This area has both a secluded loop of singletrack (avoid when thawing or muddy) and a flat, open path with a great view of downtown and Mount Spokane. The wide gravel path, named Rimrock Drive (closed to motorized vehicles), runs along the edge of Palisades Park, about a mile out and back, and is ideal for hiking with a group or walking trail-sturdy strollers if it isn’t too snowy.

With rocky outcroppings that overlook the city, it’s a joy in winter to just take a few breaths and watch the steam rise up from the downtown buildings. Mount Spokane, visible toward the north end of this hike, often has a snowy cap this time of year that makes for a nice landmark view.

Explore the singletrack that loops at the center of this park through native brush, meadows, and pines, but bring navigation if snow or ice may obscure the trail.

Find more stories about hikes close to downtown Spokane and ways to explore Spokane’s urban outdoors in the OTO archives.

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Rich Landers earned his hiking legend status back in 1987 when he authored “100 Hikes in the Inland Northwest.” Since then, he followed up that seminal title with paddling guides, day hiking guides, a second edition to 100 Hikes, and now Mountaineers Books has just released his latest guide, co-written with David Taylor, called “Urban Trails for Spokane and Coeur d’Alene.” 

Landers spent four decades serving as the outdoors editor for The Spokesman Review. To say he hiked a little bit is like saying the Pacific Northwest only has a few mountains. David Taylor is an Idaho native, and he has hiked extensively throughout North Idaho and Eastern Washington. This book focuses on urban trails so people can find safe and easy options for dog walking, hiking or trail running that don’t require a 4-wheel drive to reach the trailhead.

Each trail features distance, elevation gain, amenities and more. Notable sidebars contain area history, a wildflower identification guide, and public transit details. Although the book lists 50 hikes total, it mentions other important hiking options for areas like Dishman Hills and Riverside State Park.  

The Centennial Trail earned a special section in the book. It’s arguably the most popular trail in the area, and it’s regularly featured in national travel magazines. On page 217, the authors wrote, “With about thirty trailheads and even more access points, users can jump onto the Centennial Trail for short jaunts as well as long excursions, enjoying the [Spokane] river as a constant companion.” 

From veteran hiker to short distance novice, this book belongs on the bookshelf of every local outdoor enthusiast.

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The search for this staircase is part of Wander Spokane’s week-long scavenger hunt that took my son and adventure buddy, Gavin, and me all over the city to visit parks, historic buildings, works of art both old and new, and unique vistas that are all but unknown to many Spokane residents. When we finally saw the steel steps rising from the dense foliage, I started my timer to see how long it took us to make it up the hillside. 2:12. Not bad for short legs. 

During this, my second Wander Spokane scavenger hunt, I checked a few things off my bucket list—most notably a visit to Spokane’s very own Hobbit House and the home where the 1993 movie “Benny and Joon” was filmed. Alana Livingston, founder and owner of Wander Spokane, is a master of local lore and creates a colorful and fascinating journey through Spokane’s history and geography for scavenger hunt participants.  

Wander Spokane is a small business designed to help people experience the essence of this community on foot through wine, beer, and food tours, as well as urban wilderness tours. More information is available on their web site at wanderspokane.com. This particular adventure was self-guided due to the state’s phased reopening, and dozens of other teams signed up to compete for points and explore the city over the course of a week in June. 

Wander Spokane partners with restaurants, breweries, wineries, and other businesses to help residents, guests, and transplants experience the best that Spokane has to offer. And they don’t disappoint! Food from Three Ninjas kept us on our feet long enough to peruse Coeur d’Alene Park (oldest park in Spokane), find the labyrinth in Polly Judd Park, and search (unsuccessfully) for the abandoned wagon on the old Haynes Estate. We kept our clothes on in People’s Park (historically a nudist park), took selfies with the namesake for Iron Goat Brewing, made fish faces with the Redband trout statue, and found evidence of the zoo that once existed in Manito. We even learned how to read a sundial. 

