I started my journey from my house toward the eastern-most point at the intersection of Lakeshore and E185th St. This section of the trail has a lot of vehicle traffic so i found myself riding mostly on the sidewalk.
Shortly thereafter, the off-road trail begins. As i sat down to take a short break, i was approached by an elderly couple and their dog. The older gentlemen was mentioning how they'd just seen a group of 9 deer when 3 more approached us. His wife was feeding them bread. I carefully pulled out the phone and snapped this pic. It was crazy how close they got!
After this encounter, i continued on my path through Euclid Beach Park and eventually through the town of Bratenahl. This little suburb of Cleveland is filled with expensive homes lining the shores of Lake Erie. Maybe someday, i thought to myself.
Upon riding through the streets of Bratenahl, i made my way back toward the off-road path that parallels the lake. Here i decided to take another break and take a few more pictures.
I could've continued on to the more attractive parts of the trail, which includes riding near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but i decided that this was far enough for my first time out. After all, i still had to ride back home.
On the return trip, i stopped once more at the Cleveland Lakefront State Park near E156th St and took this pic.
On the return trip, i stopped once more at the Cleveland Lakefront State Park near E156th St and took this pic.
Overall, I really enjoyed the Cleveland Lakefront Bikeway. Although the route includes a bit too much road biking to be considered safe, I'd do it again. (You either run the risk of riding on bumpy sidewalks dodging pedestrians and cars backing out of driveways, or you ride on the street and risk getting blasted by a vehicle -- a lose-lose situation)
I'm looking forward to completing the whole 34-mile roundtrip someday. Today wasn't the day though. By the time i got home, i thought my legs were going to fall off. According to MapMyRide, the length of my journey was 25 miles, as it's about a 4.5 mile ride just to get to the beginning of the trail from my house. To complete the entire thing from the house and back, the length of the ride would be nearly 45 miles.
It'll happen eventually. Something to build toward!
