After 4 months of discussing the pandemic, riding in the pandemic and our new environment, my job has decided that business travel is safe again. So, I arrived in Minneapolis on Wednesday and will make this my home for the next 3 plus weeks.

I’ve heard a lot about what a cycling friendly city Minneapolis is, so of course, I brought a bike along to escape the long work days in my hotel room and to explore everything the twin cities have to offer.

Minneapolis and St. Paul are littered with bike lanes through both cities. I parked at Crosby Farm and rode down Shepard Road in St. Paul, along the Mississippi River, passing numerous parks, The Hidden Falls and through beautiful neighborhoods. Shepard Road brought me through St. Paul and into Minneapolis. I don’t know if everything was closed because of the pandemic or because it was 6:30am, but it was extremely empty as I cruised down S. Washington Ave.  I made my way up Lexington Prkwy. and hopped back across to St. Paul and dropped back onto Shepard Road.

Neither city is huge, but Minneapolis has a larger, more urban feel to it. St. Paul, while having its own trendy downtown, has a more suburban feel to it with seemingly less traffic. Together there are about 800,000 people in the Twin Cities.

Pedaling through Minneapolis was fun, but slow. The bike lanes are multi use and lots of people use them to walk, 2 and 3 abreast. So, extra attention is needed to avoid walkers and oncoming cyclists.

Minneapolis has a paved bike trail that goes completely around the city. This 50 mile stretch of well thought out urban thoroughfare is called the Grand Rounds. I Will check it out one day this week, although, I’ll need a very early start to avoid the foot traffic. I intend to bring my coffee and make the most of the morning. Stay tuned….