last trip to the area is outlined in the blog: Biking the Central Florida Rail Trails. We were partial to peddling on the West Orange trail and biking in and around Winter Garden. We went for a bike ride every day. The weather was great, and the roads were good for our road bikes.
In our prior travels, we noted several pickleball courts in the area. We decided to learn so we could play in Florida. We had a blast playing together and will look to repeat the experience.
One of the things we cherish is to walk while holding hands. We took several walks. We found several places to go walking in the area.
Other Fun:
One of the benefits to the Orlando area for me was seeing my best man from the wedding. It was good to catch up with my brother and learn how he is getting ready to retire.
In one of the letters to my wife, I talked about looking forward to seeing sunrises and sunsets together. It did rain some, so, it was not always possible. However, we did have some good views from our balcony.
Once we arrived in Florida, we felt as if we were in a different world. Signs that warn about alligators and snakes are not common where I am from. Also, no snow was seen in Florida in the early springtime.
We stopped in the Charlotte area to visit our daughter and son-in-law on the way home from Florida. It was good to go for a few runs with my daughter and to see our daughter and son-in-law happy in their home. They only have about 37 years to go to catch up with us.
While in Cherryville, we took a tour of the Beam Truck Museum. Carolina Freight was one of the largest employers in Cherryville; its headquarters leaving town after it was purchased crippled the local economy for a while. The museum was very well done and the stories told by the guide made you think you were part of the company.
After we arrived back home, we went to see the trees start to blossom at the Boone County Arboretum. The heat in Florida felt to similar summer, so, we again changed seasons coming back to spring when we got home.
See you on the road.
Vermont is Green
We left a hot and humid Kentucky, where it had not rained for a few weeks, and traveled to Vermont, where we hoped the weather would be cooler. It was not. But it was green and it had rained. The green landscape was a big contrast to our brown lawn at home.
In telling a friend about the trip we had planned to Vermont, he remarked, “Well, at least it is flat.” I said he was incorrect and asked if he had heard about Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys from the Revolutionary War. Apparently, he missed that class.
Vermont is not flat. It has the Green Mountains. They are not in any way near the height of the Western State mountains, with a high point of Mount Mansfield 4,393 feet above sea level. Although we did not bike in the mountains, the terrain was still hilly as we climbed them on regular bikes. It was fun and hard work all at the same time. It did threaten to rain at the beginning of the bike trip, but the weather held out and we did not get too much rain while riding.
We participated in a self-guided bike tour in Vermont sponsored by VBT. It was a good set of daily rides, and the accommodations were wonderful. Every day we saw the Green Mountains or the Adirondack Mountains. We also rode to and from Lake Champlain. I was reminded of my travels to the Rocky Mountains as the views were great. We also saw farms and cows, as expected.
We stopped at the monument for Benedict Arnold and his Revolutionary War victory on Lake Champlain at Arnold Bay. It was good to read about this victory and see him in a positive light. Arnold is also talked about in the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum we visited (pictures near the end of this blog).
We learned in our orientation for the bike rides that the state animal of Vermont is the Morgan Horse. We had a stop at the farm on our first and last day of riding. I had to look it up and found that the Kentucky state animal is the gray squirrel. I had no idea we had a state animal, let alone what it could be.
My favorite day of riding and relaxing was the day at the Basin Harbor Resort. We had a charming bike ride along Lake Champlain and enjoyed kayaking on the lake. We were taken in by the beauty of the lake as well as the resort.
Our ride to the Basin Harbor Resort was a long and hilly ride on a hot (over 86 F) and humid day for Vermont. We rode over 45 miles and climbed over 2,000 feet of elevation gain.
We were part of a group; however, as it was a self-guided tour, we used Ride with GPS and were following the routes and prompts using that app. We frequently saw the other riders, although we did not ride with them as often as we had on our guided bike tours, which also used the Ride with GPS app. It was good to know that other riders were around. I would do a self-guided ride again since my riding buddy, my wife, likes these tours as well.
The scenery was amazing, besides the mountains. We enjoyed the open roads, not too much traffic, and the destinations.
Biking or Disc Golfing?
Before traveling to Vermont for this biking trip, I looked for ways to play some disc golf. Did you know that two of the top ten courses in the world are in Vermont? Prior to starting our bike tour, I was able to play them both as they are conveniently located at Smugglers’ Notch Resort. Adding to my fun, I also played Maple Hill in Massachusetts after the bike tour was over, allowing me to notch three of the top-ten disc golf courses in the world in one trip.
The first course I played was Brewster Ridge. It was not raining at the first tee box, but we got out raincoats as it began raining on the way to the second tee box, and rained for the rest of the 17. It was a great course, although I would have enjoyed a little less water. I made the most of the time I had to play this top course.
