February
2013 - Sandpipers Bike Rides
February
5 – Bicentennial Boulevard Bike Trail and
International Museum of Arts and
Science (IMAS)
This
will be a new ride for us. We will park
at the IMAS which is on Nolana Avenue and unload our bikes. Bicentennial Boulevard is immediately east of
the museum and the bicycle trail runs north and south from there. We will explore this bicycle trail which runs
for several miles in each direction. The
ride will be on level paved surfaces.
The distance will depend on the weather, shorter if cold, longer if
warm. The ride should be between 4 and 8
miles. Following the ride we will visit
the IMAS. Lunch will be at Double Dave’s
Pizza on N10th Street near Trenton.
Admission to the IMAS is $5.00 per person for seniors.
February
12 – Hidalgo Pump House
The
historic Hidalgo Pump House sits along the Rio Grande River near the International
Bridge to Reynosa, Mexico. There is a $2
admission fee to the pump house grounds.
A tour of the pump house is available and in interesting look at the
past in Hidalgo County. This pump house
moved water north to McAllen where it was lifted again for its trip north to
Edinburg. The ride is on a paved trail
with a few sections of gravel. There are
minor elevation changes as we ride up onto the levee and again coming
down. We get a close up look at the
border wall as we ride along the levee overlooking the wall. The trail continues past reservoirs for the
irrigation system and then runs along the irrigation canal. Lunch following the ride will be at Logan’s
Restaurant on 10th Street in McAllen.
February 19 – Bentsen
Rio Grande Valley State Park and World Birding Center
Admission fee
$5 per person. Bentsen Rio Grande Valley
State Park and World Birding Center is accessible on foot or bicycle only. There is a tram tour offered several times a
day. Bicycle type touring cars (2 and 4
passenger 4 wheel pedal vehicles) are available for rent. There are numerous feeding stations with
blinds for viewing the wildlife at close range.
Many birds, javalina and other animals are seen at or near these feeding
stations. Bring: Camera, Binoculars, Bird Identification Guide (if you have
one). We’ll eat lunch at BJ’s Brewhaus.
February
26 – South Padre Island
South
Padre Island in the off season makes for a pleasant ride. We will travel together to the island leaving
Sandpipers gate at the usual 9:00 a.m. time.
Those who wish can travel independently and meet us at the Convention
Center parking lot on the north side of the developed area on the island. The group traveling from the park should
arrive shortly before 11:00 a.m. at the Convention Center. We will ride from the Convention Center south
to Isla Blanca Park. There is no
admission charge for bicycles entering the park. After riding through the park we’ll stop at
Dirty Al’s Seafood. Bring a bicycle lock for the lunch stop. After lunch we return to the Convention
Center. We will ride through
neighborhoods on the Gulf and Laguna Madre side of the island on the way to and
from Isla Blanca Park. The total
distance of this ride is about 10 miles on level paved roads. Bring a camera, water, sun screen and a bike lock.
All
rides depart Sandpipers gate at 9:00 a.m. Rides cancelled if no one shows up. If people show up we go! Supplies and equipment which may be useful on
rides are sun screen, insect repellant, water, camera, binoculars and a spare
inner tube for your bicycle. Tom carries
a set of tools including a tire pump and patch kit on all bicycle rides.
