Creating an enjoyable commute

By Lee Trampleasure

Most days I ride my bicycle to work. Getting there in the morning is a two-mile ride that takes me about ten minutes. But on the way home, I have more time so I add about five miles to my ride and ‘detour’ through Robinson Preserve. This gives me almost four miles meandering through a salt marsh on dirt trails, paved trails, and a few bridges/boardwalks.

  • photo of a cyclist on a boardwalk over a lagoon
    Boardwalk over a lagoon.
  • photo of bicycle on kickstand in front of bay
    One of the openings to Tampa Bay
  • About a half-mile of the route is on an unpaved trail with a tree canopy.
  • photo showing a gravel trail with shrubs on both sides.
    Once out of the narrow trail, there’s a half mile on a wide gravel path.
  • Photo showing a paved path through trees.
    Now the route is paved (but lots of bumps from tree roots pushing up).
  • photo showing bike with lagoon behind some shrubs
    Riding close to a lagoon where I have spotted flamingos.
  • photo from a bridge showing three people net fishing in a lagoon.
    Almost out of the Reserve, there’s another bridge over a large lagoon.
  • Photo taken from an overpass showing a lagoon under it
    Once out of Robinson, I have 1.5 miles on a multi-use trail.
  • Photo showing a multi-purpose trail between a large road and a bay
    I could ride in the bike lane on Manatee Ave, but I prefer the multi-purpose trail just north of it.
  • photo showing a tree-lined street
    A couple of blocks on quite, tree-lined streets.
  • photo showing flowers in panniers on a bike
    A quick stop at the grocery store to buy flowers.

Due to the many of the trails being multi-use with posted speed limits of 10 MPH, my average speed slows considerably (yes, I purchased an ebike for my hot, humid Florida commute, and I can easily average 15-20 MPH on most rides). But the enjoyment and mindfulness from this slower pace is irreplaceable.

Take a look at your commute. Can you find an alternative that will be more relaxing and enjoyable? If so, maybe you can’t do it every day, but try to fit it in once or twice a week.

I added a similar ‘detour’ to my commute home when I commuted from the South Bay to San Francisco. The last portion of my route home was on trails through John McClaren Park. The photo below seems to be a bit stretched out of proportions, but if you slide it around I think you’ll get an image of what the trail was like.