Whenever I head north along the Sammamish River Trail, a gravel trail that breaks off to the east about 6 miles from Redmond frequently catches my eye.

Leaving my road bike at home, I recently paid a visit to the Tolt Pipeline Trail, left, on the used Rockhopper mountain bike that I bought to explore the many dirt and gravel trails in my big back yard.

This trail is the right-of-way for a water pipeline the serves the City of Seattle. The total distance of the trail, not counting the interruptions, is about 12 miles. I  bicycled the 7-mile central section from Sammamish River Trail to just above West Snoqualmie Valley Road.

Steep grades

Those of us who are used to the oh-so-gentle climbs on rail-to-trail right-of-ways will certainly find these steep grades challenging. The pipeline simply goes from Point A to Point B and the trail follows, with no grading to get in the way ...   more »

It was all about bicycles (all shapes and sizes), beer (New Belgium Brewery), bands (two of them) and babes (The Sprockettes) when the Tour de Fat rolled into Seattle on Saturday.

While the Blue Angels roared overhead, hundreds of bicycle enthusiasts celebrated the gasoline-free culture of the bicycle at Gas Works Park overlooking Lake Union.

The Tour de Fat is on an 11-city swing through the West this summer to raise awareness about bicycling as sustainable form of transportation. Proceeds from the Seattle event go to Bicycle Alliance of Washington and Bike Works. The next stop is Portland on Aug. 16 ...   more »