Scottsdale: Via Linda

February 23, 2023

We've been doodling around the desert on the mountain bikes for a couple days with not much to report; no news is good news on that front.

This week we had a pleasant surprise invitation from Sarah Hanly and Alex Babich, friends from St. Louis. They are in Scottsdale for the week, just a couple hours up the road. Alex is taking a Plein Air class while Sarah is getting ready for a week-long bike tour of Death Valley. They have a spare bedroom and she could go for some company on the bike. Sounds like a wonderful idea.

After the short drive up in the morning we clip in from their AirBnb and pedal north through Paradise Valley to Via Linda Road. Sarah is a stinkin fast rider. As she puts it, "I'm a hamster, I just keep running on my wheel." Barry is delighted with the faster pace; I'm working to try and keep up.

Paradise Valley is clearly a prosperous community. Bike lanes are well-designed and clean as a whistle. The homes are beautifully landscaped and all seem to have a pool, although there are strangely few solar panels. From Via Linda we continue through a gated neighborhood to a bike path that takes us up to an overlook.

Enjoying the smooth roads, light traffic and sunshine.

The Pencil Cactus are thriving here with their little sticks glowing pink and orange

We loop back on the Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt, passing resorts, parks and golf courses. The scenery is pleasant although I'm not a fan of the sidewalk-like seams every four feet on the path. For greenways, the Tucson Loop path is hard to beat with its smooth asphalt and wild landscape. On the other hand, I'd give Scottsdale the edge on road bike lane design based on what I've seen. Overall this is a fine route for a ride in the burbs.

There's a lot of green grass in Scottsdale, and not just on the golf courses. Such a waste of water in the desert.

Two of the five horse sculptures of the Water Mark artwork in Indian Bend Wash. During flash floods, water pours from the horses' mouths.

It's good to chase someone new today. We average 13 mph, a notch up from the 12 mph pace I've been doing lately. Looking forward to venturing out tomorrow from the spas and golf courses of Scottsdale for a wilder ride in the desert.

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Today's ride: 42 miles (68 km)
Total: 372 miles (599 km)

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