The next morning, I played the companion course, Fox Run Meadows, another top ten course. It was an excellent disc golf course. Fox Run was a little more open (less woods) and it was the day after all the rain, so I did enjoy the experience a little better. Fox Run does not have the cement or pavers for the tee pads.
It was quite a treat to for me to go out and play Maple Hill, one of the best courses in the world. One of the reasons this and the other courses I played on this trip are so good, is that for a player like me they are accessible. I played Maple Hill a few years ago with my son and we played the red, white, and blue option, rotating from easiest (red) to a harder (blue) configuration. Maple Hill and the other courses I played also have a professional level option, all on the same course, with some different configurations.
After reflecting on playing these top courses, one of the reasons they are so good is that I was able to play them well at my level of play. I can say I played the same course as the top touring professionals in Disc Golf. Each round was enjoyable because it was challenging for me but not impossible for me to play. For the record, I played all three of the top courses at the white (novice not beginner) levels. Next time I think I will have to play at the blue level.
I also played the Basin Harbor 9-hole course. I was happy to find disc golf at Basin Harbor, but this course will not make the top 100 anytime soon.
A highlight for me was spending time with our grandson. He loves to run, and we all did a lot of that with him. He also learned to fly a kite and play baseball with a tee.
We were able to spend time with two of our kids while visiting. We enjoyed walking in Providence, and having ice cream was a bonus for us.
Other fun
We rode through a covered bridge (twice) and got to view the Middlebury Falls from a big chair.
We were excited to see the Vermont Jazz Ensemble performing near our hotel at the Middlebury Festival on the Green and took advantage of learning a swing dance from the free lesson during the performance. We enjoyed dancing on the street in Middlebury.
Near the Basin Harbor Resort is the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. We arrived after the museum closed, but we were able to walk around the museum’s outside exhibits. Some in our group went through during the day and enjoyed the exhibits; I am sure we would have as well. I am glad they had so many outdoor exhibits open for us to explore.
We rode past a road sign about Silas Wright who was known for being from the area, although he was born in Massachusetts. This was a big monument and area. I learned about him reading the sign. He would be an important early figure forgotten to history for me if not for the sign we encountered.
I did some biking with friends in Kentucky prior to starting my bike adventure. It was good training to ride with a group of friends and tackle the hills near the Ohio River.
What a fun couple of July weeks. I was able to run, kayak, bike, and swim while away from home. I participated in the Red Legs 10K in Cincinnati in June as part of my preparation for the Big Ten 10K that I ran virtually in Middlebury in July on the first day of our bike rides. I should have chosen a flatter course for the Big Ten virtual 10K.
Our two hour kayacking cruise on Lake Champlain was just what we need to contrast with the bike riding. We did enjoy kayacking from Basin Harbor. We went a few miles, saw an island, enjoyed the breezes and perspective of being on water, so different from being on a bike.
I joined one of my sons and his training buddy for an early morning swim at the YMCA. It was a different experience for me as the pool was much wider than my normal pool. This event completed the weird vacation four sport activity of swimming, running, kayaking and biking.
Vermont has a “creature” called “Champ” and we were challenged to find Champ on our rides by our local host at the start of the biking adventure. We only “saw” bigfoot. We did come to learn that Champ was the sea monster of Lake Champlain and is like the Loc Ness Monster from Scotland.
See you on the road. And as the Basin Harbor sign says, try to have a little fun every day.
Bike Riding in Full Bloom
Imagine a whole countryside of farmers’ fields planted with tulip bulbs and all the colors. We saw acres and acres of tulips in full bloom as we biked along the northern two provinces of the Netherlands.
Besides the pretty tulip blooms, we enjoyed spending time with four other couples we had met on other bike rides. Thank you, Cecilia, for getting us all together. It was a lot of fun.
We were in the Netherlands as part of a bike and barge tour organized by VBT. We say to our friends and family who ask, the weather was cool and rainy, and it was windy from the North Sea. And, we enjoyed biking and exploring this beautiful country.
We wanted to be acclimated when the bike and barge tour began, so we went early. Our trip began in Den Haag (The Hague); we thoroughly enjoyed exploring the city on bike, foot, and tram. We also got out to see a little of the area around Den Haag.
One of my running buddies asked about the trip; when I told him we were starting at The Hague, he asked “Who plans to go there?” Den Haag was a perfect introduction to the Netherlands, and this was a good place to begin our visit. That is part of the beauty of the arranged travel. We would not have set out to see The Hague, but we are glad we visited and explored this place. We were joined with our friends Bonnie and Adam in biking and walking in The Hague and learned a little more about the Netherlands.
