ALL TRAILS LEAD TO ICE CREAM

Down to the Susquehanna River today -- September 1, 2015 Now that the calendar has flipped to the month of September I really don't mind being in school.  As far as I'm concerned autumn has official begun.  The weather in central Pennsylvania has been particularly hot and dry the last few months.  Because of that, I figured an  after school ride  to the river would be perfect.   Forge Hill Orchards  on Blossom Road -- September 1, 2015 I was able to beat the afternoon traffic and rode along George Street to Starview Road.  One of my favorite climbs.  Riding along Starview I saw Blossom Road on my left that leads to  Forge Hill Orchards .  I beautiful detour that took me exactly exactly where I wanted to go....down into  Saginaw .  Saginaw is a quaint little town along the  Susquehanna River .  It is my favorite part of the the school district in which I work.  The town, for some reason, remi...

Sunday morning rides are often my favorite.  It sometimes seems as if I am the only person awake.  Because of this, I will often ride into, through, and around York City . An amazing morning for a bike ride.  Church road looking back towards the Emigsville exit of Interstate 83 -- August 30, 2015 Today's ride  took me out of Manchester and straight down the Susquehanna Trail towards York City. Like any other city, there are parts of York City that I normally avoid.  However, on Sunday morning, most of it is fair game.  Coming into the city I turned onto Beaver Street and passed  Central Market .   On the corner of Beaver Street and Market Street is the spot where the headquarters  of Revolutionary War general  "Mad" Anthony Wayne  once stood.  General Wayne made his headquarters here in the spring of 1781.  The old iron lamp post attached to the M & T Bank building on the site today is original and was attache...

Often, when I ride out Codorus Furnace Road, I see a road off to my my right that wanders south over the hills near Starview.  I've always wondered what it was like...but I never rode it simply because I was on a mission to to go somewhere else.   Well, today my mission was to ride it.  Again, with limited time, my goal was to get at least a fifteen mile ride  in.    The Codorus Creek near Central York High School.  A great put in spot for rafting or kayaking--August 29, 2015 Most of the time, when I ride, I shuffle the music on my phone.  Not today.  For some reason I loaded up Springsteen's The River  album.  The music just seemed perfect for my mood.  This morning I crossed the Codorus Creek near Central York High School. This section of the creek is one of York County's hidden secrets.  Often times you will find cars parked along the bridge.  It is a great put in for rafting and kayaking.  Thi...

The big event of the day was the Van Halen concert tonight at  Hershey Park Stadium .  Alex and I have had tickets for the show since the beginning of the summer.   My son has been pumped to see Van Halen with David Lee Roth as front man.   So....if I wanted to ride  Michaux  today with Tim and Chris we knew we would have to stick to a tight time frame.   It was a nice surprise when I picked up Chris and he told me that a buddy of his, Chip, was going to ride with us.  Chip is just an all around great guy.  He is an assistant principal in  Spring Grove  school district.  He's fun to hang out with, he's fun to talk to, and, for someone who doesn't get to ride as much as he wants, is a heck of a mountain biker.   Chris and met Tim and Chip at our usual meeting place in East Berlin and headed out.   As always, because I am a creature of habit, we parked at the  Furnace Stack pavilion  section of...

The humidity is gone and the weather was perfect for a ride into Central Market  in York City today. From my house in Manchester it is only a six mile trip into  Central Market  so I took a round about route that adds some miles and some fun.   The Colonial Courthouse on West Market Street in York, PA.  8-22-15 I came into the city today from West Market Street and passed the  York Colonial Complex  on the  corner of West Market and Beaver Street.   The main building in the complex is the  Colonial Courthouse .  The building that stands here today is a reproduction of the original courthouse that was destroyed by fire in the early 19th century.  During the Revolutionary War, the  Second Continental Congress , in exile from Philadelphia, met in the courthouse in York, PA.  It was here that the  Articles of Confederation , our countries first plan of government, was adopted.  York County's copy of the...

The mountain biking gods got together today and arranged it so that I could squeeze in a  ride with Chris Keller  this afternoon at  Rocky Ridge .  I really was on a time crunch so we tried to get in as much as we could.   Today we decided to stay up on top of the park and not do a lot of climbing.  With the temperature in the 90s again I was just fine with that. Chris and I estimated that this black snake was about 4 feet long!  It was so big that I honestly thought it was a branch laying across the trail. Our ride today was only six and a half miles.  The view from the top of the park  was amazing.  The highlight was the four foot black snake I ran over on my Stumpjumper.  I honestly thought it was a branch lying across the trail until I saw it move in my peripheral vision as I rode across it.  Let it be known that I HATE SNAKES.  I must be getting better because I was willing to get off of my and go back to tak...

The 90+ degree weather couldn't keep me off of my bike after school today.  After meetings all day at school it was just what I needed.   I must have been in a hurry because, for the first time in my life, I took off without my helmet!  I noticed it about a quarter of a mile from the house when my shadow looked odd.   One of the most prominent features of the Manchester, Mount Wolf, York Haven area is the huge stack that lets out steam from the coal generated power plant at Brunner's Island.  I use it for every road ride.  It is a good way to gauge which way the wind is blowing...and how hard.   Steam from Brunner's Island can be seen from almost anywhere in York County!  It is a great way to gauge the direction and speed of the wind. I knew for the start of  today's ride  that it would be tough coming home with a head wind coming strongly from the southeast.    Despite the heat and the wind the views today were fabu...