5 Bike Adventures You Can Have Today
The idea that worthwhile life experiences and adventures have to involve international travel, significant investment and considerable allotment of time are damaging, and keep many of us from filling our lives with adventures right now. It perpetuates the notion that leisure and recreation can only be earned through sacrifice, soul-crushing work, and saying no to what you deeply yearn to do. So we say: say yes!
Adventures lurk inside the city, or just outside of it, and even a day --even several dedicated hours -- spent relishing the outdoors, or doing something our of the ordinary, will make a difference in your week and in your outlook.
1. Breakfast al fresco:
This can be done on a weekend morning in cooler weather, or -- in a pinch -- early on a work-day when the days are longer.
Ride your bike to a nearby beach or natural area. Depending on how much time you have, I would suggest a distance of 5-12 miles one way. Bring along a portable stove, cookware, uncooked breakfast fixings and a thermos of hot tea, or a way to make a hot beverage of your choice. A small table cloth is a nice touch. Pro tip #1: unless you have a self-staring stove, pack matches or lighter!
You will not believe how delicious, nourishing and warming your meal will taste. Take your time enjoying it. Your sneaky adventure will buoy you for the rest of the day.
2. Full moon ride:
Grab a good set of bike lights, and set off before dusk on a full moon night. Ideally, plan a route that in 1-1.5 hours of riding will take you to a body of water or an open field to view the lonely satellite. (Our favorite viewing spot in Chicago area are Gillson Park and beach in Wilmette, or the Skokie Lagoons off Tower Road on North Branch Trail.)
Riding home at night on an unlit trail, with only the circle of your own bike light to guide you is a beautiful way to be alone with yourself.
3. Inclement weather bike ride:
Why not turn bad weather into your ally? Dress for it, but don't expect to be completely comfortable. Finding a way to enjoy the experience despite adversity is what makes it an adventure. One of my favorite rides was a chilly, rain-soaked, early April small town exploration on Brompton Bikes in Fox Lake, the last stop on the Milwaukee District North Metra line. Instead of our usual 30-40 miles, we limited ourselves to about 12, including a meander through the rain-soaked Grant Woods Forest Preserve, where we ducked under a picnic shelter and fortified ourselves with a little bourbon-soaked hot tea we brought along for the occasion (highly recommended!). Dunkin Donuts coffee never tasted as good as it did while we waited for our return train.
4. Foreign cuisine:
In a large city going to an unfamiliar ethnic neighborhood can be almost as exotic as an actual trip to a foreign land at a fraction of a cost. I recommend leaving your smart phone at home, and biking to an area you rarely visit. I've lived in Chicago for over 30 years, and there are still plenty of options for exploration, including Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, Rumanian, Nigerian, Middle Eastern, and many more. If you're not sure what to order, do the really adventurous thing and ask for a recommendation from the server. As a result, I once ended up confronting a plateful of very spicy but nearly raw meat at an Ethiopian restaurant.
Pro tip #2: a Brompton folding bike will quickly provide a conversation opener and help to bridge any communication gap.
5. End of the line:
Pick a regional train route, hop on with your bike, and go to the end of the line. Using Chicago Metra Train routes alone yields a dozen desinations, so you could try a new one every month! Once you get past the suburban sprawl, you will find that nature and open spaces are a lot easier to get to. The small town you end up in may have a friendly breakfast spot, where you can get some tips on best nearby places to disappear for a few hours. The quiet rural roads are not likely to have a lot of traffic, and the bike will easily carry you to a place where you can enjoy silence and solitude. In milder weather, you can bring along a packable hammock and even enjoy a midday nap, or simply spend some moments suspended in the company of trees and birds.
Just go!