The national legislature and the Prime Minister work out of a giant complex in The Hague called the Binnenhof. The Binnenhof is under re-construction so we toured The Hague’s Historic Museum and learned the history and saw great pictures and models of the legislature in action.
This picture typifies our visit to the Netherlands. We were at the beach, so sandals were appropriate. Next to the sandals for sale you will notice wool hats and scarves. The temperature changes often, and it is windy and cold near the North Sea.
We made a side trip to Delft. Delft is known for the blue pottery, and we did see it quite a lot. Delft is a quaint town, and to an American tourist it looked perfect. This was one of the places that we had ice cream.
Other fun in The Hague:
All over The Hague we saw the iconic image of the “Girl with the Pearl.” We spent several hours touring the Mauritshuis art museum and saw the actual painting of the “Girl with the Pearl Earring.” The museum has a lot to offer, including the building itself as well as the Rembrandts and Vermeers. My tip: bring your ear buds to hear the narration from the app—I wish I had brought mine. One of the paintings was actively being restored.
We were sad to leave The Hague, with more to experience, yet excited to begin our biking and barge tour from Amsterdam. Once on board we were given a quick tour of our boat, assigned a room and got settled in for a ride to our first stop. We did a warm up short ride to ensure the bikes were all working and we understood the rules of the road, keeping in mind that there are more bikes than people in the Netherlands.
Thinking of Holland (we were in the provinces of North and South Holland, in the country of the Netherlands) I thought about tulips, windmills, and wooden shoes. One of our memorable stops was biking into Zaanse Schans, a living history museum with working windmills. We experienced a guide making a pair of wooden shoes and explaining why they are still in use today (and not just sold to tourists). We spent the night moored outside a windmill, and at the beginning of our next day’s ride we explored a working windmill that saws lumber.
For the tour, our group of 10 friends met up with our traveling companions, 14 more riders who were in country to celebrate Sue’s 85th birthday. We also had two wonderful guides. We did have a great time with the group, and it was good to meet our fellow riders. The weather was cold, rainy, and sometimes very windy. Greg, one of our friends, told us that 100 bad days make for 100 good stories. Regardless of the weather, we had a fun time biking in the Netherlands.
I did see a windmill daily and I am pretty sure we also saw tulips blooming every day as well. However, we did not see too many people walking in wooden shoes.
Tulip fields and bulb growing was everywhere. Imagine driving through Nebraska, Illinois, or Indiana, and instead of corn and wheat fields there are fields of red, pink, purple, and yellow flowers. As far as the eye could see, sometimes on both sides of the road, were fields of blooming tulips. What a site! We learned that the farmers were bulb farmers and cut off the flowers to help the bulbs grow. Still, these fields were part of the reason to come, and they did not disappoint.
One of the bike ride tours was to the Hortus Bulborum, a historic garden with thousands of varieties. We learned that the lovely two-color tulips have a virus. The growers now know how to eliminate that virus. But the multi-colored varieties were once highly prized in the tulip mania.
A highlight for us was biking to the Keukenhof gardens and seeing the annual two-month exhibit with more than 7 million bulbs on display. It was a terrific presentation; this was a showcase event for growers and distribution companies. It was not a museum. We were at the Keukenhof about 4 hours; it rained off and on. The crowd did not diminish. We heard they average about 10,000 visitors a day, rain, or shine, and we believe it. It was a spectacular view all of the colors.
Other Experiences:
Our barge tour ended in Amsterdam and we spent a few days after the barge tour walking around Old Amsterdam. We saw the highlights, and missed some as well. We had a fun time and enjoyed the beer at the Heineken experience.
We were fortunate to experience the Anne Frank house. It was a very moving tour, not to be missed. It can happen anywhere. Thank goodness that good people helped hide these families for as long as they could.
We did a cruise on the Amsterdam canals. We enjoyed them as a scenic backdrop on our walks though the old city. Amsterdam apparently has more canals than Venice.
We saw several museums, and could have visited several more. Each one was well done. You can find any interest and it likely has a museum somewhere in the Netherlands.
Lessons learned:
- I can ride at less than 55 degrees F, provided I have the proper clothing. We had packed appropriately for the biking experience.
- Traveling on a barge with a small group of dedicated bikers is fun. Riding in a hailstorm and a strong wind is not fun, and I do not have to continue riding after reaching a natural resting point.
- A biking tour and a walking tour after arriving off the plane is a good way to be acclimated to the new city.
- Ferry crossings are a good way to cross the water. The Netherlands is full of water. It is amazing the amount of land reclaimed from the water. We began several bike rides at less than sea level.
- We took more than one ferry across a canal or river, always, it seemed, bringing us back to tulip fields.
