I started off over Hawthorne bridge heading towards Mount Tabor park for views of the city. Not far down Hawthorne I spotted a second bike shop and sauntered in looking for some of the extra stuff I need for my bike. I had a look around and was specifically looking for a bag for day kit. Though we have a van, I think It'll be preferential to have a handlebar bag to carry my SLR on particularly scenic days so I don't miss an opportunistic shot trying to grab the camera outta the van, Martina was very helpful, and again knew of our trip " you're with those crazy architects are you?" was I think how she put it. So we had a brief chat about the trip and must see stuff in and around Portland. I bought a bag and went on my way.
The SE side of town was very pleasant to cruise through, more residential, I found it quite reminiscent of neighbourhoods I lived in in the Northern Beaches in Sydney, Wooden housed on large plots with verandas and well maintained gardens. The roads are wide and generally quiet, especially when sticking to the designated bike routes. So far first impressions of the city are very good indeed. Obviously it helps that it's the first shorts and t-shirt weather for me or Portland in a good six months, so we're all in a very upbeat mood. But I have noticed so far a general friendliness, the chance hello on the street or head nod from a stranger, or car full of young girls who wished me a "nice day" at the traffic lights. It could be general American 'hospitality' Portlandian openness, or just my wide eyed receptiveness to a new experience in superb weather.
Not much further into SE Portland I saw another bike shop with striking signage. I got some gloves from here and used the public workbench out front to attach my new bag. As the fella (whose name I neglected to ask) pointed out I'll be stopping a lot if I'm visiting every bike shop in South Portland.
Cycling down Clinton towards mount Tabor I saw some nice bikey features in very welcoming neighbourhoods Little clusters of cafes and shops at intersections with 'thriving street scenes' I think it was this early in the day I mused upon the idea of sacking off the P2P ride, getting some tattoos growing a moustache, brushing up on my barista skills and never leaving Portland. I still like the idea and am very drawn to the place on first impressions, but have certain obligations first. I rode up to the peak of Mount Tabor Park, apparently an old volcanic peak with views straight to downtown. A nice little cycle facility in itself with quite sealed roads up offering a little hill training. When looking over the city I noticed how green it is, particularly the south side. I guess largely because of the space in the blocks means most streets are tree lined, so from a height all you can see is trees. It also dawned on me that it's not a big city in area. Well at least the bit I've seen in a day. I made the same assumption in Melbourne having lived in inner suburbs forgetting that there is a whole extra city in the outer suburbs. But here in Portland the bits I've seen so far are very conducive to cycling Easy to navigate largely within the block system(not that I didn't go astray on a few occasions) and nicely manageable distances, along with many quite route ways, conducive to cycling in themselves but this is compounded with specific designation as a bike route/lane or boulevard.
From Tabor I rode down towards 27th Ave and found myself a coffee shop to settle down for a while, catch up on some reading and update from yesterday. The rest of the afternoon was cruising round the north of town, stopping off at a couple more bike shops, then for a beer in the Mississippi area and working my way back to the hotel over the Broadway bridge, and possibly via another brew pub... the smell of malt and hops that meets you round some corners is a little too tempting, especially as the sun is setting after a leisurely day cycling up and down in the sun.
Back at the hotel the team was coming together, I met with Tom van-man and Bob. Peter had just received his hand built bike and John, who built it, was here to offer a little local advice. We headed round the corner for some tapas and were joined by Rick Potestio in his capacity as part of the bicycle transportation alliance who had just returned from the Oregon Active Transportation Summit in Salem - An event i had considered going to myself, but having had the day i did don't regret missing sitting in a conference when I could be exploring and experiencing a new city. Rick offered some great insights into why Portland has come to be known as America's cycling city. As with all these issues it is down to a confluence of many factors.... in early history it was already a cycling city way before the popularity of cars, over the last 40 years a combination of progressive and pro-bike figures have helped implement change, as well as a few flukes of funding where not everything went to more highways or freeways. further detail to be added later, but it was interesting and valuable to hear from someone who understands the underlying issues and wider context of cycling in the city after a day spent considering what works and doesn't.
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| Talking bikes over tapas |
- The trip is going to be very busy, and if I continue to write with this much verbosity i wont have any time to sleep.
- Always carry a camera
- Talking to people garners more information than reading blogs or books, in the context of understanding a city anyway.
- Results of our impressions of places should probably be put into the context of the weather that greets us.
- I really like Portland
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