Wednesday, November 3, 2010

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Wyatt and I ride out from Ramal Rd to meet up with the group at Moore’s Landing on Cuttings Wharf Rd in Napa. Free public parking and restrooms are available.

The ride starts off with Jeffrey leading us to the public trail on Stanly Crossroad and Stanley Lane that goes through Stanly Ranch Vineyards. Riding through the vineyard is great; there’s no car traffic!

The trail ends at the intersection with Hwy 121/12. We make a quick right and another left onto Hwy 121. Riding along the wide shoulder of Hwy 121 is not too bad even though cars are zipping by at a pretty fast speed. Bicyclists must exit the Hwy at Imola Ave.

Continuing east on Imola takes us through the busy sections of Napa. We cross over Maxwell Bridge to Soscol Ave/Hwy 221. Staying on Imola takes us pass Napa State Hospital and through some residential areas. From Imola, we take 4th Ave to Coombsville Rd. We’re now riding around the back roads with plenty of vineyards and ranches along the way. We continue on 2nd Ave to North Ave and 3rd Ave. We pass several vineyards, wineries and the Napa Valley Country Club before taking the turn on Hagen Rd to Vichy Ave. On Atlas Peak Rd, we roll pass the Silverado Country Club and Resort with its manicured lawn and topiaries. The final turn on Hardman Ave drops us to Silverado Trail.

We reach the lunch stop at the Soda Canyon Store which is right off of Silverado Trail. Water and restrooms are available. Sandwiches, soups, salads, burritos and a variety of cold deli items are served at the back counter. There are plenty of knickknacks for sale too. They also provide customers with a nice picnic area at the back of the store.

After lunch, we continue on Silverado to Oak Knoll Ave. We cross Hwy 29 to Solano Ave and then it’s a quick right turn on Orchard Ave to Dry Creek Rd. From there we ride through the residential areas on Redwood Rd and Browns Valley Rd.

There is a frozen yogurt stop at the Browns Valley Shopping Center. The flavors of the day are Pumpkin Cheesecake, Chocolate and Vanilla & Cream and one more flavor that I can’t remember. Water and restrooms are available. Thanks to Wyatt for treating me to a kiddie Chocolate frozen yogurt!

We continue on Thompson Ave to Congress Valley Rd. The changing colors of the vines are beautiful! It provides for a wonderful back drop to our ride. There a few small climbs and rollers as we continue on Buhman Ave to Henry Rd and Dealy. The turn on Old Sonoma Rd takes us to Hwy 121 for a short bit.

The next turn on Cuttings Wharf Rd takes us back to Moore’s Landing.

Wyatt and I continue back on Cuttings Wharf to Las Amigas Rd, Duhig and Ramal Rd. The scenery is absolutely gorgeous; I just love it out here during this time of year!

Thanks to Jeffrey for leading another wonderful fall ride! The weather and riding companions were great!

30+ people in attendance with 2 tandems

Original route: 35 miles with 1140′ of elevation gain

Extended route: 53 miles with 1764′ of elevation gain

Weather: FABULOUS! Sunny and warm. Starting temp of 71 reaching a high of 79

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>LIFE IS GREAT!>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>