Follow the Creek to the River

Pennypack Park, Philadelphia, PA

2 February 2019

Between getting sick on Tuesday and being on my feet for nearly 12 hours three days in a row while I was sick, I left the weekend ride planning to Tom and the Insane Bike Posse. While I was standing on Friday for nine hours straight at a whirring fluorimeter (hi, Ira!), in a windowless room, trying not to pass out, and pretty much hating my life, Tom announced a trip to Pennypack Park in Northeast Philadelphia. He even announced that the carpool location would be in front of my house. I got home from work after 9:30 p.m. and was asleep by 11:00. If Jack hadn't nudged me when my alarm went off I'd still be asleep.

Central Jersey got a dusting of snow yesterday afternoon; Philly got about an inch. When we left my house it was 16 degrees outside, which felt warm because it was double digits. Tom loaded Grover and the Krakow Monster into the back of his car. He and Jim rode in Tom's car. Bob and I rode in Bob's car, his still too-new, too-clean bike in the back. 

"This will be the prettiest ride of the season," Tom said, and even if he's wrong he won't be far from right. 

Despite almost the entire 20 miles being snow-covered, despite Jim's relatively road tires filled to 50 psi to compensate, despite Bob's unfamiliarity with his new equipment, and despite the fact that in my lingering exhaustion I forgot my Camelbak (I can't seem to get my shit together this winter), the ride was uneventful crash-wise. Bob only fell once, and it hardly counts because he was hopping a curb that was partially under snow.

I took 55 pictures. Here are not all of them.

At the Pine Road park entrance:

 
You'll see this rock again later, on the way back, from the other side:

The Bensalem Road bridge:

Whenever there was a choice of which direction to go, Tom instructed us to follow the Pennypack Creek.

The last time I was here was almost exactly three years ago. There was a bridge out, naturally, and we climbed a chain-link fence to get across it. Follow the link and scroll down.

Today the bridge was open, which was slightly disappointing but also a relief.

There was ice on the Delaware River.

For some reason I only took a picture of the roof of the pavilion by the water.

You can tell which direction the wind is coming from by looking at which way the birds are facing.

The trail is well-marked at road intersections. It's an out-and-back affair.

With the sun at our backs now the light was better for pictures.

(Okay, mostly at our backs.)

This was a side trail. We didn't take it.

The spillway was half-frozen. I'd have taken better pictures but it would have involved getting in the way of a fellow who was fishing. The best I could do was to focus past him; I still got his fishing rod in the shot. Fishing in sub-freezing air and biking in sub-freezing air are co-equal branches of stupid.

The first (and final) mile of the trail from the Pine Road entrance are the hilliest. Jim, despite his skinny tires, made it up the longest, steepest one without walking:

Here's that rock again.

Compared to our usual road rides this wasn't much, but I still really wanted to take a nap when I got home. I didn't; there were chores to do and blog posts to write. Up next, a write-up of tomorrow's ride if there's a story to tell; if not, the eight installment of A Hot Mess.