One effect of the new signs posted along the many miles of trails in Des Moines, for us, is that it has tempted us to go in new directions. So yesterday, we rode along the Waveland Trail from the Franklin Library south toward the Walnut Creek Trail (Am I the only one who can’t keep track of the names of theses trails?) to a point just south of 63rd Street and Grand, where we decided to go west instead of our usual east and see if we could connect to the Jordan Creek Trail we’ve tried off and on in the past.
We were able to go further than we remembered on a trail, crossing busy 63rd Street just north of the river and riding on a levee. But not too scenic. Very industrial with a gravel pit. After awhile we ended up coasting along E.P. True Parkway – a little too suburban and close to traffic for our tastes. We ended up in a pleasant pocket park near Fairmeadows School where we had a picnic, then wound our way back east through Valley Junction (stopping briefly at an art fair there) then got back on the trail at 63rd and Grand and headed our usual direction – East. Which we enjoyed even more after our ride west. We also stopped for the first time at Mullet’s – just south of Principal Park where we had a drink on the top deck with a superb view to the north of the big city.
I did find a map today of Jordan Creek Trail http://www.wdm-ia.com/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=297 and next time, it looks like we should head west from Fairmeadows School. And we should check out the new trail extension circles the 230-acre lake in Raccoon River Park.
TakeBetsywithyou 