A country with a tradition of biking everywhere is a good place to share the road. Land is at a premium. The bike lanes were sometimes marked. We rode on some bike paths. There are more bikes than people in the Netherlands, so the country knows about biking. This is an example of a typical two-way road. Some have canals on both sides. As you can see, there is not a lot of room.
We were sad to leave the Netherlands. All good things eventually have an end. Seeing Amsterdam at the end of our travel was a good way for us to say goodbye to the Netherlands.
See you on the road.
Biking the Central Florida Rail Trails
An ideal way to spend a few days at the beginning of December is biking on Central Florida’s rail trail system. Our guide told us that Central Florida, back in the day, was where the money was made; timber and other material were transported out of Central Florida. The rich and powerful were not at the beach, they were in the center of the state where the natural resources were located. As the state has migrated to a population near the coast and the natural resources (like timber) are not as important, the railways have been reclaimed for biking, hiking, running and walking. We will want to go back and ride some of them again in the future.
We began our Charleston Bicycle Tour riding near Inverness, Florida, on the Withlacoochee State Trail. We rode from near the town to the end of the trail. The trail was well marked and maintained. We rode to the end of the trail (Mile 46) at Gulf Junction with two other couples before turning back for a great day out in the warm weather.
The second day we also went on the Withlacoochee State Trail, in the opposite direction. I wanted to go play disc golf and needed to go back to Inverness and ended up going a few miles out of my way. Whispering Pines Park is a good park in Inverness. Unfortunately, we encountered a little road construction and, due to my lack of planning, my bike computer took us unexpectantly on the park’s trail system.
Due to my desire to play disc golf, off the trail, we rode a little longer than the rest of the group and farther than we set out to do in the morning when we left.
We were transported from Inverness to the Oakland and Winter Gardens area of Central Florida for the rest of our week-long biking adventure.
Our first ride after Inverness was on the General James A. Van Fleet State Trail. We drove to the trailhead and were picked up at the other end of the trail. This is a paved bike (multi-use) path though the greenways. The website calls it “one of Florida’s most rural, paved rail-trails.” We talked with a biker who said he lived in the swamp. There were a few entrances near the trail.
On this ride I saw (I did not stop to take a picture) for the first time a “beware of alligators” sign along the trail. We did see some wildlife along the way, but thankfully we did not see any alligators on the path. After our ride we had lunch at the Lakeland BBQ Company. It was delicious. A few of our fellow riders had the “couch potato” which looked great; if I go back, I will plan to order that after a 30-mile bike ride.
We spent our last few days biking on the West Orange Trail and some of the connectors. We stayed in Oakland, Florida, and biked as well as drove to Winter Garden. Winter Garden was the focus for our meals, and we had good ones. We enjoyed the Christmas lights all over Winter Garden as well as in Oakland’s square that intersected the bike path. We walked along the path, ran on the path, and biked on the path. We did ride our bikes to both ends of the West Orange Trail.
Being December, even in Florida, not every day began warm enough to bike (our “requirement” is 55 degrees). But we biked anyway! We enjoyed the biking more as the day went on and the temperature warmed up. We enjoyed our cool start on several beautiful weather days. The trail was wide and well maintained. The Van Fleet Trail had very few intersections; it was a faster pace than the West Orange trail which had more frequent intersections.
We did like Apopka Station and the park nearby. Central Florida in December likes to decorate. We enjoyed the big park decorations and all the festive lights we saw along the path (even in the daylight) as we rode along.
We stayed in the Oakland Manor. It is near Lake Apopka. We were able to walk onto the pier at the lake and look at the scenery. We only saw glimpses of alligators in the lake and none on the street. The area is beautiful.
One of my favorite rides was the second disc golf adventure, which was planned better. I rode the West Orange Trail to the end at Killarney Station. Then took the South Lake Trail (it just merged into it). The South Lake Trail had some hills. We were surprised at this different trail feature as the week’s trails and our impression of Florida is that it is mostly flat. The hills were not that big and did not present any issues for us to ride up or down. The South Lake Trail got confusing; I am glad I had a map open on my phone telling me which way to go. I was headed to Lake Hiawatha, and around Lake Minneola to play a round of disc golf before biking back 15 miles to lunch at Winter Garden. It was less confusing going back, but I still used the app on my phone to keep me on track with the directions.
Other Fun:
I was able to bike to two different disc golf courses. The first one was hard to find from the bike path near Inverness (and I started in the wrong direction). The Whispering Pines course was very technical and it did not look as well used as some of the other courses I have played.
The Champions Pointe course in Lake Hiawatha Park was a well laid out (long) course in a beautiful park. Several others were playing on the day I visited. With only two discs, I had fun and spoke to several other disc golfers along the course.
