In Which I Seem Near My Goal

Dec. 19--Cedar Lake sunset, rode by lake on one of the nice December afternoons.

I don’t want to jinx it, but as of Dec. 19, I have ridden just about 3,293 miles this year—just 7 miles short of my 3,300-mile goal.

It’s been a weird December—in the pattern of November, it’s been mostly dry and unusually warm, although it also featured a few very cold days where full winter regalia was called for.

December is a very busy month, so squeezing miles in has been a challenge—but again, it appears I may soon reach my biking goal, so I can’t complain.

One reason was a fine ride in Des Moines. My youngest son who lives there is traveling to California with his wife and son to be with her family over the holidays, and we drove to Des Moines Dec. 14 to pick up their dog, who is staying with us for about two weeks.

He’s very big, but not, knock on wood, not a lot of work so far—we feed him and walk him and play a bit with him and he seems content. While his family is on vacation in California, he gets to be on vacation with us.

Dec. 14--Des Moines ride.

Anyway, we made a day of it. We drove to Des Moines in the morning, ate a late breakfast at a very fine diner there. In the afternoon, after the grandson’s nap, the plan was to play at a park. It was, in this warm December, one of the nice days, and my daughter-in-law and I decided to ride bikes to the park, while my son, wife and grandson drove there.

It turned out to be a ride of a bit more than 9 miles on a very fine afternoon. At first, we rode north through relatively quiet residential streets, and then met a bike trail that snakes along the south bank of one of the rivers in Des Moines. We turned east. In the distance, we could see the skyline of downtown and then the state Capitol, but the trail had a nice country feel to it, and the last few miles literally felt like a countryside ride along a pretty river valley.

Our goal was a playground at Easter Lake. We got there, we played for a while, and considered riding the 9 miles back—but it was December, days are short, and light was going to fade soon. One disadvantage of a country trail in Iowa is that when it gets dark, it’s very, very dark, and there would be no moon to help. Well, the drivers had brought a bike rack with them, just in case, and thus we put the bikes on the car, all squeezed in and rode back.

Dec. 14--My son's and daughter-in-law's bikes--my son let me borrow his--parked at Easter Lake Park. Grandson has a big smile for grandpa, too.

It was a pleasant ride. Not the longest of the month for me, as I did ride a 15.5-mile route on Dec. 9—but I really enjoyed the Des Moines trail and look forward to more visits on two wheels to Iowa’s capital city.

The final week of the semester at the university where I teach featured the taste of winter. There were mornings in the 20s where the windchill approach single digits. It was indeed cold, but the afternoons weren’t as bad, and with long underwear, warm boots and multiple layers, I found I could handle the commute, although I’m pretty sure I would not have wanted any longer rides on those days.

Today, we had an out-of-town commitment, which is a shame because it was again one of the unseasonably warm, sunny days. So no miles. Rain is coming—Christmas for us won’t be white, bur rather wet. Still, I’m hopeful to get in the few remaining miles, maybe, weather willing, on Thursday.

We’ll see. Still, it’s been a good December to be a biker in Iowa, and I’m closing in on my goal with a week and a half left in the month. That’s nice.

Miles so far this year: 3,292.97. As of Dec. 19 (I did not ride Dec. 20, as I noted), for the month: 116.16.

Map of the longest ride and more images from December rides:

Dec. 9--the longest ride.

Dec. 19--Passing Christmas lights on the way home.

Dec. 19--Another look at Cedar Lake.

Dec. 19--On colder days, mostly rode mountain bike, but today, rode the road bike. Parked at campus.

Dec. 19--Another view of the Christmas lights seen on ride home.

Dec. 19--Geese at Cedar Lake.

Dec. 12--Frosty morning at C Avenue Pond, one of the cold days.

Dec. 12--Grey and cool on bike ride home, but swing by Cedar Lake. They are a bit distant, so I'm not 100 percent, but I think three juvenile eagles were fishing.

Dec. 8--Deer by Boyson Trail on warm day.

Dec. 8--More deer by trail.

Dec. 8--Mountain bike on Boyson Trail.