2009-04-11 40 -74

Participants

Jevanyn will try to be there.

Plans

Jevanyn: The geohash is 5.3 miles (walking distance according to Google) from where I live, so this is a great opportunity to pick up the Bicycle Geohash achievement. The exact coordinates point to a parking space in front of apartment #70 in the complex. If it's not raining (or maybe even if it is) I'll try to make it, if not at 4PM then I'll try for around 10AM. There are private property signs around, so I may not do a chalk marker, but I'll try to leave something if I have to go in the morning.

Update: I'll be there in the morning, probably around 10. If it's reasonably dry, I'll bike over; otherwise, I'll drive there with Gwynnath & Evan.

Expedition

Ah, Spring. The air is warm and sweet, the birds are chirping, the sun shines down warm and friendly.

Somewhere. Just not here in New Jersey.

Here, it's cold and rainy, there's a stiff breeze blowing, and I'm going to spend a good chunk of the morning outside.

But I couldn't tell how cold it was by looking out the window, so when I woke up, I started following my plan to geohash. I packed the camera and directions into my backpack. Gwynnath, she who is experienced in riding a bike in the rain, recommended that I wrap the backpack in a plastic bag to keep it dry. I made sure I had water in my pack and breakfast in my stomach, took one look at the rain and thought, ~~this is crazy~~ ~~I'm going back to bed~~ I should go find a jacket or something.

One of us thought "rain slicker", and I found a wind breaker jacket in the closet, which would do just fine. Helmet and riding glasses, and I was off.

I knew the first half of the route well, I go that way to work. The second half, past Brown Ave., I was not as familiar with, but I knew there was no nice friendly bike trail. I hugged the shoulder of 206, only a few inches wide in places. The underpass at the train bridge had a four-inch pond at the bottom. But the scariest part was when I got as far as Triangle Road and thought, did I actually miss the turn? Without an odometer on the bike, I couldn't be sure how much further I had to go, and I had gone quite a way.

Thankfully, I hadn't missed it. I turned on Farm Road into a neighborhood of small, twisty roads, all alike. Every side street had a "Private Property, no trespassing, no soliciting, no loitering, no lolly-gagging ..." kinda sign. I can see it now: Honest, Officer, I'm not loitering, I'm geohashing! Gosh, these cuffs are awful tight....

Anyway, there was no such drama. The spot was easily found (see pictures to follow). The ride back was a little slower (more uphill, more tired) but I was still back at 11:15.