Another Two-fer Day!

Amanda & Cato, Lynn on Sophie

 After the morning fog burned off, the day was as stellar as the weather man had promised.  I was up early & on the road to Lord Hill to meet-up with Amanda & Lynn.  It had been way two long since we'd ridden together & now that the weather is cooperating - we have no excuses!

Cato & Amanda

 Farah was thrilled to see Cato again & I think he felt the same about her :-)  Sophie got extremely dirty looks if she made the slightest attempt to get between them.  Lynn graciously took up the rear & saved me from having to work harder than usual to keep Farah's mind on the trail.

Amanda & Cato~

 The new trail was built by Snohomish High Seniors to fulfill their community service requirement.  It's beautiful & well engineered.  For the first time we get a perfect view of the wetland - on the far side - where we only had a glimpse through the trees on the original trail.

Lynn & Sophie

 Sophie looks as great as ever!  Every time I see her on the trail, I'm in awe of her soundness & Lynn's management.  I can only hope that Farah does as well into her 20's!

Farah admires another wetland~

 As you can tell from the Google Earth image below, Lynn directed us on a beautiful loop.

Our route~

It seemed early when we headed back, but both Lynn & Amanda had things to do in the afternoon :-(  I was disappointed - but we've made plans for anther longer ride next week & lunch too!  I'm going to hold them to it!
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Heading home from Snohomish, I found myself looking over at the Centennial Trail.  Why not I thought?  It was the three-year anniversary today of my point-to-point ride.  Really hard for me to believe that it's been that long.

Leaving from the 20th Trail-head

 We parked at the 20th street trail-head.  Lots & lots of cars in the lot, along with one other horse trailer.  Heading north - I was amazed at the changes.  The industrial area seems to have grown or expanded, or both.  Noise coming from every direction.

Further along~

 The first section is far from scenic & far from quiet, with Machias road running parallel.  Farah was less concerned with the traffic, than with all the big yellow boxes :-)

Underpass - Hwy 92

 The underpass cost so much - but got the trail through!  It's not bad at all, unless a big noisy truck goes overhead as you're going underneath!  :-)

Farah spots a horse~

 Farah going by was probably the most excitement this old guy had seen in a while :-)  We continued on - about mid-way to Lake Cassidy, we found a new paved trail going to a new subdivision of homes being built somewhat adjacent to the trail. 

Gate to Thomashire~

Their access gate has a access pad & will be handy for the new homeowners.  Prices start in the mid- 700's.  At Lake Cassidy, we had our lunch break.  So many people were out enjoying the day & Farah drew attention :-)  That gave me the opportunity to promote the trail & invite people to our monthly meetings.

Eagle on a nest~

 At the end of the dock, you could look back toward shore & be rewarded with the view of a Bald Eagle sitting on his/her nest :-)

Lake Cassidy~

 The lake was as deep a blue as the sky!  People were fishing off the end of the dock, while others took a break at the picnic tables.  I tied Farah to the hitching posts while I walked out to see the Eagle & visit the potty.  Very handy!

Heading back~

 This four-mile section of the trail, boasts several places where the horse trail splits off from the main trail - it's so nice to have that separation.  Just enough for a hand gallop.

Bleeding Hearts!

 Bleeding hearts are popping up everywhere, almost overnight it seems!  The sunshine brings out the best in people & plants too :-)

Making new Friends~

When we came upon this group, the baby's eyes were as big as saucers when she saw Farah.  Taylor, the young girl, was as thrilled as her little sister - who reached out & had touched Farah's nose!  Very brave!

The only downside to our ride, happened when we were more than half-way back.  Walking along, around a corner up ahead, came two flags - attached to a fast moving motorized Trike.  He was coming so fast & of course those flags were moving around.  Farah lost her marble, bolted, whirled & I instantly lost a stirrup.  On our second rotation, I yelled the first thing that came to mind;  "WHOA!" The gentleman got his trike stopped, I'd regained my stirrup & dismounted.

I introduced myself as the Chairman of the CT Coalition,  the rider apologized, saying that he knew he was going over 14-mph when he saw us... & that he had met the right person.  As a Veteran, he explained that the Veteran's Admin. has a new program where they will pay the cost of one of these trikes for Veterans who qualify.  This gentleman is thinking of opening a shop in Lake Stevens, since currently these bikes are only available somewhere down south.  (Farah, in the meantime - decided he was very interesting & tried to put her nose in his beard - which she loves to do with Butch :-)

Centennial Trail

The trail is not for motorized use...  I will have further questions regarding this issue.  Of all the people I greeted, the bike riders were the least friendly.  Maybe 30% returned my greeting.  They all looked to be on a mission...   A trail courtesy that was common in the early days of the trail, was to always make the comment;  "On your left, or - on your right"  When passing another trail user.  The bikes come whizzing up - almost silent.  That tends to give other users a start or scare!

On days when the trail is so busy - it seems that everyone needs to be a little more considerate & that speed should be reduced for the safety of all~