As I traipsed through downtown with Gavin, who was just in this for ice cream at Sweet Peaks Ice Cream—another Wander Spokane partner—I was crushed to realize they were closed for the night. I also saw things that reminded me of last year’s hunt. I winked at O’Doherty’s where I stood on the bar and sang, “You Are My Sunshine.” I nodded to the Cochinito pig, the musical instruments bench outside the Bing, and the rotary fountain in Riverfront Park, designed by local artist Harold Balazs.  

This year, it’s been tough not to feel “stuck.” Stuck at home, stuck inside, stuck with immediate family. But thanks to organizations like Wander Spokane, my son and I have challenged ourselves to find the hidden gems that are right around the next curve of the street, hiding behind that clump of bushes.  

Check the fall calendar of events and tours at wanderspokane.com for future scavenger hunts and other opportunities for exploring Spokane at its finest!

Spokane is a perfect fit for Carol and her son who, together, love to hike, run, bike, build trails, kayak, climb, camp, snowshoe, and snowboard.  

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It would be up to me to figure out how to connect with these intimate strangers—the people who can see into my brightly-lit kitchen during twilight hours, who know what time I race to work each morning, and who witness the number of packages left at the door by the mail carrier.

I wanted to know my neighbors because I wanted to feel like I had people on my team. During my first year in the house, a low-grade anxiety thrummed at the base of my skull after some hooligan chucked a rock through my bedroom window, just to see the glass shatter. The incident put me on edge; I didn’t like leaving the house empty, and felt nervous there alone at times, too.

Having people to check in with and check in on felt really important. I didn’t want to live in fear, and knowing my neighbors seemed the only way to work through the negative emotions.

Like many north Spokane neighborhoods, mine is a mish mash of demographics. Some houses have been restored, with clean porches and manicured lawns. Others have suffered decades of neglect.

Foreclosed on and vacant for two years, my house was somewhere in between. It needed a lot of work, but it had good bones.

The overgrown side yard was a prime example of this. The southwest-facing patch of weeds and rocky soils had potential and, with a little money and a lot of sweat, would be enough space for a garden bigger than the footprint of my house.

During my first year working the garden, I felt a little bit crazy and on display. Some folks had a handful of vegetables growing in raised beds or on their back patios, but no one else had turned over their entire yard and raked it into 50-foot beds. I planted everything from lettuce and tomatoes to kohlrabi and okra, along with tons of flowers to attract bees and ladybugs.

I completely gave up all other home-improvement projects and dedicated every scrap of spare time into weeding, arranging irrigation, solving pest problems, and putting up the harvest.

Now I’m gearing up for the second season of my ridiculously-large urban garden. While eating local and fresh is a bonus, it’s not the primary benefit.

I love that my garden pulls me outside most afternoons in the spring and summer, even if the weather is rainy or hot. It gives me an intimate relationship with one tiny speck of the earth.

It makes me familiar with the patterns of my neighborhood, from the mom who runs three days a week with her toddler bouncing along in the jogging stroller, to the Israeli grandmother who picks our grape leaves and returns with dolmas in the spring.

But the very best part of the garden is that it offers everyone—myself, the neighbors, and the passersby—something beautiful to look at. When a weedy side yard is worked into an abundant landscape, it gives us something to root for and cheer on together—we all want to see it thrive.

Ultimately, it gave me exactly what I was hoping for: an excuse to have tiny, meaningful exchanges on a regular basis with my new neighbors.

Local Gardening Resources

• Spokane Community Gardens Facebook page has information about upcoming community garden tours, which are a great way to get ideas and inspiration and meet people in your neighborhood who are growing food.
• WSU Extension offers many classes and resources for food production in the Northwest, along with master gardener clinic hours to answer a wide variety of horticulture questions.
• Spokane Conservation District has educational offerings for new and seasoned gardeners and puts on an annual plant and tree sale.
• On May 12, Garden Expo Spokane will host a huge assortment of plants for sale, along with gardening-related exhibitors, demonstrations, food, and activities held at Spokane Community College from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• The Friends of Manito Spring Plant Sale is June 9 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Also check out the organization’s valuable workshops and presentations.

