In search of bicycle trails: A relocation project.

RECREATION IN RESTON AND DC Reston, VA has long been admired for the way its visionary planner Robert E. Simon dedicated nearly 12% of Reston, his most famous project, to park land.   He went on to link these parks to the community with more than 55 miles of trails, hopping from one condominium project to subdivision to apartment complex to the downtown-ish Reston Town Center with winding pathways that plunge deep into the hardwood forests found in this part of the country.   The effect is stunning, and the town provides perhaps the best access to nature--the thing I'm seeking most on this adventure--of any town in America.    People can walk from their homes to just about any point in the town by paved trail, most of which is located safely away from cars.  In fact, it's startling to return to the noise and pollution of cars after wandering through the woods from park to park.  I wish I could say that I found my dream home there but I can't....

THE TRAILS OF RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK After a few days of touring around Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, I have discovered some very cool trails.  These towns have committed to making the region bike-friendly, and many of these trails are linked, creating a complex system of bike routes that allow serious cyclists to keep discovering new ways of discovering nature that feel far away from the city.   Here is a beautiful, long wide trail at the William Umstead State Park just west of Raleigh and north of suburban Cary.  This prize is linked to many other trails, giving riders easy access from the NC State University campus, the North Carolina Museum of Art grounds and the northern reaches of Cary, which is in itself a very bike-friendly town.  There is even a pedestrian/bike bridge that spans the 440 beltline (photo below.) The atmosphere at the nearly 6,000 acre park was sensational:  the crisp snap of fall mixed with oxygen-rich air, an almost complete sile...

  THE LAUNCH Doorways can lead many places.  This one, today, leads from a comfortable, warm home in Athens Ga, a town where I know and love and admire many people and have formed wonderful relationships.  The gate itself reminds me of its builder, Don Highfield, woodcarver extraordinaire and a good friend who has moved to Mentone, AL, an artist community on Lookout Mountain.  The gate it is certainly one of the objects I will miss the most from my home.  The gate, today, is leading away from Athens, toward an as yet unknown destination.   After seven years in Athens, I wanted to go someplace where outdoor recreation plays a much bigger part in the life of the community.   I’m looking for bike trails, lots of ‘em, and as close to my back door as possible.  I want the trails to issue a daily invitation to go wandering or cycling, to plunge into strange woods, to beguile me and bring awe.    In other words, to replace the four walls of my ...