What Does Mercer Island Look Like In The Snow?

The mail still came through the sleet and snow, and cheerfully–

even though none of the side streets were plowed today:

Folks were driving on Island Crest Way when I took a walk this afternoon. It had been plowed but covered again in snow:

The buses were out too, as were the police, and some Mercer Island plows.

There were lots of people walking around Mercerdale enjoying the snow,

at least one intrepid biker,

and a passel of people boarding, sledding and skiing at Homestead Park.

I wasn’t crazy enough to go into work today, as 520 was closed and there were accidents everywhere. Did you go, and if so how was it? Anyone do anything fun at home?

Oregon Likes Our Bridge

I was delighted to see this enthusiastic review of the I-90 bridge bike path, by the Oregonian. Excerpt:

“The crossing of Mercer Island is through a string of neighborhoods and pleasant parks, though the bike path is a bit confusing as it joins the sidewalk to pass in front of the island’s park and ride.

They’re right- it’s a nice bike lane. I couldn’t help but feel a little proud, even though I had nothing to do with the design or construction of the bridge. Even the Blue Angels love it:

A Blue Angel at Seafair this year, getting about as close to the bike lane as you can in a plane.

Bonus Link: Santa Fe Follows Mercer Island’s Lead

In more random news from places that are not Mercer Island, the Political Ticker reports that the New Mexico Sun News called the election for Obama. If you’ll remember, this blog did just that a few weeks ago, based on the number of political signs up for Obama. We restricted our headline to Mercer Island, but we were glad to get out in front of the number of news outlets and blogs that calling the election.

Helmet-Cam Video Part 2: I-90 Bridge

jputnam’s at it again, taking weirdly engaging helmet-cam videos of the bike paths around Mercer Island. Here he is riding over the I-90 bike bridge from Mercer Island.

The middle of this video is a little less interesting than jputnam’s last helmet-cam video, mostly because the path is straight and you don’t get the exciting feeling of being about to fall off your bike. But when it gets hard to commute in the winter, this is a good way to remind yourself how much fun it is.

Credit: jputnam on flickr.

Helmet-Cam Footage of Mercer Island Bike Path

Found this video from jputnam on Flickr of someone riding across the MI bike trail with a helmet cam on. It’s surprisingly exciting to watch– I found myself swaying from side to side trying to balance the bike that I was not actually on.  Watch it- contrary to what I’d expected, it’s gripping. Seriously.

For those of you who’ve read about bike commuting but have yet to try it, here’s a virtual taste.

I think the sound is the best part.

The Roanoke Inn: Your Favorite Local Bar

Maybe I’m being presumptuous, calling the Roanoke (The “Roey” to its friends or long-time Island residents) your favorite bar. But you’ve got to love it. Its best features include:

• Just off the bike trail and I-90
• A welcoming pub room and lawn seating
• Good beer that distracts from the passable pub food
• Formerly a brothel right off the ferry landing

I think I’m close to getting my Wed morning bike friends to stop there for a drink after our ride, and I don’t even know if it’s open that early.

Convince your East Side and Seattle friends to meet there, it’s more convenient for you. Or just turn up on a summer afternoon because that’s what summer afternoons are for.

I was at the Roanoke at happy hour a few weeks ago. While I’m here, I thought, let me satisfy my curiosity about what really goes on at the Roanoke. The plaque outside told me the place was built in 1914:

But I wanted to know more. I asked three of the staff about the place, all of whom referred me to Maggie. After a bit of loitering I was finally able to find Maggie herself.

• Who comes here? I asked. “It’s a really local crowd. 70% are people we see 3, 4 times a week. Lots of bikers: both motorcycles and cyclists.”
• I asked if there were any bar fights. She laughed and said no. I pushed a little, hoping for great story,  but she stuck to her answer- I guess Mercer Island isn’t a big bar fight town.
• Thursdays and Fridays, from about happy hour through dinner, are the busiest times. It seemed so to me- happy hour was busier than I’d ever seen it in the evening or weekend.

That’s it- the back story of the Roanoke Inn, straight from Maggie, who’s worked there for seven years. If you have special memories of the place, feel free to contribute them. And now you know: If you want to make Mercer Island history, you can start a fight at the Roanoke. But I suggest you just have a beer.

Bike to Work from Mercer Island, Part 1: To Downtown

Friday was Bike to Work day. It’s Bike to Work month. We live on an island in the middle of Greater Seattle, so everywhere’s convenient. Except Lynnwood.

Here’s a photoessay of biking to downtown Seattle from Mercer Island from my ride on Friday. I was running a bit late for a too-early meeting and didn’t want to stop to take photos, so please forgive any shakiness.

Commuting from Mercer Island to Downtown

Step 1: Get to East Mercer or West Mercer Way. Island Crest is way too busy. The Island is quiet and pretty in the morning.

Step 2: Where the bike lane crosses the road, take a left. Keep going til you’re on I-90.

Step 3: Enjoy the ride over the I-90 bridge; consider that people living in Iowa don’t have bridges. Check whether Ranier is out. Notice that you ride away from the sun and get great light.

Step 4: Coming off I-90, stay left to go through the bike tunnel and over the I-90 lid. On bike to work day, there was a little rest station right off I-90.

Step 5: Stay on the bike path by the Colman Playground and the old Colman School. Even if you don’t commute, you should check out this great city ride sometime. Wave to the other bike commuters!

Step 5: After you pass the old school and cross 23rd St., you’ll head down a big hill. At the bottom you’ll be at Rainier Ave. You might get hit by a car if you bike on this road. Instead, stay right on the bike path, which will drop you at Hiawatha Place across from some new townhomes. Take a left, and go around two roundabouts until you get to Dearborn St.

Step 5: Take a left on Dearborn and cross Rainier. Lots of riders chose to turn right onto 5th Ave South and go through some of the quieter avenues to points further, rather than follow the busy traffic onto Airport Way and 4th Ave. South.

From Dearborn, you can get into the I-D, Pioneer Square, downtown or anywhere.

What about riding home, you ask? Well, instead of commuting back I decided to go out for happy hour. My husband met me out and I hitched a ride home with him. It was Friday, after all.

Biking Bis and the folks at Piknik also harnessed angular momentum to get to work Friday. And Kent’s Bike Blog put up some useful Seattle bike maps.

Commuting to the Eastside/ Redmond

Watch for Part 2, commuting to the Eastside. The route is complicated and dangerous, so this will be an exciting post. We might even do a round trip for this part.

Outtakes

Right, blog posts don’t usually have outtakes. Well, if you ride to work while taking photos, you’ll get outtakes.

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