My brother and sister-in-law live in the Orlando area and we were happy to spend time with them before our bike trip began.
We did see a peacock on the West Orange Trail at a Dunkin Donuts parking lot. So, all of America and its peacocks must run on Dunkin?
We biked over 180 miles on the trip, averaging over 37 miles biking a day. It was a fun week of biking; we will come again with our road bikes and enjoy the wonderful Central Florida rail trails.
See you on the road.
Creeping Along the Virginia Creeper Trail
We are still biking, just not as much this year as in past years. We took a trip to Virginia to ride on the Virginia Creeper trail. We were planning on riding with a group on this trip. Unfortunately, that group trip was cancelled. So, we decided we could have some fun on our own and enjoy the trail ourselves.
After arriving in Virginia, we were struck by all the “Love” signs around. Apparently, the big marketing campaign for Virginia is that “Virginia is for lovers.” We did enjoy the many “LOVE” sculptures along the roads and towns.
We stayed in the town of Abington. The locals told me that it has more restaurants per person than any other town in the USA. It was a pretty town and we did not go hungry. We were happy to stay in Abington for our trip to the Creeper Trail.
We ended up walking all over Abington, up and down main street as well as on some of the side streets. However, our main attraction was to bike the Creeper Trail. They have a nice welcome center just outside of the trailhead in Abington as well as a visitors center in town.
We had a good day of biking from Abington and then back from Damascus. We had glorious weather. There were not too many people on the trail. It was almost impossible to get lost as the trail was well marked and maintained. On our long bike ride we had an enjoyable lunch at the Wicked Chicken in Damascus.
About halfway to Damascus was the old railway stop called Alvarado Station. It was picturesque. It was a good place to stop and reflect how the countryside has changed.
Damascus was a good destination for our ride and were happy to have a spot to stop on our ride, about mile 15 from Abington along the trail.
The ride is a good one on a crushed gravel trail. We did not bring our road bikes because of the crushed gravel. Renting bikes worked out well for us. I enjoyed the many bridges that we came across, all numbered and well maintained. Some had a story to tell. Most were picturesque as well as functional.
We did pass through a few farms with gates. I am sure the gates keep in the livestock. I do not see many gates on rail trails. It is a testament to how long it has been since the train came through.
The engine used to pull the coal car and the lumber is on display at the start of the Creeper Trail in Abington. It was restored and looked in fine shape. One of the stories on the trail name is that the train crept along at a slow pace due to the curves and grades on the path.
Other fun:
We spent a day hiking into the Channels State Forest
We enjoyed a well-done rendition of “Clue” at Barter Theatre in Abington.
I was able to play disc golf at the Virginia Highlands Community College.
We managed to bike, walk, and run on the Creeper Trail. It is a joy to see things differently as we all have a different pace we go while walking, biking, or running.
We got back home in time to participate in the first annual Luther Run. We finished first in our age groups for the 5k. A fun time.
See you on the road for our next travel adventure.
Novelty and Reality, I will try not to repeat the same story again…
The kids are back in school, and as was the case when I was a child, I wanted to report on what we have been doing this year since our travel to New Zealand. We have repeated many of the same travels in 2023 as we did in 2022. My family is in the same places. As we visit these places, I will point out a few new sights along the way as well as a few favorites. We have been to Massachusetts and Rhode Island as well as to North Carolina. One such change was running a half marathon with my two oldest in Providence this year.
We were able to celebrate Christmas with our grandson and his birthday (two already!).
Visiting Block Island, which is part of Rhode Island, was a new experience for us. It was a nice day to walk the beach and bike around the island. Happy that one of our sons took the day off to enjoy the adventure with us on the Island.
We did learn about fog warnings. The boat taking us to the island used a fog horn several times. We were safe and enjoyed the island. I was pleased to stop in the visitor’s center and receive a discount on the rental bikes. We also received good information on where to go and what to see at the center.
After the sun came out and the fog cleared, we had a satisfying bike ride, including riding to all four points of the compass on the island. At the end of our ride, we enjoyed some ice cream before going back to the harbor and turning in the bikes. All in all, a good day at the beach and on an island.
The way to and from our house to visit family in Massachusetts and Rhode Island is through Pennsylvania. We have gone several ways, including going though Erie, PA, the most northern edge, and taking I-76 on the southern route as well as I-80 through the heart of the commonwealth.
As we get older, we cannot drive straight through (like our kids sometimes do) for a 15-hour (not including stopping) car ride. We break it up. Where to stop in Pennsylvania is a planning challenge; it can be fun to think about alternative stops in the state.
