From the Back of Old Paint
Hi,
folks. Last week I blogged about my search for a new coffee shop, my preferred
writing venue. My quest isn’t over, and whether you’re interested or not I will
let you know how it ends. But today’s blog is a travelogue of sorts. I want to
take you along on one of my favorite bike rides around Charlotte, and
(whoopee)… I have pictures!
If you fly into Charlotte, it looks like a small
cluster of skyscrapers bursting out of the forest. There’s a reason for that.
Those of us who pound the pavement or drive the traffic-clogged streets day in
and day out forget how much green there is around here. And this time of year
(early May), it is simply gorgeous. So, with a Friday off and the weather
forecast rainless and warm, I decided to take my camera phone and cycle over to
my favorite greenway near Pineville.
The Four Mile Creek and McMullen Creek greenways
are connected to form a nearly six-mile escape from reality between Rea Road
and Pineville. Getting there by bicycle is a little hazardous, but the trip is
worth it. I try to make it at least three or four times during the spring and
summer season.
The first thing to do is
saddle up Old Paint. Old Paint is a green Diamond Back Response, a low-end hard
tail mountain bike who’s been with me a little over five years. He’s in need of
a tune up if I were to take him on any serious trails, but he’ll have no
trouble with the streets and greenways of the Queen City today. We’re packing
three frozen bottles of water, sunscreen, a towel, and extra t-shirt (which
will be essential later in the summer), some trail mix, and my Kindle.
My normal route is out Monroe Road, then Highway
51 to Rea Road, where the greenway starts near Piper Glen. But today I need to
detour through the little town of Matthews to stop by the post office to send
off a Mother’s Day card. So I’ll head out of Mathews on Trade Street and cut
over to Hwy 51 via Fullwood Lane. I also want to detour by the Mathews
Community Garden, a little patch of vegetables right along the highway, to see
what they’re planting this year.
Charlotte is not a
bike-friendly town. Sidewalks for pedestrians are an afterthought along some
streets. It’s pedal-to-the-metal from traffic light to traffic light, and
cyclists beware. Luckily, Highway 51 runs through a side of town with golf
courses and affluent neighborhoods, so there’s a sidewalk I can ride on to
minimize the risks. But, I’m not there yet, and I’m reminded of the danger as I
cycle out of Matthews on South Trade where the road narrows and traffic picks
up speed.
But as I turn onto Fullwood, I see a rare sight
here in NASCAR country, a bike lane! Ironically, there’s not much traffic along
this section of road, and the bike lane runs out as soon as the traffic picks
up again. Another tribute to the oxymoron that is Charlotte city planning.
Once I reach Hwy 51, I hit the sidewalk and
breathe more easily. I can relax and enjoy the sights along the way. I see
realtors setting up for an office BBQ, golfers teeing off at Raintree Country
Club, and a group of guys playing touch football on the expansive campus of one
of the huge churches along the way. The only major danger point from here to
the greenway is the Arboretum Shopping Center at the crossroads of Hwy 51 and
Providence Road. All the drivers here are on their cell phones, all of them.
The next few hours are blissful. There is plenty
of activity on the greenway – joggers, walkers, young moms pushing strollers,
cyclists – but not the heavy traffic one finds on Saturdays and Sundays. The
air is filled with puffy little parachute seedlings blowing from some type of
tree that I can’t identify, and in some places it’s almost like it’s snowing,
and the pathway looks lined with fluffy cotton. There’s lots of flora and
fauna, and I take as many pictures as I can, wishing for the umpteenth time I
had a better camera.
Eventually I reach the end of the line, and I
sit and munch on some trail mix, drink some of the ice-cold water in my cache,
and read at a picnic table near the McMullen Creek access parking lot. Before
climbing back on Old Paint for the return trip, I have a brief, panicky
thought. I have squandered a day off
where I could have been writing!
I haven’t. My spirit has
been renewed from having been outside all day, and fresh ideas have been
bouncing around in my brain as I pedaled along. I know eventually they’ll make
their way to the page… in their own time.
Well, I hope you didn’t mind this little break
from talking about the Red Wolf novels like I usually do. I promise more of
Clifford Crane and the gang in the near future.
Until then… Happy Reading!
Of course I do need to include the usual, shameless promotion of my books. Four and five-star reviews are piling up for both of them. eBooks are only $2.99, and you can purchase one by clicking on one of the links below the cover image of your choice.
The Draculata Nest -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Click on the link to order:
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in Charlotte Smashwords
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The Dragon of Doughton Park ----------------------------------------------------------
Click on the link to order:
ebook for Kindleebook for Nook ebook for Kobo in Paperback
in Charlotte Smashwords
ebook for Kindle
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