A New Trail with Family

For the last couple of years we have tried to get out and do some biking with our kids and grandkids that live close enough to do that with.  Earlier this summer we went down to Chicago and did some biking and beach fun with Erdbeere and her kids, that was fun. We also made it out for a ride with our oldest grandson, that was also fun.  We also got to go visit Blaubeere and go for a ride with her and her kids.  This was a new trail, one neither of us had ever been on.

We had to drive a little ways to a starting place, which happened to be at the beginning of this trail.  Alas, this trail didn't have any kind of parking area right at the trailhead so we had to park a couple of blocks away and then ride over to the actual trail. But, hey, bike riding was the whole point, right?!

Anyway, this turned out to be a very nice little trail.  It was paved for the whole distance we rode on it, which is always a nice thing. 

And it passed by some very nice stuff.  At the beginning there were some small ponds that had lots of birds at them.  Mostly geese and ducks, but out there among the geese and ducks were some egrets.

So, during the first part of the ride, we past several ponds and saw several egrets, an unexpected treat.

When we do these rides with the grandkids we like to have a playground out in the middle of the ride somewhere.  

In this case, it was the "turn-around" point; we rode a ways on the trail and then diverted through a neighborhood to a nice little park.  We played there and had a lunch we'd brought with us and then turned around and went back the way we came.

Yes, we all stopped, played, and had a good tie at the park for a whle before going back.

Another nice thing about this trail was that all those ponds along the trail were surrounded by wild flowers.

Wild flowers are so cool, and Brombeere loves wild flowers, every time we ride by any she always like so to stop for pictures.  So we did.

Unfortunately, this bike ride ended with a small mishap that brought the bike to a premature end, Brombeere had to be rescued and the rest of us finished the ride without her.  But it was still a good time, a beautiful ride, and a wonderful day, all except for the very end.  We were glad we went, and we'll certainly do more in the future.  These are good times!