Originally published in the May 2018 print edition of Out There Venture under the title “Growing Into a New Neighborhood.”

Summer Hess climbs, swims, and runs trails across the Northwest. Read more of her articles in the OTO archives.

[Feature photo by Summer Hess – Mid-season side yard.]

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Figuring out what, when and where to plant can be an intimidating task. Two helpful resources in the Spokane area are the Spokane County Library and the Spokane Master Gardeners. Each spring the Spokane County library and the Master Gardeners team up to offer classes on everything from container gardening and preserving the harvest to keeping out those pesky deer.

Check out a seed library. In 2015, the Otis Orchards Library branch started a program where patrons can borrow a variety of lendable seeds. Library cardholders check out a packet of seeds on the condition that they return new seeds from those plants the following year. The program was such a success that new seed libraries are being established at the branches in Deer Park and Medical Lake. In conjunction with the new seed libraries, the Master Gardeners offers a series of how-to classes. For more information, visit the Spokane County Library District website: Scld.org/take-and-give-seed-library-2016

Think vertically. If you have the space, raised beds are an efficient option. They make weeding and planting easier while maintaining soil temperature. Many gardeners use wooden boards to create a box for planting, but you can also use rocks, sand bags, bricks or cinder clocks. Pallet gardens are growing in popularity, but beware that while some pallets are heat-treated, others are fumigated with methyl bromide to prevent insects. Make sure that the materials you use do not contain chemicals you don’t want in your food.

Get creative. Even the smallest patch of ground (10 inches by 3 or 4 feet) paired with a sturdy trellis or ladder-like frame can be productive for plants like cucumbers, snap peas, pole beans, squash, pumpkins and tomatoes. Pieces of rain gutter (with ends) attached to a wooden board can be secured to a wall to create vertical plant boxes that are great for strawberries, herbs and lettuce. Stacking pots, with larger ones holding smaller ones in the middle, ziggurat-style, can create an attractive tower for edibles like nasturtiums, thyme, oregano and chives.

The most important thing is to get creative, get planting, and learn more from people who are passionate about gardening. With microclimates that can vary from house to house, it’s important to observe the light in your planting space and experiment. Play with it, have fun and enjoy the harvest! // (Crystal Atamian)

Eat the Best Vegetables Your Dollars Can Buy with a CSA Box

Now is the time to sign up for community-supported agriculture, or CSA. Patronizing a CSA farm is a fantastic way to connect with one of our amazing local farmers. Signing up for a CSA is an easy subscription process. Upfront, you pay a farmer to grow all your veggies for the season (typically May through September) and you get a beautiful box of produce each week.

CSA farms may vary slightly on weekly volume and price but are generally comparable. If the upfront cost seems expensive, calculate the cost each week and compare that to what you spend at the grocery store. The difference in quality between farm-grown or store-bought produce will blow your mind.

Some CSAs require you to pick up your veggies at their farms, while others have drop-off locations or other delivery options. Personally, I love to pick up veggies at the farm. A quick walk on the farm and a chat with growers are such pleasures. If you have kids, it can be a fun family trip too. If you are worried about missing pick-ups due to vacations, talk with your farmer and learn about their policy, or connect with a friend or neighbor to collect your produce when you are away.

Which farm should you choose? I am always amazed at the number of small farms that encircle Spokane County. Inquire at your favorite farmers’ market or check out the list of farms on the Spokane LINC Foods website at www.Lincfoods.com/linc-farmers. There is great value in the commitment to supporting local growers, but even greater is the value in feeding yourself and your family incredible produce. // (Beth Mort)

The post No Space, No Problem: Starting an Urban Garden appeared first on Out There Venture.

