Riding in the Bike Lane

I love riding my bike around town, but let’s be honest, without bike lanes I just don’t feel safe riding the streets. In my college years my roommate and I used to take our bikes down Pacific Beach and ride our bikes down to Mission Beach while blasting music from our am/fm radio. Yes, a radio. It was the early 2000s, okay? We weren’t counting miles as much as taking in the waves and sun while we peddled around town with her little dog in her bike basket and the radio in mine.

When I rode my bike for the first time on the newly opened West Anaheim bike trail I had a similar thrill. Sure there weren’t any ocean waves, dogs in bike baskets or a radio, but there is nothing like being able to ride your bike free and clear of traffic. The new bike trail is nestled between a neighborhood of 1950s Ranch homes and a nursery that offers a nice green view. At each major cross street a signaled cross walk adds security for safe crossing.

The 1 mile paved trail runs between City Park off Lola Avenue and Maxwell Park off Orange Avenue. Riding the length of the parks adds some mileage, and if you add a ride through Schweitzer Park to the West Anaheim Youth Center you can get in about 3 miles round trip. Between the view of the parks and the nurseries, there is plenty of green space on the bike ride, but I didn’t expect to see any wildlife. I’m not talking about neighborhood cats and dogs either. While riding alongside Carbon Creek, I was taken by the beautiful site of two egrets wading and flying over the water.

It brings a smile to my face to share the bike trail with my neighbors, feathered or not.