"April is the cruelest month..."

     April always feels like "Are we there yet!"  A couple hours at a time we are teased to wear shorts and t-shirts only to go back to long johns and sweaters.  "Hope it doesn't rain," is what we cling to every time we choose to ride.  A little cold ain't bad, a little rain ain't terrible but together are just plain dangerous.

Of course the puddles and mud give the bike some real character, dirty the way a bike should be.  And, it's still a relief from the ice and abominable snow tires.

Turkeys are brave near the trails but scamper off to the safety of their natural camouflage. They go off in a huff, at the sight of an intruder on "their" trail.  

We get to welcome a new trail segment which, although only a mile long, 

connects an east/west route free of cars

all the way across town. 

Streams and ponds are coming awake

and a chorus of frogs is out to entertain.

After last year's tornado devastation 

the forest will be in recovery for years

while the early blooms are trying to wave goodbye to winter.