Sunday, July 28, 2013
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Today we’re getting together with other COGS member to ride the Tour de Kitsap; a 73 mile ride around the rural towns of the north Kitsap Peninsula and Kitsap County with strawberry shortcake waiting for you at the end. This event is organized by West Sound Cycling Club.
The fare for the ferry ride from Seattle to Bremerton is $7.70 (other discounts may apply if eligible) plus a $1.00 bicycle surcharge. Bicyclists using a multi-ride card are exempt from the surcharge. Arrive 15-20 minutes before departure time to be loaded prior to the vehicle loading process. There are no bike racks; they can be hooked on or strapped to the yellow side railings of the boat.
We begin with a short ride along the Elliot Bay Trail and Alaskan Way to the Seattle Ferry Terminal from a parking lot across from Pier 90. Other COGS members arrive as we wait for the arrival of the ferry.
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The hour long ferry ride to Bremerton is very enjoyable and scenic with views of Seattle’s skyline, the Olympic Range peaks to the west, the port and the gorgeous waterfront homes along Alki Point!
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We check in for the ride and cross the Manette Bridge to pick up the route on Wheaton Way and Tracyton Beach Rd; these roads follows the shoreline of the peninsula with views of Phinney Bay and Dyes Inlet. We roll past some residential neighborhoods and continue NW along the bay into Tracyton to our first stop at the Kitsap Credit Union on NW Myhre Rd.
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We exit the rest stop and take NW Bucklin Hill Rd to Bayshore Dr NW into Silverdale and through the business district of town. NW Anderson Hill Rd takes us out of town onto Old Frontier NW and Clear Creek Rd NW. The 6+ miles of rolling terrain on Clear Creek Rd takes us pass the Kitsap-Bangor Naval Base, rural farms and ranches and country homes with acreage. NW Rude Rd and NW Finn Hill Rd takes us to the next rest stop at First Security Bank, located in a new shopping center off SR 3 in Poulsbo.
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The route continues north on more rolling terrain on a series turns and short sections on quiet roads out to Kitsap Memorial Park. Washington is the “Evergreen State” and boy, it does not disappoint-you’re constantly surrounded by lush greenery/trees on practically every road! We take SR 3 NE; this road has a bit more traffic, so please ride single file here!
We continue on SR 104 Ne/Pope St into the town of Port Gamble; this waterfront town is a located along the shores of Hood Canal with beautiful New England style houses on tree-lined streets and gorgeous water views. It’s a very picturesque town complete with its own water towers! SR 104 takes us south to Gamble Bay Rd NE and Hansville Rd NE out to SR 104 NE. This section of SR 104 NE has a lot of traffic-be cautious!
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We exit SR104 NE onto Berber Cut Off Rd NE towards the town of Kingston; the gateway to the Olympic Peninsula as the Edmonds-Kingston ferry arrives right on the shore of this town.
The rolling climbs on S Kingston Rd cuts through a gorgeous wooded area with towering conifers; this is where I notice Richard behind us, he was WAY ahead of us earlier, so I asked where he went-he stopped at the Kitsap Bank rest stop! We apparently blew by a rest stop and didn’t even know it! I certainly didn’t see any signage pointing us into the direction of the rest stop-oh well. Michael and I always carry some kind of snack with us; a bar and some mixed nuts, so we stop for a quick bite before catching up with Soheil who was in front of us.
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Miller Bay Rd NE takes us south into the town of Suquamish; located on the Port Madison Indian Reservation with gorgeous waterfront views across Puget Sound. The increased traffic on Suquamish Way NE is heading to the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort.
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We take NE Totten Rd to Lemolo Shore Dr and Fjord Dr NE to the next rest stop at the Poulsbo Waterfront Park. Poulsbo is a Norwegian community with Scandinavian heritage and old world charm. Front St has wonderful old murals, bakeries, arts and crafts shops, galleries and Nordic specialty shops. The waterfront overlooks Liberty Bay with fantastic views!
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Front St NE leads us out of the village to the more commercial business area on NW Lindwig Way and Viking Way NW. Viking Way NW takes us along the west side of Liberty Bay pass the small town of Scandia out to Pearson Point Rd and Virginia Loop Rd NE. We take NE SR 308 towards the town of Keyport.
We arrive at the Keyport Mercantile rest stop for sub sandwiches and ice cream. Keyport is home to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center.
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Brownsville Hwy NE leads us out of Keyport onto S Keyport Rd NE with some views of Port Orchard Bay. The next 4.5 miles on Illahee Rd NE takes us south on the peninsula’; there is mile long 6% climb up Illahee Rd to Trenton Ave. We arrive at the last rest stop-Manette Waterfront Park for our strawberry shortcake!
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From the park, it’s a short climb up Shores Dr followed by a couple turns before we cross the Manette Bridge to get back to the Bremerton Ferry Terminal. It’s a relaxing hour ride back to Seattle, so settle in and enjoy the spectacular views of Mt Rainier and Seattle!
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This is a fun and scenic ride set in the northern region of Kitsap Peninsula around Kitsap County. The roads are well maintained with minimal to no traffic except for the sections along the highway. The landscape is gorgeously super green with open meadows and dense woods. Come and ride it-you’ll love it! Much “thanks” to all the volunteers for being out there to support us all, we saw SAG cars throughout the whole ride! For $25, you get great support, friendly volunteers, food & drinks, strawberry shortcake and a T-shirt! You really can’t get beat this, at least not in California! Another “thanks” to Tom for organizing the meet up for COGS and to Richard and Soheil for riding with us!
Garmin Stats:
81.91 Miles with 5633′ of elevation gain (includes mileage from the out and back on the Elliot Bay Trail)
Max elevation: 434′
Max grade: 12%
Terrain: Rolling climbs-Hilly
Weather: Fine! Overcast and cloudy in the morning with sunshine later in the day. Temps ranged from the low 50’s to the high 70’s. SSW winds with 82% humidity
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Fun is good. ~Dr Seuss
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