SARASOTA, FLORIDA
This started as a review of the Legacy Trail. So I can start there. I stayed overnight in Brandon, Florida, and was headed south to Fort Myers. I wanted to ride the Legacy Trail but did not do my homework as to my starting location.
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I told Siri to find the Legacy Trail using both Waze and Apple Maps. Neither succeeded. When I ended up in Venice I made my way over on Venice Ave. to where I thought I would find the trail.
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There is parking at the bus/train terminal in Venice. According to TrailLink.com (which I should have noted) there is additional parking:
- Patriots Park (800 Venetia Bay Blvd., Venice)
- Nokomis Community Park (234 Nippino Trail East, Nokomis)
- Laurel Park (509 Collins Rd., Laurel)
- Oscar Scherer State Park (1843 S. Tamiami Trail, Osprey)
- Bay Street Park (300 Bay St., Osprey)
- Potter Park (8587 Potter Park Dr., Sarasota)
- Payne Park (2010 Adams Lane, Sarasota)
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I ended up at Nokomis Community Park. I found the trail and then headed north. I intended to head south for 1-2 miles knowing I was close to Venice. I thought I had parked east of the trail so a left turn would take me south. I also learned about the directional arrow on my Wahoo (after two years of using it). The N is not at the top of the map/computer but at the bottom of an arrow pointing up. And so when I was headed north the N was on the bottom of the screen which, in my mind, confirmed I was going south. Confused? I was.
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Did you know there is a 15 mph speed limit on the trail? You will as there are signs everywhere. Even this recreational rider, into the wind, had a hard time keeping the speed to 15 mph.
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The trail is straight. The trail is flat except for two overpasses. The overpass by the train depot at the southern end might be the coolest fixture on the trail.
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Being a Friday morning I can’t judge whether the trail was crowded by local standards. I saw very few runners/walkers and no dogs. Don’t they like dogs here? I also saw plenty of trikes. Not just three-wheeled bicycles but trikes ridden by the Amish.
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My initial plan was to ride the length of the Legacy Trail and back. Then I would meet my friend, Darrin, for lunch. But the trail has a reputation as being straight and boring.
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But any new trail to me is exciting the first time. The pavement was excellent, perhaps the best I have ever ridden. Smooth pavement and no tree roots.
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The trail lacks fixtures. No tunnels and no great trestles. There were a couple of bridges next to the old rail line but that was it if one was looking for rail history.
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The trail crosses some busy streets and I stopped and waited for the ped-head light at each. Some seemingly were pretty long which adds to a local complaint of the trail – too many at-grade crossings.
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When I reached the end of the trail in Sarasota I headed over to the waterfront. I wanted a photo at Unconditional Surrender, the statue that commemorates the kiss in Times Square at the end of World War II.
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I had already decided not to return via the Legacy Trail. Was it boring? Or was the coastal route more exciting?
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I headed out to Siesta Key. It’s a beautiful strip of land and overly crowded. There was a bike lane for much of it and I almost went down hard on it. At one point it was next to a sidewalk and I had to transition from bike lane to the sidewalk. I did not turn sharply but was going to ease over gradually. There was a lip and my tire caught briefly in it. But I made it and was very thankful I did not crash.
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Leaving the island I came to the Tamiami Trail, aka Hwy 41. There was a bike lane on this high-speed highway. I will stop short of recommending any highway riding but for this stretch neither would I discourage it.
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I was on the highway for six miles going south then turned on Blackburn Point Road out to Casey Key. I crossed a one-lane steel grate bridge over the waterway and was on Casey Key.
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What a joy this ride was. The next four miles were the finest four miles I had in Florida. I regret I could not capture it in photos. On the right side of the narrow road was the Gulf of Mexico. On the left side was the waterway/bay (Gulf Intracoastal Waterway). If there was enough room there was a beautiful home, maybe even a small mansion. This really did look like the most perfect place to live. Or ride.
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I rode back over to where I parked and decided I needed to the last mile of the Legacy Trail down to Venice. I was glad I did.
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The last mile or first mile features the Venice Train Station which appears to be a city bus and commuter parking center. Here is where the feature fly-over ramp is also.
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I finished the ride and then drove back up the highway to meet Darrin. Had I known where I was going and where we’d meet, I would have stopped in on my ride. Or if he knew he would have said to stop at Mad Moe’s in Osprey.
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But it was a beautiful day and we enjoyed sitting outside.
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Don’t miss the Ringling Brothers car at the Train Depot.
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