Mitch Rice's primer on a summertime cycling tradition
Recent weekends have been hot, so my trips have usually included a visit to a lake or cooling creek. Just coming into the Salt Creek valley can lower the temperature 5-10 degrees, summer and winter.
Salt Creek has several branches that merge to form Lake Monroe, the largest lake within Indiana's borders. Riding to and around the lake is a favorite Bloomington summer pastime, and I have been riding there twice a week now that evenings are so long. There is time to get home from work, have a snack, change and get on the road for at least three hours of daylight.
Many folks like to ride on State Route 446 on the east side of Bloomington, and there are several ways to visit Lake Monroe along the way. I prefer to begin riding south on the old Knight's Ridge Road when possible -- it's much quieter and curvier than the highway. SR 446 has a paved, but unsealed extra lane on each side, giving you room when trucks come by hauling their speedboats.
The shortest route to Lake Monroe is to turn right off SR 446 onto Schwartz Ridge Road, ride a mile or two across the ridge, and then down the long hill to Moore's Creek Road. Make sure your brakes are in good shape -- there is a stop sign at the bottom of the hill. Take the left turn and you will wind around a little, cross the bridge, and arrive at the lake. There is an unpaved boat ramp; this is the same spot you get to by riding down Stipp Hill, and it's a great spot to watch for ducks, herons and the occasional eagle.
Take Knight's Ridge Road to the end, (it crosses 446 about a third of the way, winding both east and west of 446), and you will see the Pine Grove log church, turn left on 446 for a few hundred yards then left on Pine Grove Road. It is a long, mostly downhill, ride to the boat ramp and the "Road Ends in Water" sign, which lets you know you are there. This area usually is quiet with a few fisherman or canoers in the water. On April 9th, we encountered an early flock of tree swallows trying to catch insects over the white caps on the lake, their iridescent blue backs were amazing.
If you stay on SR 446, the next entrance to the lake is the Paynetown Recreation area. Just ride 446 for a mile or two, there is only a foot of pavement to the right of the line markings, so watching behind is essential, especially on the curves. However, this is fast traveling and soon you're there. Take the right turn just past the Forest Service office, and ride down the long well-paved hill to the bottom where you can find camping, boating and a roped off swimming area.
Feeling your oats? Then skip Paynetown, and continue on SR 446 down to the causeway. Perhaps you will pull in on the left to watch the boats come and go at this busy ramp. This is only 10 miles back to town, so why not just continue up the hill from the lake, and ride the ridge south to Allen's Creek Road. Turn right and another long smooth downhill will follow. Ride the valley bottom for a while, and you will find the parking lot and boat ramp. There are trails for hiking and water all around--a great place for a picnic.
After some refreshing splashing, eating and maybe wandering in the forest, it's time to head back, with plenty of energy left to climb both big hills on the way back, no problem, mon! These down and back rides range from 20 to 35 miles, take your time and enjoy the summer, and drink lots of liquids.
Mitch Rice works for Indiana University's Office of Creative Services, which recently released some IU videos on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/indianauniversity. The first video is about Erik, a Little 500 rider. Mitch writes, "there are a few good shots of people riding in Bloomington, but when I watched I felt as if I was in an M.C. Escher painting. If you look closely at the scene at Sample Gates, you can see me for a second or two, sitting on my bike having my picture taken for my last blog post! Talk about serendipity or synchronic happenings, this was it."
