The cemetery gates are open. They always are between sunrise and sunset. To get from the Sellwood Bridge up to Terwilliger, a popular cycling route, you climb through the River View Cemetery. If you stick to the marked route, identified by circles and bike figures and arrows pained on the switchbacks, then you get an average 4.3% grade instead of the 8.0% you would get if you came up Taylors Ferry. On this day, piles of slushy snow and translucent ice in tree shadow keep the blacktop wet. I pass three others and settle in to a comfortable gear, downshifting […]
The Outspokin’ Cyclist: Ottawa pros offer advice
OTTAWA — Feeling trapped inside by the cold weather? Are you taking a break from cycling until the spring thaw? Winter cycling has an allure all its own, but to be sure it also has its challenges. I recently spent some time in Ontario and saw how truly dedicated cyclists make their way through the streets of Canada’s frozen capital. So, for some advice on cycling through the winter, I turn to the hardest working professional cyclists in Ottawa: the bike messengers. Like year round bike commuters, couriers have no choice when to ride. They ride every day they’re working, […]