Biggest cinnamon roll ever!

It's like Mt. Rainier, but taller and tastier. And harder to summit.

Maltby Cafe: finally!

I've had the Maltby Cafe on my list of places to visit for at least 6
years. I've bikes by the turnoff for it dozens of times over the years
- it's right by where a standard bike route crosses 522, north of
Woodinville.

I'd heard that the cafe is outstanding, but that the wait can be very
long - over an hour on weekends. And the obvious way to get there -
biking - isn't really conducive to sitting around and waiting after a
long ride (it's about 20 miles from Seattle. And if you know me, you
know that I'm always wanting to "do stuff" and dedicating a few hours
on a nice weekend just to eat at some cafe in the middle of nowhere
never seemed worthwhile.

So now that I have some free time, I thought I'd take a midweek ride
out to maltby!

Minor rant: Streets and Trips 2009

I picked up a copy of Streets and Trips 2009 on my last trip to the Microsoft Company Store yesterday. I know that Google Maps and Live Maps have pretty much eliminated the need for such software, but considering how much I rely on maps in my life, it can be critical to have maps at times when an internet connection is flaky. I was also thinking that with my new laptop it could be very useful on road trips where cell coverage is sparse.

I've been using Streets and Trips for about 8 years now. The last version I installed was circa 2005. It's sad to see that the new features that have been added to online mapping applications have missed S&T completely: no satellite view, no terrain view, no street view, no ability to modify a route by dragging on a section of it... in fact, the only thing that appears to have changed in the latest version is the UI: the color scheme is now black/grey and the button symbols have changed. And there's a navigation pane which I think is new, but still...

On the whole I'm disappointed. I know that we're moving more and more to constantly-connected machines. But you'd think that this standalone app would have integrated more features that are available in the online world. And in 4 years, I'd expect at least something new and exciting for a long-time user like myself.

FAQ: Where are you planning on going in New Zealand?

Well, to be honest, I'm not exactly sure. I'm planning on playing it by ear to some extent. I do know that I'm flying into Wellington and out of Christchurch, but how much ground I cover depends on weather, my legs, and how much hiking and sightseeing I end up doing along the way. I'm hoping to bike about 50-60 miles per day when I'm biking (I had been thinking 75, but when I rode my fully-loaded bike for the first time in a long time, I re-evaluated), and think I can cover a good deal of the South Island, especially if I take a bus to Christchurch at the end.

Here's a map of with blue markers indicating spots that I hope to hit along the way. Click on each marker for more information.

View Larger Map

Testing 1,2,3

This is a test of my mobile blogging system...

Snowy trekking pole

By the light of our headlamps, this was the only picture I could
manage from atop Mt. Si att 6:42 pm. It was snowing pretty hard, with
several inches of fresh powder on the ground!

To pannier or to trailer?, that is the question

There are many equipment choices involved in a bike trip (not the least of which is the bike...), but one of the biggest ones I needed to make was whether to use a trailer (see picture at left) or a rack + panniers.

As I see it, there are some definite advantages to each.

The advantages of the trailer:

1. 1) The trailer is more stable. Instead of having most of the weight on the bike on a rear rack and over the rear wheel, the weight is distributed between the rear wheel and a new third wheel (the trailer's). When riding uphill and out of the saddle on panniers, there's definitely more side-to-side sway on the rear of the bike.
2. Less pressure on the rear wheel, which presumably decreases the chance of flatting the rear wheel or breaking a spoke.
3. The ability to take all gear off of the bike (and into one's camping area, hotel, etc) all in one go. One can just use one large duffel bag on a trailer and quickly and easily detach the entire trailer from the bike.

Advantages of panniers:

1. Packing/travelling on other means of transportation. I will need to pack up my bike and load-carrying system several times during the trip: each time I check my luggage (in Seattle, New Zealand, and Australia), and any time I board a bus (which I expect I will do at least once during the trip). One extra level of complication is that I fly into and out of different cities in New Zealand. When I fly out of Christchurch, I'm planning on picking up a bike box from a bike shop there; finding a way of packing and carrying a trailer on the plane will likely result in extra cost and hassle.

2. Simplicity. Racks and panniers are very simple and common in bike shops around the world. As Kelly and I discovered in Maui (and Seattle), BOB trailers aren't nearly as common and have special parts that cannot easily be fabricated from parts found at a hardware store. For example, in Maui, when we realized that Kelly did not have his special BOB skewer (longer than normal), we tried to build something that would work from parts at Home Depot. It did hold up for about 10 miles of load-carrying, but ended up giving up, biking back to town, and renting a jeep to haul our gear.

3. Weight. Every extra pound is noticeable when heading up those steep mountain passes, and a trailer weighs an order of magnitude more than a rack (13.5 pounds for the trailer, according to the manufacturer's website).

4. Quiet. I gave the BOB a test-haul just to see how it felt to ride (and indeed, the stability was nice), but for the love of Pete, it would not stop rattling. There was just a little bit of play between the skewer and the trailer, which was enough to cause endless noise. And if there's one thing I can't stand, it's a travel companion who just won't. shut. up. ; )

5. I've used them before. I used panniers for my bike trips in Oregon, Vermont, Colorado, and the United Kingdom and never had any problems.

So, after some hemming and hawing, I've decided to go the pannier route. But thanks to Kelly H. for lending me his BOB so I could test it out. (Kelly is a big fan of the BOB!) Perhaps for the next trip I take that doesn't require air travel, I'll use a BOB.