Yesterday I got my bike out of the bike shop on the upper west side and decided to take a ride down the west side bike path instead of just getting on the train to take the bike home. Since I haven’t exercised in a few days I figure it would be a good thing.

While driving the streets towards the bike path was an adventure in itself as I had to avoid double parked trucks as I made my way across West 77th street. After avoiding a few cabs I managed to get my street smarts kicked in and took no prisoners attitude and rode with an aggressive attitude and I was much better off.

The bike path was much better than I expected. Finding it was kind of tough as I had to drive through a dog park to get to it. There was an entrance to the west side highway for cars that I almost made a mistake getting on until I thought about it and pulled over and asked a parks department worker who saw I was lost.

In the background of the picture you can see the boat basin which is a great place during the summer to stop and have a bite to eat. Behind that is the George Washington Bridge which is now a goal to bike up to since I found this bike path.

After using the restroom and composing myself from the aggressive street driving I headed towards lower Manhattan.

The bike path really is a cool place for runners and bikers alike. Some ways the path winds around playgrounds and stuff was pretty cool. After passing a few of these I ended up at the foot of a big cruise ship which was parked next to the the USS Intrepid Museum.

I grabbed a vitamin water from a vending machine at the USS Intrepid  which I had never seen up close before. Which I find amazing since I live in the city. I have just never been over here before. It is now on my to-do list to come back and spend the day. They have some cool planes on board, a submarine parked next to it and what I want to see “The Concorde” on the deck.  I have the feeling I will be back here in the very near future.

After taking a quick break I got back on the bike and past by the Heliport where they were doing some practice landings with Military helicopters which was pretty cool. The traffic on the bike path became a lot more congested as I approached Chelsea Piers. They even have traffic lights on the bike path and people directing traffic. I had to stop twice for pedestrians.

I made my way downtown and saw signs that to use the Brooklyn Bridge I had to cut across Warren street. I stopped to take a picture of One World Trade Center being built. Which I am sure that will be done next time I am in the area.

Since I was prepared for Manhattan bike riding from my earlier adventures I decided to man up and drive across town. It was now around 5 o’clock and people were getting off work and the streets were just packed. I made believe I was a bike messenger and just took the traffic as if I owned it. I had to get off the bike and walk across City Hall park as it was just too crazy on the streets.

I made my way up the Brooklyn Bridge and got back on the bike and it was just as nuts as tourist and people walking home from work had the bridge packed. The bridge does have a bike lane but with so many people and not enough room for bikes to pass each other in both directions it was crazy. I stopped in the middle of the bridge and took a few pictures and a video. I didn’t realize until I got home that the couple in the video must have just got engaged. She was not just giving him a kiss on the bridge, she was giving him a OMG yes kiss.

After taking a break for the video I took a picture of the bike in front of the plaque on the bridge and got on my way. Driving down the bridge was an amazing experience as I got the bike up to about 20 mph and for the first time I realized how good the guys at the bike shop did on my tune up.

I navigated the streets of Brooklyn to the Jay street station and took the train home. I had enough adventures for one day.

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