Oak Leaf Trail Biking: Greenfield to Franklin

On Sunday, Craig and I pulled the bikes out of the basement at last! It was such a long winter and we were ready to get biking again. While he pumped up the tires and got the bike rack on his car, I prepped food/drink items to bring on our journey.

We rode from near Hwy. 100 in Greenfield to Drexel Avenue in Franklin, nearly 16 miles total. We traveled on the Root River Parkway most of the way, sharing the road with cars, other bikers and runners. Here I am with Crystal Ridge in the background.

The last two miles or so were spent on a really nicely paved trail, next to houses, farm fields and marshy areas.

I failed in the prepping department, as I didn’t bring sunscreen along and much to eat. I didn’t expect that we would ride that far, so I learned my lesson for next time. My back is sunburned pretty badly! Ouch.

I wasn’t that hungry, just thirsty, so we rested at the halfway point and Craig enjoyed half of a protein bar. I think an electrolyte drink would have helped me.

Drexel Avenue, where we turned around on the trail.

I got tired by about mile 10, mostly just lack of energy and my butt was really hurting me.

Craig tracked our ride using his cyclocomputer and I used the MapMyRide+ app that I love so much!

After our exhausting ride, we rewarded ourselves with Kopps for lunch. Now that I am a vegetarian, I really miss the taste of Kopps burgers. I wish they had veggie burgers there! Craig got a double cheeseburger and I ordered a grilled cheese with pickles, fried onions and mayonnaise. I also enjoyed some French fries. The recovery meal hit the spot! I opted out of having custard for the first time in ages, but I am getting better with resisting treats! After all, I worked really hard to burn all those calories!

I hope we can go on a couple more long bike rides this summer (Craig already wants to go on another long one this weekend). I would like to get my bike out more for trips to the store or the farmers market.