I'm going to be bringing my bike to the city next weekend. Any recources for bike routes? Suggestions for good parts of town are also appreciated. I plan on doing some clothing and record shopping, and maybe check out some art galleries.

Check out the Cascade Bicycle Club's webpage. You may find their links webpage to be handy.

As khuon said, Cascade Bicycle Club is a good resource. They have good ride calender. If you are looking for a hard hill ride, check out the Cascade Club ride Hills of the West Coast. There are plenty of other rides of varying difficulty.

Another source of info is Seattle Department of Transportation. Their bike route map is pretty good. The Burke Gilman/Samammish River Trail is a nice ride, about 30 miles of flat paved trail, but it can get crowded on weekends if the weather is nice.

The Seattle Bicycling Guide Map can be obtained free at just about any bike shop. Bellevue ( across Lake Washington from Seattle ) has a similar map, and I think King County has one also.

If you are going to be above Lake Union, a really great ride is to Golden Gardens in (past, technically) Ballard. Anywhere that the Burke-Gilman trail will take you is also pretty great...go as far north as you want around Lake Washington.

The path along alki is rather nice, well paved and flat. The pavement kinda sucks after the path runs out though.

Just watch out for the chickens (or whatever those things are) at Bothell Landing.
Been years since i rode the BG, but i imagine they are still stalking cyclists.
Enjoy!

Yeah. I have gotten attacked by those before. Actually what you really have to watch out for are the kids chasing after the chickens trying to feed them or whatnot. Usually I'll slow down right before I go under the underpath (approaching Bothell Landing from the west) because that's a blind curve and you never know when two year old Tommy trying feed corn to the chickens is standing right in the middle of the path.

check out greenlake...its a pretty bike friendly area.
swing by recycled cycles in Seattle if you get the chance....I think its on Boat street

I like that ride - I continue south along Marine View Drive along the Sound, all the way to Des Moines, and then loop back to Seattle through Burien, White Center, West Seattle, and Pigeon Point. Nice and hilly, about 50 miles round trip. But you need the map if you're not familiar with the area.

Cool. Any fixed-gear friendly bike shops? They might have some stuff not sell here.

Yeah, well I know I saw some fixies in Recycled cycles last time I was home....someone even said they were dealing IRO's nowadays

I think one or more of the guys that work at Recycled Cycles are into fixies.

The one and only TRUE "fixed-gear" friendly shop is Counterbalance Bicycles in Queen Anne. Just ask for Adam or Peter. www.counterbalancebicycles.com

You could check out recycled cycles but ever since they switched over to "buy-a-new" cycles intead of recycled cycles they are just a waste of old junk parts and brand new bikes. All of the employees snag up the good used parts before they ever hit the floor and they will buy your used parts for pennies and "re-sell" them for way too much $$. Second Acent in Ballard is a quaint little shop they occasionally have good used bits but, bikes are not their fortay it is mostly used outdoor equipment.

If your a messenger visiting and want to "check out the scene" the monorail coffee shop at 5th and pike is the place during the week. But beware if your a fakenger they don't care for them.

The whole town is as bike friendly as it gets, but as others have suggested there are ample bike route guides for a clearer picture of where to go. More suggestions:

Ballard: Sonic Boom record store is one of the best in town. (They have a smaller one in Fremont.) Can ride out to Golden Gardens from here to check out the shore along Puget Sound. The Ballard Locks are also cool if you're into boats, fish ladders, gardens, and the engineering behind displacing large quantities of water.

Fremont: Lots of neo hipster shops. Conveniently located along B-G trail and other bike lane convergences.

U-District: More shops and record stores. Said Recycles Cycles always has a fixie or two locked up out front. Also along the B-G.

Lower Queen Anne: More shops and record stores. Home of Counterbalance bike shop, home away from home of many a messenger and fixie steed.

Lake Washington Blvd: If you want a super mellow, scenic road ride, this is lovely. Goes along the west side of Lake Washington. About 20m if you start in the UDistrict.

Burke-Gilman trail: If you start in Ballard and go all the way around to the Marymoore Velodrome in Redmond, it's about 60 miles of near flatness round trip. Lots of scenery and a good place to be mellow, but on a nice day watch out for the peds/dogs/rollerbladers/freds/hellonwheelsroadies, etc. [165], Habitus, friend-of-Habitus, and myself did the B-G this weekend out to the Redhook brewery in Woodinville for lunch and brews. A very fun trip, even funner when you're able to draft behind people against the returning headwind.

Glad to hear that you're bringing your bike out! You'll be happy you did.

Excellent suggestion! Redhook is a must-stop if you're on the B-G/SRT.




Yeah, there always seems to be a headwind when heading west.

yeah, next time you guys are riding up front!

everything's pretty much been said, jordache. nobody has mentioned anything about capitol hill, though. maybe that's because it's on a hill. broadway and pike/pine have lots of bars, places to eat, shop. from anywhere in the city, the ride up will make you sweat, but you'll be glad you made it up there (for the great views of everything--downtown, cascades, and olympics).

I highly recommend Cellophane Square on University Way. They have great selection but still have the "indie" atmosphere. And if you want something more mainstream, Tower Records is right next door.

Don't forget to take a ride across the I-90 bridge. Also head up towards Kerry Park for the quintessential view of Seattle.

Not my fault. I was hypnotized into complacency back there by the sound of my freewheel and derailleur. btw, just after we left you we saw your sweet ride's twin hanging in Recycled Cycles "museum"! We wanted to break her free of her tethers. Felt like such a crime seeing her hang lifeless in there after seeing your bike sing all day. Free the vintage Raleigh!!

Is second ascent that place that also carries used outdoor gear? I went in some random shop once when I was exploring a few years ago and found this mecca of outdoor stuff and bikes....but I can't remember now even what part of town I was in. Any help seattlelites?

Heh. I am, but I'm coming down on a Sunday. It's kind of amusing to know where the equivalent hangout for couriers is in another city, though. Thanks for all the info, harlot especially. Just what I was looking for.

Yeah habitus - I was totally stunned when we revisitied the shop. I forgot that was hanging in there. What a waste to suspend such a nice frame from a ceiling. Oh well.
Maybe I should grab it next time - that way we match when PEOPLE ON GEARED BIKES DRAFT US.

If you are vegetarian/vegan, be sure to check out the insane buffet at Araya's Thai at 1121 NE 45th. Oh my god, I ate a lot of spring rolls there.

There's also a Reload store in Seattle, isn't there? It was on my to-do list when I was there a few weeks ago, but I didn't have time to get to it. I was also told that counterbalance was the **** as far as fixed stuff goes. Again, I didn't have time to actually go there, but I was told it was a great shop.

m.