Day 2 and a Merry Christmas to You!

Christmas Day and the rain is coming down. It's about 37 degrees and I've got a plan to log 30 miles before my third son arrives on the train from Eugene.

As I look out from the garage, I notice there is ice on the windshield of the car. I check the driveway and find it is not icy. Good news! I hop on my bike a little before 9:00 (the boy's train arrives at 11:00) and head out for a two hour slog in the rain.

I get on the trail at the bridge over Yelm Hwy. All is quiet on this Christmas morning. As I head north on the trail, I pass a few people out for walks with their dogs. I wish them a Merry Christmas as I pedal by.

I reach the end of the trail at Woodard Bay. I leave the trailhead parking lot and continue north on the road. At Libby I turn right. As I continue north, I toy with doing Fishtrap Loop, but opt to turn at 81st. It is still in the upper 30s and raining steadily. Turning on 81st means I have to go up the steep hill to Zangle, but I figure that will serve to warm me up. Not that I'm that cold, but I can feel the cold water seeping into my shoes. My New Zealand possum/marino socks were still wet from yesterday, so I have other, seemingly less warmth locking, socks on. Just have to pedal faster...

I ride the ups and downs of Boston Harbor Rd back into town past Priest Point Park. Due to the lack of traffic, I easily navigate the intersections of State and 4th and turn up 4th to Eastside. From there I head over to the Woodland Trailhead. From the trailhead I know how many miles it is to home. I calculate I'm going to be just shy of 30 miles. When I get to the bridge over Yelm Hwy, I continue on to the 67th/Horizons trailhead and ride through Horizon Point and back to the house. I think of riding over to the train station to meet the boy's train, but I am now rather cold and, instead, head straight for home and a hot shower. As I walk in the house, it turns out his train was early and he is already home.

Day 2 of the Festive 500 is complete.

Total miles for Day 2--30.8 (49.6km)
Total Kilometers remaining of the Festive 500--206.5 (128.3 miles)