tom and i have been searching for a new place to go bike camping. we found one that was super close to home. they were all booked so tom and i decided that we would just ride out there and check it out. when we got of the bart train in pleasenton it was HOT, like blazing hot!! i have never applied so much sunscreen in my life and i am happy to report that it paid off, neither of us got at all burnt!!
the way there was pretty easy, lots of bike lanes (
yay!!) and it was pretty much flat,
or so we thought.... since it was so hot out we took a few breaks one being at this awesome little fruit stand, where we refueled on ice cold water and the yummiest yellow nectarines i haven had in a while.
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| to the left you can see the road going down, that is where we were coming from and we weren't half way up! |
the moment we mentioned how awesome and flat the ride was, it got crazy!!!! and i mean super crazy! we were almost to the lake and the last oh, 4 miles was up hill! it was bananas and on top of that it was about 91 degrees and no shade! the road we were on was part of the tour de california which is a bike tour that just happened about a couple months ago. the part of the ride we were on is called king of the mountain which is one of the hardest rides and whoever gets to the top of the hill first wins a prize. we both kinda felt like rock stars but sweaty tired rock stars.
we got to the lake, refueled on some homemade veggie sandwiches, and of course a push pop and preceded to have a kick-ass time at the lake. the water was pretty much perfect except for a slight breeze but other then that it was awesome. we listened to npr and did a few puzzles and really really enjoyed each others company. it was flippin' fantastic and so hard to get back on gilbert because the way out was worse then the way in....yea.
it was the most fun we have had on gilbert for a while. it is always nice to find a new place to ride to and plus ending in a lake is pretty much awesome because it is such a perfect reward for busting up that huge ass hill! now i have a nice little tan, toned legs and a great memory of a truly rewarding day!
xo,
cb