Henry Seipp
Shadle Park HS Drama Teacher
Bicycle Commuter for 6 years
(previously lived and bicycle-commuted in LA)

Sally Phillips
Computer Support, Federal Court House
Bicycle Commuter for 20 years

Grace Danborn
Works at REI (part-time) and Adjunct
Professor, English Department,
Gonzaga University
Bicycle Commuter for 1 year

Liza Mattana
Stay-at-Home Mom
Rides for errands, meetings and
transportation

OTM: IS SPOKANE A GOOD TOWN FOR BIKE TRANSPORTATION?

L: I think so. There is a variety of trails, there are a lot of streets that aren’t heavily trafficked by cars. A lot of arterials have wide shoulders and drivers share the road for the most part.

OTM: EVERYBODY AGREE?

H: That depends on the part of town you are in and the time of day, how busy the street is-but overall most people share the road. I lived in Olympia, WA for a while and thought it was a great place to ride, but the weather was terrible. It’s colder here in Spokane, but nine months of rain is really hard for riding. In Los Angeles, I lived three years and commuted along the beach-which was great but the wind and sand just wreaked havoc with my bike. For me Spokane is a great place to ride, it’s not raining everyday and there’s no sand.

S: I’m real active in the Spokane Bicycle Club. When new members come to us from other places they often talk about how great a place Spokane is to ride, how there’s not as much
traffic.

OTM: GRACE, WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO START COMMUTING?

G: I just really hate driving my car. Frankly I can just walk and bus pretty much everywhere I need to go. If you live in Browne’s Addition you can have a car-less existence. I’ve always ridden my bike for fun. I biked in Juno, Alaska, I biked in the suburbs of Denver when I lived there. But I was really, really, really scared of traffic. I also knew someone who got hit by a car and broke her jaw coming down the South Hill. That happened just as I was starting to bike more. That scared me. I think there are a lot of people who are closet bicyclists, who stick to the alleys or stay off the roads. If we can just welcome them in. Just knowing about the Bike Buddy program is great. It’s hard to just walk into a bike shop and say, this is where I live, this is where I’m going, what’s the best way to get there? The first time I went up the South Hill I tried to bike up Grand [laughter]. It was just ridiculous. Being able to talk to other cylists has just been great. The SRTC map was really helpful in terms of route planning. Now I only use my car to go skiing.

OTM: WHAT COULD WE DO TO GET MORE CYCLISTS OUT THERE AND MAKE SPOKANE A BETTER CYCLING TOWN?

L: It’s matter of being proactive and seeking information out. You have to talk to other cyclists. You have to look at maps and find out where your best routes are. A community cycling center would be great. More bike lockers in a central location would be great. There are a few of them in Park and Ride stations but some downtown would be a great help.

G: Also getting those maps up and out in more locations would be great. There should be some downtown at the bus center. The other thing I was really nervous about was commuting in the winter. But, I’ve been fine.

H: People will look at you like you are nuts. But we all ski, and people go snowshoeing. It’s the same deal. It’s warmer than skiing.

G: It’s not anymore dangerous than walking. Once you let a little air out of your tires and you are okay with the fishtailing it’s okay.

OTM: LET’S TALK ABOUT BIKE LANES
FOR A SECOND. IN SOME PARTS OF THE COUNTRY THERE IS CONTROVERSY ABOUT BIKE LANES-WHETHER THEY ARE A
GOOD THING TO HAVE OR NOT, HOW AND WHERE THEY SHOULD BE? WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT BIKE LANES?

H: One of my problems with Spokane cycling is the bike lanes. Just because they paint a white stripe doesn’t make it a bike lane. There’s tons of glass there, there’s tons of debris there, the pot holes are still there, the sewer grates are there. I can’t ride in it. I have to ride in the right hand tire mark. Especially this time of year. That’s why I don’t commute on my road bike. I ride my mountain bike. Some of the bike lanes and roads in Spokane you need a mountain bike for.

G: Even in the summer. I was biking up to Greenbluff and there’s just glass and trash all through the bike lane. You are just asking for a flat tire, and I got several [flat tires] staying in the bike lanes before I got out of them.

