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Jillyfish on top of the world


Saturday's Peddle/Paddle was the event that I was most looking forward to! It was designed like so many biking adventures that Jillyfish and I had while in Hawaii. Often when visiting another place, one explores it, discovering its natural terrain and wondering at its scenic overlooks, exploring its rivers/oceans/lakes, etc. My view of Birmingham changed dramatically once I began to bike commute much as I did in Hawaii. I was quite stunned at how similar its terrain and natural beauty it was to the rainforest side of the Big Island of Hawaii. Although the forests were dissimilar in the types of plants and trees, both areas are very lush and green, with long climbs of reasonable inclination to get to town.


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It seems that the weather forecast of 50% chance of rain kept our numbers down a bit (we were on the better side of the 50% and had a beautiful day.) However, the riders that did come were quite wonderful and were of the mindset of enjoying the natural beauty rather than racing through it... which is what I prefer. I also had a rider who was attempting his first major climb on his new bike, which was the type of bikers I was hoping to attract and encourage! The only disappointment was that I was not able to bridge the divide between peddlers and paddlers on this date. Jillyfish and I were the only 2 that did the full pedal/paddle... perhaps on another day....


Birmingham Scenic Tour started from the back parking lot of Red Rain


We made a slight change in our route as we had a request from one of our riders to avoid traffic as much as possible. So we decided to skip the Botanical Gardens and instead re-routed through the residential side of Homewood until we reached Green Springs Hwy, very close to Lakeshore. We then rode the bike lane until we joined the Lakeshore Greenway.


Riding the Lakeshore Greenway


After a beautiful cruise through the greenway, we rode to the other side of Brookwood Mall and went the backway to Smyer Road, a long reasonable incline on a relatively secluded road that is one of my favorite climbs, especially in the spring when everything is in bloom and the scents are incredible!


climbing lower Smyer Road


stopping to view a potential cave that may be forming on Smyer Road


Wisteria overhang along Smyer Road


Rest Stop at the end of Smyer Road


From Smyer Road, we then went to what I believe to be the most incredible overlook in our riding area, Vestavia Drive. We rode along the ridge and the views of Vestavia, Homewood and Mountain Brook are absolutely stunning. We could see Vulcan over Red Mountain, and it least appears that we are at a slightly higher elevation. Needless to say, we found a nice spot along the ridge to stop and enjoy the view.


SI Reasoning atop Vestavia Drive


SI Reasoning, Kaye Barbour, Jim Johnson and Jillyfish at the overlook


Overlooking Over the Mountain communities


Next up was a visit to the Sibyl Temple at the top of Vestavia Hills. The Sibyl Temple was built by George Ward, a former Mayor of Vestavia Hills in the 1920's. It was inspired by his trip to Italy and the temple of the Vestal Virgins. This is also where Vestavia got its name.


Sibyl Temple in Vestavia


Sibyl Temple overlook


Kaye Barbour, Jim Johnson and Jillyfish in Sibyl Temple


After our visit to the Sibyl Temple, we escorted our riders back to Smyer Road as they did not intend to follow Jillyfish and I down to the Cahaba. We again took Vestavia Drive for a final glimpse...


catching a glimpse of Vulcan


Jillyfish and I then cruised down to the Cahaba, where a feast awaited us! Jillyfish was the creator of this magnificent feast utilizing local greens from Jones Valley Urban Farm, with the ingredients donated by Organic Harvest groceries in Hoover. We ate by the dam overflow at dusk and eventually joined the Cahaba River Society for their Moonlight Canoe Ride.


Tracy Ross displays our Organic Dinner on the Cahaba


Jillyfish kayaks the Cahaba River