Wednesday, July 09, 2008
News about Cody, Wyoming, and Yellowstone Country
I never thought I would see an news article about bicycles in the Cody Enterprise: Bicycle sales rise in Cody If it can happen here, it can happen anywhere.
Tourism shouldn't be passive
I have been looking at some rural tourism sites and most of the activities don't expect much out of visitors except eating, sleeping, and looking,or don't forget a pool so kids have something to do, which says something about the typical view of what constitutes a family vacation.
Here is this rural area with miles upon miles of uncrowded vistas disected by grass and gravel roads just waiting for bicyclists, but no mention of active creation of your own entertainment. Put the family on bicycles. Go for a walk.
Come on rural areas sharpen up your hosting skills, put out a country welcome and get people involved, there must be 100s of projects that need doing that teach skills and are fun if you have the right attitude, such as: tree planting, song bird banding, planting wild flowers, bird watching & identification, fence mending, weed pulling, picking sweet corn, gardening, building shelters, ...
Sorry suckers, we are not consumers. We don't want to attend, "festivals throughout the year feature demonstrations that show how things were done down on the farm in the good ol' days" when there is a countryside out there to explore, people to get to know, and lakes to wade.
Shut off the TV, forget the boring professional sports teams with the beer sponsors, get out of air conditioning, get up early and take a ride down a country lane. Believe me it beats the heck out of knocking a ball in a cup. Warning, there's no coming back.
Oh yeah. Don't confuse bicycles with something that needs a motor, petroleum fuel, and noise to make an impression. The only thing a motorcycle shares with a bicycle is that both have 2 wheels, after that the routes diverge. Read Robert Frost.
Here is this rural area with miles upon miles of uncrowded vistas disected by grass and gravel roads just waiting for bicyclists, but no mention of active creation of your own entertainment. Put the family on bicycles. Go for a walk.
Come on rural areas sharpen up your hosting skills, put out a country welcome and get people involved, there must be 100s of projects that need doing that teach skills and are fun if you have the right attitude, such as: tree planting, song bird banding, planting wild flowers, bird watching & identification, fence mending, weed pulling, picking sweet corn, gardening, building shelters, ...
Sorry suckers, we are not consumers. We don't want to attend, "festivals throughout the year feature demonstrations that show how things were done down on the farm in the good ol' days" when there is a countryside out there to explore, people to get to know, and lakes to wade.
Shut off the TV, forget the boring professional sports teams with the beer sponsors, get out of air conditioning, get up early and take a ride down a country lane. Believe me it beats the heck out of knocking a ball in a cup. Warning, there's no coming back.
Oh yeah. Don't confuse bicycles with something that needs a motor, petroleum fuel, and noise to make an impression. The only thing a motorcycle shares with a bicycle is that both have 2 wheels, after that the routes diverge. Read Robert Frost.
Labels: bicycle, fun, gravel, prairie
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Sunday ride to Oakwood State Park
Click here for an interactive map
What I like best about this ride is the gravel roads on the return. The gravel surface reminds me not to hurry or see how fast I can go. The gravel is a subtle reminder of why we bicycle in the first place, it's not about getting there, it's about the here and now and world around us. Motorists may crave the roads and the speed, for us the road is just tool that blends movement with experience and not getting there which just ends the pleasure.
The state Park has cabins and camping so it is a nice place for an overnight or longer. There are several lakes and communities within 10-20 miles so it is a nice place to spend some time and be free of petroleum powered transport.
Go online and make reservations and check out other information.
Labels: bicycle, prairie, zero carbon emissions
Friday, July 04, 2008
Happy Independence from Oil Day: Will your weekend be gas-free?
Sounds like a great idea to me. Go there and find out more
Another site that all bicycle riders should know about
BikePortland.org
Our 4th of July bicycle ride was to one our favorite waterfowl observation sites at a slow and comfortable pace on rural country roads to the intersection 1.4 miles West of Lake Goldsmith shown on the Goat Hills Map.
Labels: bicycle, bikes, birds, zero carbon emissions