OTM: THERE’S AT LEAST A COUPLE
PLACES IN TOWN WHERE ROAD WORK HAS ELIMINATED OR SHORTENED BIKE LANES.

L: I’m not pro- or anti-bike lane. I think they are not maintained alot of times. I think they add to confusion alot of times-should I be in this bike lane? What do I do when the bike lane ends? What if there is not a bike lane? Does that mean I can’t be on the road? I think “Share the Road” signs can be great. I like the idea of “sharrows,” which is an arrow where that right wheel well is, so that people say “Oh, that’s where a person on a bike should be.” It’s detectable, you know where to look.

S: The bike lane I use the most is on South east Blvd. When I am coming off the hill everyday it is the most efficient way for me to get downtown. I use it all the time and it illustrates all the problems we are describing. The streets only get swept a couple times a year. There’s gravel and garbage, and all the debris that the car tires push over there. There’s no continuity there. From 17th to 25th it is a continuous bike lane, and then they start interrupting it. At the 31st it picks up again and dumps you out on bike-friendly Regal [laughs]. But I use it all the time anyway, because it is the easiest way and because I am one of those crazy cyclist that ride all year long and there are times you really need a road that is being plowed.

H: So are you using the bike lane or the street?

S: I won’t be using the street, there’s too much traffic there.

H: I’ve been hit by several cars in all of the cities I’ve been in and I’ve never been hit in traffic. I’ve been hit on a side street. Or I got hit on the sidewalk when someone was coming out of a parking lot. The best place for me is on the right wheel mark. When I’m coming down the South Hill, I’m passing cars. When I’m going up I’ll go in the bike lane because I’m going slow and I can look for glass. But for the most part when I am going 18-20 miles per hour, I am in traffic, I’m not on a bike lane, I’m not on a side street, I’m not on a sidewalk. Especially when it’s dark. In the summer when it’s sunny, I will ride wherever. But not on the sidewalk-I always feel that is the most dangerous place to be.

OTM: IF THE MAYOR, CITY PLANNING,
CITY ENGINEERING WERE LISTENING
RIGHT NOW WHAT WOULD YOU TELL THEM THEY SHOULD DO ABOUT BIKE LANES IN THIS TOWN?

S: I would asked them to describe what the plan actually is for the bike lanes. You can’t just paint a stripe in the road that runs six blocks and disapears into nothing. The impression we get from the way the city puts down bike lanes is that they are just reserving a space on the road until they need it for a real use, for a car. They will put it down for a while and then take it away when it is convenient for them.

OTM: LIKE SOUTHEAST BLVD.?
S: Yes. In several places.

OTM: SO YOU THINK THEY NEED MORE
OF A PLAN?

S: Yes.

H: If they do make a bike lane, the have to pave it all the way to the sidewalk. There shouldn’t be any parking.

OTM: HAS ANYONE ELSE BEEN HIT BY
A CAR?

S: I’ve been hit several times. Once it was definitely my fault. I was being too accommodating. I was too far over to the right. I was waiting for cars to pass me so that I could move over and do a left turn. A car passed me and that car masked the fact that there was another car coming behind it and I couldn’t hear it. I went right out in front of the car. The guy slammed on his brakes and I was just glad he had good reflexes. I just bounced right back up and took off. The other two times it was in the vicinity of South east Blvd. Where I was on the arterial and cars came from a side street and stopped, but apparently didn’t see me. They went right out into the street and hit me. In either case I wasn’t hurt, a bruise that’s it.

G: I had a crash once, but it was my fault. After I switched from my old Schwinn to my new Novaro, a car pulled out in traffic right in front
of me I could have braked more gradually, but instead I flipped right over my handle bars. I was afraid I was going to hit his car. I just kind of rolled up onto the sidewalk. It was at 2nd and Browne.

OTM: SO YOUR DISC BRAKES WERE
A LOT MORE POWERFUL THAN YOU WERE EXPECTING?

