Time Spent Cycling, Hiking and Walking
This year I have spent 350 hours hiking and walking according to Strava. In contrast I have spent just 44 hours cycling. If I had spent as much time cycling as I did walking then my cycling fitness would be higher than it is at the moment.
Part of me wishes that I had spent more time cycling but another part of me spends less time cycling than walking because finding safe cycling paths is not so easy in a place as densely populated as the Arc Lémanique.
There are plenty of agricultural roads to be enjoyed but for some absurd people cars choose to drive along them, rather than main roads. The result is that finding a road that is quiet and safe for cycling is difficult. The second challenge is that cycling roads are usually sparse, and disconnected.
If you cycle between Morges and Rolle you spend a lot of time on the road hoping that people give you a safe margin, before finally getting to the cycle lanes between Rolle and Gland, but even in Gland the cycling routes are designed for slow cyclists, not fast ones. You’re forced to stop, you lose priority with cars. It’s a mess.
I bring this up because what stopped me from cycling, aside from my bike being in another village, is that I didn’t know of safe routes that I could ride and enjoy.
In theory the pleasant cycling season has ended and now we’re into the Autumn experience, where gloves and warmer clothes are needed.
This year I may cycle into the cooler Autumn months, mainly because none of my walking routes are pleasant anymore. As I write about the cool air for cycling, I am using it to cool down the structure of my apartment, to make it more pleasant once again.