We often take a different route home than we did on the way to Massachusetts. I have a friend who lives near Wilkes-Barre, not too far out of our way. It helps to have a place to spend the night. He and I recently stopped at Ricketts Glen State Park for a hike before continuing home for me. It was beautiful to hike, and had so many waterfalls. I am not sure I would have ever stopped at this park without Rob pointing it out for me. In reading about this park, it was slated to become a National Park before the Depression era budget cuts and WWII began heating up. Pennsylvania has turned this into a magnificent and underappreciated park.
We stopped to hike here in July as well, but we did not make it back to the car before the rain came. Fortunately, we had a set of dry clothes in the car.
I ran the Great Appalachian Valley 10K, which also counted for my virtual Big Ten 10K run. As we were driving to Massachusetts, we enjoyed the Shippensburg campus and the disc golf courses. The Great Appalachian Valley run was small (about 250 runners); we were happy that we could all start early even though we were running on a rail trail. It worked out great for us.
We have been back to North Carolina visiting our newlywed couple. Again, a fun trip and not too much new. We did get a family trip to one of the Charlotte area disc golf courses.
Other repeated travel this year has been to visit my mom and my in-laws as well as family and friends along the way.
Other fun:
Traveling on holidays can be interesting. We were in Pennsylvania for Valentine’s Day and had a great meal out; and I spent the day (in the car) with my lovely wife. Even more creative, on Christmas day we had dinner in the hotel in Pennsylvania, as all the restaurants are closed on Christmas day. My wonderful wife planned ahead, so we had all the trimmings for a fancy dinner in the lobby, alone. It was great.
I participated (a repeated story) in the Tri-State Running Group. This year the Frozen 5k went off as planned. The Heart Mini was cold but provided the right distance training (a 15k run) as we prepared for the half-marathon. We had several runs in and around Cincinnati with the running group.
As part of my training for the Providence half-marathon, I was able to do a training run in Providence. It was an eight-mile preview of the half-marathon course. This is a similar process that my running group was doing in Cincinnati on their half-marathon course. It was only 11 degrees when we started, but it was my opportunity to train and experience running on the Providence course.
I ran the Red’s Run, a 10K as part of my training that benefits the Cincinnati Red’s Foundation. This run made my training schedule to get ready for the 10K in July.
I played disc golf at a few new courses (for me). My favorite from my recent travels though Pennsylvania is the Faylor Lake DiscGolfPark. This is the top-rated free disc golf course in the world according to the 2023 UDisc ratings. I agree.
I did get to play the number one UDisc course in the world, Maple Hill. Based on my game, I decided to move up from Red (easy course) to White (moderately difficult course) and when I did, I was so excited to see that I was already playing well at the next level on this course. I needed to move up. I am not yet ready for the next two harder levels on this course.
We were able to visit friends as well on our travels. It is wonderful to reconnect with friends in person.
The summer means bikes, and we took our bikes to Massachusetts. We enjoyed (again) the ride to Dighton Rock and the East Bay trail in Rhode Island.
We spent the evening at the Old Silver Beach on Falmouth (Cape Cod). The water was refreshing and we got to see our oldest play ultimate Frisbee while we played with our grandson.
Lessons learned:
We have choices on what road to travel, flying or by car. It is important to explore alternative options. In May, on the way home from Massachusetts, I stopped at a disc golf course at a brewery and picked up some tasty beer. It is a better experience to be open to the possibilities.
See you on the road.
New Zealand—land of the long white cloud—Part 2
Part one of this two-part blog describes our adventure on New Zealand’s North Island. This blog tells the story of our South Island biking and hiking tour. We began by flying from Auckland to Christchurch. It is so much easier to fly within a country than into a country.
For part of my adventure, I got in a few rounds of disc golf in between the hiking and biking and managed to play four courses on the South Island. I also ran in a few of our locations enjoying areas that we explored biking or hiking. The planned tour took us to great hotels and showed us wonderful sights on the South Island.
We could have stayed longer at each location we visited on the South Island. Because it stays lighter later in the day in summer (AKA January!), we were able to visit attractions later in the evening. We biked though the Mona Vale Garden Park on our bike ride around Christchurch, and it was near our hotel. So, after dinner (it was light until after 9:30!) we walked over to the Mona Vale Garden Park. Wow! The following group of pictures was taken at about 9 PM local time, when the park closes to vehicle traffic.
We took advantage of our outdoor time in Christchurch and enjoyed the city. We were impressed with Hagley Park, one of the largest city parks in the world. I thought it needed a disc golf course. We did enjoy the Botanical gardens in the park.