G: Yeah, it was the first week I had them. With my old Schwinn I would pump those brakes and say Hail Mary’s coming down a hill. It was definitely my fault, but it was also someone cutting right in front of me.
H: I’ve been hit by several cars, several times, even when I was a kid. Once I was in a bike lane and traffic was just flying by me, and there’s a ton of traffic, so there’s no way I can go into traffic. There’s a sidewalk on my right and an overpass too. So I am flying down this bike lane very fast. I go around the corner and and there is a bike going the wrong way on the bike lane. It’s this little old man with giant trash bags filled with cans all over his bike. All I can do is either careen into him, careen into traffic or try to bunny hop my old ten-speed up onto the curb. So I bunny hop this road bike and I bite it. I get hit by a homeless guy with aluminum cans. [Laughter] That’s why I don’t like bike lanes.

L: I feel like we should have a clause in there that if the bike lanes are well thought out, and if they are put on certain roads then they do make sense.

H: I think that would be great to have great bike lanes that were planned and maintained.

OTM: CAN WE CLEAR SOMETHING UP?
YOU NEVER RIDE AGAINST TRAFFIC IN THE BIKE LANE?

Everyone: Yes

OTM: WHAT WOULD MAKE SPOKANE A
BETTER BIKING TOWN? HOW CAN WE MAKE MORE PEOPLE COMFORTABLE WITH BIKING AS TRANSPORTATION?

S: I don’t know how we can make this happen because it requires culture change, but the faster the traffic is going the less margin for error you’ve got. If you get motorists to drive the speed limit instead of 12 miles over that would be nice.

I’ve been in towns, Mt. Vernon, for example, where 25 miles an hour is the speed limit all through town. I don’t know how to get people to think about the speed they are going in their car as something they are doing for their community.

H: Articles like this will help. I started riding to Shadle and because of me, I know I hear people saying “You know, I’ve always meant to do that.”

G: I think employers can help a lot by having showers on site. Or by offering some sort of incentive, like giving you a free lunch once in a while.

L: When I think of what you need for a bike-friendly city, there’s bike parking that’s well-lit and safe, maybe it’s covered. Those bike maps should be accessible to anyone, not just people in bike shops. Bike lockers …

H: What are bike lockers?

L: It’s a locker that you have for your bike. They cover the whole bike. They have them at some STA Park and Ride’s. You have to pay for them, but the problem is, there aren’t very many of them and they are usually spoken for.

L: Others things would be a cycling center like Seattle has, the Bike Station. You check your bike in, you pay a membership fee. There’s somebody there.

OTM: IS IT POSSIBLE TO MAKE CYCLING MORE OF A POLITICAL FORCE IN SPOKANE?

L: There’s a new bicycle advisory board. There’s work going on right now with the comprehensive plan and making biking a quality of life issue along with walking and “Near Nature, Near Perfect.” There is the potential for that to happen. I’m hopeful.

S: When the people who make the decisions, in this city, the funding decisions, decide there is an economic benefit to having a vibrant bicycling community things will change. It could be
that we will have to learn from the Coeur d’Alene experience where biking amenities and just part of public amenities in general. They’ve bought the idea that if you want people to come to your town and spend money you need to
provide them with a beautiful atmosphere, whether it’s artwork or nice bike lanes. It’s something that’s talked about but I don’t
know if it is accepted that there is a bottom line advantage.

H: What comes first, the city that has a lot of bikers so the city responds, or the city responds and that creates more cyclists? I don’t know what the city’s role is supposed to be. I just ride my bike and if more people want to join me I hope they do. I don’t know if Lance Armstrong has increased cycling’s popularity, or if the new interest in triathlons is doing it, but more and more people are cycling. Twenty years ago you [talking to Sally] were by yourself out there. Now, you must see are tons of people commuting.

S: They pass me all the time. [Laughter]

OTM: WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR
PEOPLE THINKING OF RIDING MORE? MAYBE THEY ARE THINKING OF RIDING A COUPLE DAYS A WEEK, OR MAYBE THEY ARE TRYING TO AVOID BUYING A SECOND CAR FOR THE FAMILY.

