My Commute

Almost 20 years had passed since I actually owned a bike, but on Father’s Day this year I got a new bike from my kids. I live in Boise – officially the City of Trees, but to many the Biking City due to its many accolades for the abundance of biking trails in and around town. Despite the myriad biking opportunities, both on trail and off, in town and in the foothills, I had never biked in Boise. I do plenty of outdoors stuff, but so much that there was never room for another hobby like biking.

Well, last Wednesday morning I decided to bike into work. The ride was about 6 miles each way, and I was able to bike the entire way along the Boise Greenbelt – a paved walking and biking path that runs continuously along the Boise River. I was immediately struck by a few things:
- First, the sheer number of people along the path – proves what an outdoor-oriented place Boise is. People of all ages were walking, jogging, riding bikes, walking dogs, walking with kids, etc…
- The serenity of it all – there were no traffic lights, cars, or cacophonous noises like on a road. Moreover, you pretty much see the river the entire way and lots of wildlife.
- The weather – Boise gets hot during the day, but the mornings are amazingly calm and cool. Unfortunately, the afternoons are significantly hotter, but the greenbelt’s shade made it pretty comfortable.

These combined factors make for a great spirit and mindset coming into work each morning. Moreover, it’s really amazing to live in a capital city and have such amazing access to the outdoors right in the center of the city. Here are a few pictures of the sights you see along the greenbelt:

Certainly one of my motivations for biking is to save a little gas money. I’d imagine that the number of people on the greenbelt has increased because of gas prices, but Boise has always been a biking town. Proof positive of this is the number of bikes parked outside our office entrance every day! I don’t see biking replacing my other outdoor passions, like fly fishing (see previous blog post), but it’s definitely a great way to start the day.