March 4, 2023
Loop the Loop
Barry has requested a traffic-free ride today. I hope to make his dreams come true and ratchet up our distance a bit with a 54 mile ride around the Chuck Huckleberry Loop. We have an incentive to get going this morning in order to get back in time for happy hour with the mountain biking devotees at the RV park.
After a swing by the post office when they open at 10, we park at Julian Wash Archaeological Park on the west side of the Loop. It's about the closest place to start for us, 20 minutes on a good day from our spot in the boonies west of town. The little park is worth some time to walk through and learn about the people who lived and farmed along the Santa Cruz river as far back as 2100 B.C.
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We've limited the faffing around today, clipping in at 10:45 to start north for a clockwise tour of the Loop. Barry is thrilled with the pace; with a tailwind and a gentle downhill grade along the Santa Cruz River valley we're cruising at 18-20 mph. This won't last, but its fun. Our previous trips on this side of the Loop have been on the west side of the river; this morning we're getting a fresh perspective from the east side.
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Turning east on the Rillito River the bike traffic picks up to what I'd expect on a Saturday. After a quick souvenir stop at the weekend market in St. Phillips Plaza we wheel past a park full of kids playing soccer and continue on to turn south along Pantano Wash.
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We stop at a ramada in Fort Lowell Park and pull out our sandwiches. A U S army post from 1873 to 1891, the fort provided protection for Tucsonans during the Apache Wars. In the 1930s the area was an artist colony; Jack Kerouac wrote about a visit here in On the Road.
I believe there's a museum of Fort Lowell history here; adding it to the list after Sweetwater Wetlands for things to see another time. We find out about great stuff in Tucson on these Loop rides.
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Continuing down Harrison Greenway we pass the west side of Fantasy Island, a mountain bike park. Brigitte isn't a fan; she says its an amusement park for bikers, not natural like the Tucson Mountain Park trails. Good to know, I don't need another biking destination that I have to drive to. Seeing the helmets of couple riders bobbing up and down on the trails, it does look amusing.
The slow climb we started since turning on to the Rillito peaks at the south end of Harrison Greenway which takes us to St. Rita Road for about a mile. Whaaat? I forgot that a few areas of the Loop run on street connections. Happily there's not much traffic here and soon we turn back on the path by Julian Wash.
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It's a good thing we're going downhill now because the wind has picked up, blowing right at us from the west. There's far less traffic on the south end of the Loop. Overall it's not quite as beautiful as on the north side, partly running through more industrial and commercial areas. No pictures here.
With two miles to go, the path takes us to a crosswalk on Ajo Way and continues on 6th Avenue around the VA hospital. There's a trail here but it's a little hard to follow and we ride the on-road bike lane a few times. So much for my representations of a traffic-free ride, but Barry assures me it's ok, it's just a sliver of the day . Where else could you find a 54 mile loop route with this many fun things to see?
We're finished by 4:15 with an average of 12.6 mph for the day. I'll take it. There's time to get back for happy hour and some tips from the mtb crowd about a ride on the trails tomorrow.
Today's ride: 54 miles (87 km)
Total: 509 miles (819 km)
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