Some of the tour members were going back to Christchurch after the tour to stay there for a month. We were envious of their extra time in this beautiful city. From Christchurch we took an open train ride to the mountains on the TranzAlpine Kiwi Rail to Arthur’s Pass. I had never been on one of these trains with large windows and a glass ceiling. The views on the train ride were breathtaking; we are happy to have taken this route to get our first experience in the Southern Alps. We got off the train at Arthur’s Pass and were driven to the west coast to begin biking.
We enjoyed biking and hiking in the west country of the South Island.
We were introduced to the beach town of Hokitika, and we were able to enjoy the Tasman Sea waves from our room.
Near Hokitika we began a bike ride from Lake Kaniere. The lake was a great backdrop as we got our riding instructions and options for the day ahead.
We enjoyed the quaint town of Franz Josef (population about 300 with over 2,000 rooms for rent) to see the Franz Josef Glacier. The scenery here was lovely and we got some great views of the Southern Alps on the western part of the South Island. We hiked, played their 9-hole disc golf course, and ran. I also took a helicopter ride to walk on the glacier.
When you are in a helicopter for the first time, like I was, you do not have a perspective on size. The pilot pointed out to us our landing area and all the people already out. In the picture I took, you must look closely to see where we are going to land and the other tiny helicopters in the distance.
Two helicopters here
Look closely for the two helicopters just over the “O” and “S”
I was happy to get out and walk on Fox Glacier. After walking around, I thought to myself, I have done kata on the beach, so why not try it on the glacier. It was not pretty, as the ice made it slippery and the marks from others’ feet made the surface uneven. Still, this was my first-time doing kata on a glacier, and it was fun.
Near the Southern Alps we took in the Lake Matheson hiking trail. We had a wonderful lunch after our hike. At one point on the hike, they displayed a postcard of New Zealand and it was exactly our view. This was a great spot for a bike ride and then a hike. My phone camera does not do justice to the view of Mount Cook and Mount Tasman reflecting off the water.
I did not think about rain forests or wilderness in New Zealand. We appreciated that our tour took us to the Wilderness Lodge at Lake Moeraki on the west coast of the South Island. We enjoyed the penguin signs. Because it was summer, we did not see any penguins.
We learned about some of the plants in the wilderness and were excited to see Koru, the Māori word for a loop or coil, a spiral shape based on the appearance of a new unfurling silver fern frond. We were introduced to this symbol by our walking tour guide in Auckland. We saw it in several places as we hiked the countryside.
After saying a fond farewell to the Wilderness Lodge, we made our way back into civilization. One of our first stops was the breathtaking Mount Aspiring National Park. The park is named for Mt. Aspiring, one of New Zealand’s highest peaks, which we were able to see on our hike. We were taking the Haast Pass back to the east side of the South Island and stopped to hike.
We enjoyed our hike to see the Blue Pools on the Makarora River. We laughed at the signs that limited the number of people on the bridges over the pools and marveled at how many people were using the pools and even jumping off bridges into the pools. The two-mile hike was beautiful; we were happy that our guides took us to see this amazing site.
We noticed along our journey that just stopping along the road provided a wonderful view of the surrounding area. Here we are looking at the top of Lake Wanaka from the highway leading into Wanaka prior to our bike ride—just outside of Mount Aspiring National Park.
After enjoying a day at Lake Wanaka, we hiked to Lismore Park for some disc golf and enjoyed ice cream on our way to play. It was twilight as we strolled back to our hotel along Lake Wanaka from Lismore Park. Such a pretty area! It is nice that it is light so late here in summer. January and late nights are a new concept for us.
Our last big hike in New Zealand was almost eight miles from Lake Wanaka with the tour group to Glenduh Bay. The hike is along Lake Wanaka. We had great views of the lake all along the route. We were also passed a few times by experienced mountain bikers on the trail. I would not have been comfortable biking on this hiking path.
Other Fun:
Our group leaders taught us to sing a Māori song. The tour group leaders brought in a Māori warrior. He greeted us with the traditional Haka performance and we were able to respond (apparently appropriately as friend) with our Māori song.
We visited Arrowtown and enjoyed walking in and around this historic town. It was good to get out and see the town. We did not stop and pan for gold. We did find some great merino wool items to take back with us. I also had another cup of the flat white coffee.
Prior to getting on our 14-hour flight home, I was able to get in one last disc golf round at the Queenstown Gardens. What a lovely setting for a public disc golf course. The Lake Wakatipu in the background was delightful. We would have liked to have spent a few more hours of viewing the gardens prior to our flight.
Lessons Learned:
Looking back on our travels, I learned that a smaller island, like New Zealand was the just right size for us. We left a lot of area in New Zealand unexplored. We loved the places we visited and the people we met.
We would like to come back to New Zealand. January was a good time to travel to this side of the world.
