You couldn't ask for a more beautiful day to ride. It wasn't even too cold this morning as we assembled in the parking lot at McGuire's. We chatted, did the pre-ride brief and then it was time to go.
Our group of 9 bikes pulled out of the parking lot under the BART tracks and made our way to 680 south. We rode down 680 to Sycamore Valley Rd and made a quick zig-zag over to San Ramon Valley Blvd. We went past the old shop in San Ramon and turned right onto Deerwood followed by another right onto Crow Canyon Rd. The ride through Crow Canyon was pleasant but we could feel the temperature drop a couple of degrees as we passed Norris Canyon Rd. Then it was a right turn onto Castro Valley Blvd and over to Rudy's Donut House, our scheduled stop.
We had some coffee and donuts and chatted some more before continuing on our way. We made a turn onto Redwood Rd and followed that north toward San Leandro Reservoir. Shortly after turning onto Redwood Rd we had a group of road rockets pass us heading for the twisties. We never saw them again as their pace was a bit faster than we were riding. Then we were into the twisties and our leisurely pace allowed us to steal glances at the reservoir and roadside scenery along the way. There was a huge bicycle presence on this stretch of road. Must have been some sort of special event. We made a right turn onto Pinehurst Rd and then over to Canyon Rd. feeling the temperature
changes as we rode in and out of the shadows. This is a fairly narrow stretch of road through the trees and at one point we encountered a Range Rover heading the other direction, straddling the yellow line as he passed several bicycles. We managed to stay well to the right of our lane so as not to become Range Rover hood ornaments. We continued down the hill on Canyon Rd into Moraga where Canyon Rd turns into
Moraga Rd. We turned left onto Rheem Blvd followed by a right turn into the Chef Chao's parking lot.
After parking the bikes we went inside to find sustenance. The restaurant was ready for us with several tables pushed together and servers awaiting our arrival. The food here was very good and reasonably priced. You should definitely plan on eating here if you're in the area around meal time.
Once we'd eaten our fill we made our way back to the bikes for the ride home. It had warmed up significantly and we all packed the jackets on the back of the bikes and rode home in sweatshirts or T-shirts. People began breaking off here, heading in different directions. We went back to Moraga Rd and took that into Lafayette where we hooked up with Hwy 24 back to 680 and then on Hwy 4. As I neared my house the sign at the school said the temperature was 78 degrees. It was warm, but I didn't think it was that warm. When I got home I checked our thermometer. It said 77 degrees, so I guess it was that warm.
Another day spent riding and talking with friends. What a great day!
See you all tomorrow for the delta ride ...
