Lake Chelan Weekend 2022

Day 1

On Thursday, April 28, 2022, I headed to Chelan, WA, to spend a total of four days at Campbell’s Resort. I was going there to participate in the Lake Chelan Tour Lite. I had ridden it last year, three bike rides over three days, and really enjoyed it. This year, since Covid was declining, there was to be social events in the evening. Pus, I new a handful of the riders (last year I didn’t know anyone).

After unpacking at my room, I headed to the resort restaurant for some dinner. I had a bowl of clam chowder and a drink called a Pink Lady. I also ordered grilled veggies (asparagus, leeks, and fava beans) but was too full to finish them, though they were really delicious.

On my way back to my room, I ran into Katherine, who arrived from Boise, ID, and was planning on riding with me. We set a time to meet the next morning.

I had a room with a balcony overlooking the lake, so I sat outside for a bit, enjoying the evening.

Day 2

The next morning, I made a stop at Starbucks since the resort restaurant didn’t open until after the start of the day’s bike ride. I got a toasted bagel with some cream cheese and avocado on it, which really hit the spot. After eating, I went to dispose of my trash on the other side of the parking lot at the park. I went to hop on my bike to ride over to the bin but my foot got snagged in my pannier and I went crashing to the ground. I ended up with half a dozen bruises on my shin and elbow. Well, I was certainly off to a great start!

After meeting up with Katherine and Emma (another rider), we took off after the safety briefing. I was nervous about Boyd Road since it was a very long, steep hill. I barely made it up last year with my Rad Runner, which has a larger 750v hub motor than my Rad Mission, which only has a 500v hub motor. I also don’t have any gears and couldn’t down shift.

I did the hill in sections and was able to get to the top fairly easily. Yay! At each section, I would stop and take some photos, so other riders would just see me snapping away rather than it looking like I was struggling.

At the top of the hill, Katherine and Emma caught up with me. There was another long climb, but Katherine and I decided to take the shortcut and wished Emma well.

I was starving by the time we reached the lunch stop where I ate a ham & Swiss on a croissant, chips and chucked a can of Le Crouix. Later, we stopped at Blueberry Hill and got a free slice of pie (we both opted for the mixed berry).

After the ride, I rested in the room until it was time to drive to Vin Du Lac Vineyard for socializing with the bike club and some dinner. It was so nice of a setting and getting to talk to other bike riders! The new executive director, Lee, was riding this year, so he was at the social…so nice talking to him.

Our dinner reservation there was at 5:30pm, but the kids were stuck in road constructions. They (Marcus, Haylee and MJ) were to share my room at the resort, but since they were running late for dinner, they were going to drive directly to the vineyard first.

After dinner and back at the resort, I babysat MJ while Haylee and Marcus went out. They hadn’t had a night out for just bar hopping since before he was born. MJ was so good for me…he’s such a delightful little boy!

Day 3

It was raining on Saturday, so I skipped the bike ride. I just detest riding in the rain! Instead, I had brunch with the kids, then we took MJ bowling. The bowling alley had a set-up that raised bumpers in the gutter whenever it was MJ’s turn. He would get very frustrated when his mom or dad tried to help him…he wanted to do it himself! He would also exclaim that he was sad when his ball didn’t knock down any pins. He still did better than me or Haylee and came in second place!

Dinner that night was at Stormy Mountain Brewery, a local public house. Other bike riders were there, so that’s the main reason we chose this place. I had fish tacos and they were so good (along with a cold beer).

After dinner, I again babysat MJ while the kids went out.

Day 4

I got up early, ate a banana, loaded up my car with my luggage, etc., then started the bike ride an hour before everyone else. I wanted to ensure I was finished in time to go to brunch with the kids. They were treating me to brunch at Tsillan Cellars to celebrate Mother’s Day early (since I’ll be gone on the actual holiday).

Though it was sunny, it was still quite chilly the first half of the ride since it was mostly in shade through the canyon. I got to the lunch stop about 10 minutes after the rest of the bike riders just started the route from in town. After using the restroom, the support van showed up and started to unpack snacks/lunch. It was too early for me to eat, but I did eat some trail mix that I had along and made sure to drink water. Then I was off to finish my ride. I got done around 9:45am. The kids were up and mostly packed.

After loading the cars, we had time to kill, so we went and had a smoothy and did a little shopping in town at boutiques. Then we were off to the winery.

The views from the winery were amazing! The whole place was very opulent and I felt quite grand. Brunch was very tasty (though the server was a bit lacking).

We finished with coffee/drinks outside in the sun (it had warmed up to close 70°).

Too soon, it was time to drive back to Seattle. The weekend was so enjoyable and was the perfect balance of biking and family time!