New Zealand—land of the long white cloud
In my thoughts about big travel, I have dreamed about going to Australia with no idea why or what I would do when I got there. On our last bike travel to the Golden Isles of Georgia, another couple in the group mentioned going to New Zealand and how much fun they had. When we got home, we looked it up and we booked the VBT biking and hiking tour of New Zealand.
Was traveling to New Zealand the trip of my lifetime? I am not sure, but it was a great time. I do know for sure I would like to go back.
We really liked the tour and believe we received the experiences we were looking for when we signed up. The scenery was even better than I could have imagined and the pictures do not do them justice. Also, we had a fun group, good guides, and wonderful accommodations. It did rain, and it did not dampen our experiences one bit!
Here are a few things I learned about New Zealand.
- It is a big country, but it was just right for a few weeks of exploring. We saw the Pacific Ocean on the east coast and the Tasman Sea on the west coast.
- New Zealand has rain forests, tall mountains, friendly people, and beautiful scenery of almost all descriptions.
- In January, summer in the southern hemisphere was in full force. We picked a good time to visit. However, we did discover that from late December (Christmas) until almost mid-January the country is on holiday. We were fortunate enough to arrive as the country was getting back into the new year.
- Not too many bugs, but sand flies or fleas can sometimes be bad near the water. Fortunately, the wind kept them mostly away from us.
- With flightless birds, natural predators were non-existent before the introduction of small animals intended for food or companionship, including cats and dogs. Dogs are discouraged on trails that may have flightless birds (like Kiwis) on them.
- I cannot wait to go back and enjoy another trip during summer in New Zealand.
There was a lot I did not know about New Zealand, prior to signing up for our travel. New Zealand is an island country consisting of two main landmasses—the North Island and the South Island. We knew that in New Zealand they drive on the “other side” of the road. We did not know that New Zealand has three official languages, English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language. We knew about English. Māori is from the native Polynesian roots and is being re-introduced. We learned a few phrases on our journey as well as song taught to us by our guides.
What I did know prior to signing up for the journey is that it is summer in the southern hemisphere when it is winter where I live. I wanted to go to an English-speaking country where my language skills would help me get along on the travels just fine.
In hindsight, I had on my “bucket list” going to Australia. I am glad we instead chose New Zealand. Australia sounds like an exotic, yet still English-speaking destination. New Zealand fit this thought as well with a bonus bike tour and the Lord of the Rings dramatic scenery within a limited amount of geography.
New Zealand has a lush countryside due to the frequency and amounts of rainfall it receives. We rock bright yellow rain or wind jackets (they look the same in the pictures) because we were on a bike tour and the color is visible. We did not take that much luggage and are seen in the same outfits for most of our pictures.
We landed on New Zealand’s North Island and spent our first few days in Auckland. We did our best to see all of Auckland and could have spent a little longer exploring this city.
We did an e-bike ride in Auckland on our first day in town. It was a good way to defeat jet lag from our 16-hour flight. The leader of the Power to the Pedal! gave us a GPS animation of our ride: https://www.relive.cc/view/vdvm3YxK8N6. We really enjoyed the ride, and as Auckland has several hills, the e-bikes were a good call.
We enjoyed walking around Auckland and hiked over 10 miles on a guided hike from Domain Park. What an enjoyable garden and path from Domain Park back to the city center. I was encouraged by our guide to try, and I enjoyed, the “flat white” hot coffee. If you get to New Zealand, and you like coffee, you should give it a try.
We satisfied my need to see the Shire in the middle of the North Island. I knew that parts of the movies (The Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit) were filmed in New Zealand. I can see why the site we visited was selected for representing Hobbiton. As part of my journey, I re-read the Hobbit; after our visit to the Hobbiton movie set, I can see it come to life. If you are a fan of the books or the movies, or have never given them a thought, the visit to the Hobbiton movie set was wonderful. As part of our tour, we had lunch, just outside of the Green Dragon Inn. It was very festive and tasty. We took advantage of our visit to the Shire in the middle of New Zealand.
I did get a few runs in while in Auckland. I appreciated the rainbow after the morning rain. Also, I did a run in the mist and enjoyed the downtown overhanging protection while I ran.
We liked the many parks in Auckland. I was able to “play” disc golf in Domain Park. The only disc golf courses nearby were object courses. So, just playing in the park was the same as playing on an object course where you aim for trees, rocks, or other features of the area.
It was still just after Christmas in mid-January when we visited Auckland. We were surprised that the boxing day (December 26) sales were still on almost 3 weeks later.
We really enjoyed our visit to the North Island and Auckland. We concluded this part of the journey with a trip to the airport to start our biking and hiking tour of the South Island. That is part two of the blog.
Retirement Travel with Glen 