The Double Lake Loop

Lake Monona hugs one side of the isthmus.

  I needed 48 miles to reach 1,000.  I hoped to do it in one ride and hopefully complete it while it was still comfortable to be on a bike.

 

 Saturday was cool - highs in the low 50s - but it is mid-October so any day with sun is a nice autumn day. 

 As I thought of my various trips around Dane County, I was sure a ride around the two major lakes would get me close to 48.

 I got on the Ice Age trail in Verona, headed up the Military Ridge trail until it met the Southwest Commuter path, then joined the Capital City trail south until it joined the Lake loop around Lake Monona.

Looking west by the Tenney Park lock and light.

I stayed on that until it crossed the Yahara River where I pedaled along the river on a path into
Tenney Park.

There I headed east on Sherman, into the community of Maple Bluff around the east side of Lake Mendota.  When I paused to take pictures of the lake I noticed quite a few white caps on the water which indicated there was west wind in my future.

After making the turn west on County M, I stopped for a candy bar (Twix) at Kwik Trip and removed the gloves and hat for the rest of the ride.

You can see why it is Maple Bluff.

 When I usually take this trip it's earlier in the day.  That makes a difference when riding two or three miles on the paved shoulder of County M with cars moving at highway speed.  

 Dane County has started work on a path for pedestrians and bikes but it is several years from completion.  Where a trail was available, I got off the main road.

 In Middleton, I cut down a road which connected me to Gammon Road in Madison and a fairly straight-shot back home.  

 

When I re-joined the Ice Age trail heading to Verona I needed just a couple more miles to hit my goal, so I bypassed the turn for home, adding two and a half miles before getting off in front of my garage.  The ride's total mileage, 48.5.

According to my records, that pushes me past 1,000 for the first time since 2020 and only the second time since I resumed riding years ago.  Most of my rides are on weekends, so while I usually take longer routes, I don't ride enough of them to stack up the miles.  This year it was nice to do both, if the weather cooperates, maybe I can add a few more miles to the total before my bike season ends.

All photos by David Mossner, October 15, 2022.