G: I have two things. A) Don’t be afraid to ask stupid questions about anything that has to do with a bike. B) Make a commitment to it. It’s easy when the weather gets gross or you have to haul things to say “Oh, I’ll just do this in my car.” For me that commitment is I am going to try to ride every where except Mt. Spokane. But your commitment could be just riding to work two days a week. Just make a commitment to yourself.

S: Check with your employer. That’s very important. One thing I’ve always been able to do is take my bike inside. If you leave it locked up outside because there is no alternative sooner or later it’s going to get stolen. Also, make them aware that you are doing it. When I first started I was really concerned that I was going to have a flat tire on the way to work and be late. But actually, that’s never happened. You may find out that your employer wants you to be a really healthy person, because it’s an advantage for them too.

H: My gut response is, it’s a lot easier than you think. If I’m in the car because I have to pick up the kids after work and I don’t get to go for my ride, I am more funky at work. When I ride the endorphins take over and make you feel good.

L: Give it a shot and go with what you have. Then talk to people. Our neighbors ride a lot now, compared to when we first met them two years ago, partly because they are excited because they see us on our bikes all the time.

H: People forget how fun bikes are. I get friends on a bike and they say “This is awesome!” Yeah, it’s a good time. The funny thing about bike commuting people think it takes such a long time. Whether I’m riding my car to Shadle Park or riding my bike to Shadle Park the difference is only a few minutes.

L: Talk to people who can help you, like the bike buddy program. Try to be a little bit prepared, so that it won’t be miserable experience.

OTM: WHAT ARE BIKE COMMUTING
ESSENTIALS?

L: A Water bottle. Maybe a map.

S: A tire patch kit or a spare tube.

G: Reflectors, a helmet.

L: Some kind of blinky light on the back so that people can see you.

OTM: IF SOMEONE CAME UP TO YOU AND SAID “I’M THINKING OF MOVING TO SPOKANE, BUT I’M NOT SURE WHAT KIND OF CITY IT IS TO BIKE IN,” WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO THEM?

S: It’s a great city to bike in. We’ve got the Centennial Trail, mountain biking, awesome road rides on the Palouse, pretty manageable city riding. It’s varied and wide open. Plus world class trials over in Idaho.
H: Plus Mt. Spokane. Sometimes it’s an issue how you are going to get over the river. But mostly it’s tremendous. It’s a nice city with four seasons but our winter isn’t that crazy or cold. It’s not that hot in the summer. Spring gets a little muddy, but the biking here is beautiful.

S: May is a great time to get started biking.

G: I think it’s great. You just have to watch where you cross the river and how you come down hills. You are going to get cussed at or yelled at eventually if you bike enough, but you’ll just move on with your life. It’s not bad at all.

My glad-to-be-alive meter is off-the-charts when I ride.

1. HIRE A DEDICATED CITY EMPLOYEE
for Bicycle/Pedestrian policy and implementation. Should be at least a half-time position.

2. COMPLETE A BICYCLE MASTER PLAN
FOR THE CITY. A crucial element for securing long range funding in big chunks. Could be a great tool for bringing economic development funds to Spokane.

3. COMPLETE THE FISH LAKE TRAIL. Especially the section closest to Spokane that links to the Sandifur Bridge.

4. COMPLETE THE CENTENNIAL TRAIL.
This includes many smaller projects including the Mission St. underpass, Argonne Bridge Westside underpass access, Stateline underpass, and the West Link.

5. SEEK BIKE FRIENDLY CITY DESIGNATION. The League of American Bicyclists awards this to top-notch cycling communities. Spokane should pursue this honor.

Local bicycle activist Loren Dudley spends a lot of time thinking about how to make Spokane a better town to bike. He’s Vice Chair of the Board of Directors for Friends of the Centennial Trail and owner of Silver Bike Tours.

The post Road Warriors: The State of Urban Cycling in Spokane appeared first on Out There Venture.