105: the BEST kind of cross training involves adventure!

Before today I hadn't ridden a real bike since my middle school 10-speed in suburban San Jose. Clay's roommate Stephanie graciously let me borrow her mountain bike so I could test the mantra "you never forget how to ride a bike." And I'm happy to report, it's true! I survived the day without crashing or scuffing any knees or elbows.

From Clay's house at 19th and Vermont Street, we headed down Potrero Hill to 3rd Street to the ballpark and onto Embarcadero where we joined thousands of pedestrians and bicyclists kick off SF's first sundays event (click to read article). It was a great feeling to freely ride ON the street on our bikes, not being restricted to the sidewalk.

At Gate "B" to the left of the Ferry Building, we boarded the Blue and Gold Ferry bound for Angel Island with bikes in tow. For $15 round trip, bikes were no extra charge and left twice daily on the weekend, at 9:20 and 11:20am. It would have been ideal had we had time to pick up some snacks at the Ferry building itself, but the last Ferry was nearly boarding by the time we arrived. Snacks aboard the Ferry were reasonably priced...! We stowed a pretzel and peanut M&Ms for the trail ahead.

Per the Ranger's advice, we traveled counter-clockwise around the island on Perimeter Road. This made for an easier (less uphill) ride around the island. The views were fantastic with 2 bridge views, Belvedere, Berkeley and SF in our sites!

All in all, we rode 10.25 miles from Clay's house and back, including around 5 miles on the island itself. If you ever get a chance, I highly recommend this day trip. Couple suggestions would be to definitely pack your own snacks before getting on the Ferry. If you don't have a bike, you can rent one, and bring sunscreen and a camera!