Week Six - Day One

TIME THERE: 24 min.
TIME BACK: 25 min.
WEATHER: clear, -1C, 6 km/hr wind there; clear, 9C, 15 km/hr wind back.
WHAT I WORE: yoga pants, turtleneck, waterproof shell, cotton gloves (gloves in panniers on the way home)
NOTES:

Oh, the wondrous things I see
On my early-morning bike journey!

I'm a poet, and I know it. This morning I woke up late, as I forgot to reset my alarm to my usual time after setting it late for my car-commute on Friday. I ended up leaving the house 15 minutes later than usual, and I pedaled fiercely with the intent of making up for some of that lost time (as you can see, I broke to 25 min. barrier, but not by much!). But the sights - my God! Travelling east along the northern bank of the river valley, I looked out across the valley and saw a massive fog settled in, filling a 150 ft. depth of steep river bank into the valley. Crossing the valley along the High Level Bridge, the south end of the bridge was under heavy fog cover and I biked through the fog as though entering an alternate universe. Passing cyclists and pedestrians materialized out of nowhere mere feet before me, and I couldn't tell where the bridge would make its incline towards the end ahead. For lack of a better description, it was so COOL!

When I got to the stairs at the end of the bridge, where I dismount and walk my bike up, I was alarmed to discover the wooden planks were covered with slippery frost, challenging both the bike tires and my shoes to catch a grip on the icy surface. Egads! This is a sign of things to come! I'm glad the roads aren't made of wooden planks, but I also know that someday even the rough surface of the roads will be as slippery as this. Warning heeded: caution will be very necessary in the coming months.

When I got onto campus a pudgy, fluffy rabbit hopped along beside me for a little while, and I had to smile to myself. Biking through the alternative universe of the fog, riding beside a bunny and getting a Snow White-style feeling of oneness with nature: these are the things I don't see, don't feel, don't experience when I drive. This is why I love biking.