Today marked the beginning of my weekly “cool season” bike rides along Beach Drive in Port Orchard. I’m using the term “cool season” to mean “not summer,” as almost every Sunday morning between mid-October and late May, I park my Tacoma in the Annapolis ferry dock parking lot (see photo) and ride east along Rich Passage toward Waterman Point and beyond. After today’s ride though, I might need to change my starting point.
The scenery on my Sunday bike rides is hard to top. Beach Drive is an ideal viewpoint for the eastern Olympics, downtown Bremerton, Bainbridge Island, and the state ferries and other boats navigating Rich Passage. I have seen seals, otters, Canada geese (in season), and every species of gull that calls Puget Sound home. One decidedly unnatural sight occurred a few years ago. That was a car in the water near the Veterans Home at Retsil.
Although it has no bike lanes or notable road shoulders, Beach Drive is a safe road to ride on Sundays. There’s almost no traffic, drivers observe the speed limit, and visibility is great. I have never had a close call on my Sunday bike rides.
Beach Drive’s biggest challenge is the wind. We are talking about a ride along the water, and often killer winds whip through Rich Passage, which is a long funnel between Puget Sound and Sinclair Inlet. On a windy day, stiff breezes can get you going and coming — the wind seems to know when I reach my turnaround point to head back to Annapolis and often abruptly changes its direction accordingly.
While calendar winter is still a couple of months off, I had to bundle up this morning. That meant wearing gloves, a helmet cover, sweatpants, and a heavy sweatshirt. At least, it didn’t rain.
Today, in a total surprise, I learned that the Annapolis ferry dock parking lot isn’t free on Sundays. Right after finishing my bike ride this morning, I noticed a Kitsap Transit sign near the pay kiosk that plainly states that the daily rate is $7 and it applies “Monday–Sunday.” This was after parking in the almost-empty lot on Sundays for years and never seeing anyone pay. So, next Sunday will be a decision time for me. Should I continue to park at Annapolis, or should I park at the Westbay shopping center, which has free parking and is less than a mile west of Annapolis?
