As my "theme within a theme" this year, I took advantage of being centrally located near many towns/cities in the Bay Area, and so visited a different city for each stop.
For the first ride of the Coffeeneuring season, I decided to take a longer trip up to Redwood City to visit Back Yard Coffee Co, a shop I learned about last year but forgot to revisit.
It was a fairly warm Bay Area autumn day, so the ride was pleasant (if a touch warm). Much of the route was along separated bike paths, designated low-traffic bike routes, or bike lanes, though Middlefield Rd was pretty stressful in the southern half of Redwood City (from the Atherton border to CA-84).
Since it was a warm day, I enjoyed a refreshing nitro cold brew coffee. Unfortunately, they were out of any pastries when I arrived; I could've used a bit of extra fuel for the ride home along the rolling foothills.
For my second ride of the season, I returned to a favorite from last year.
Los Altos continues to be dominated by cars, with a somewhat stressful ride down San Antonio being the primary route, but the bike parking situation has improved slightly.
Red Berry is clearly a favorite stop for cyclists cruising along nearby Foothill Expressway, with several bikes and lycra-clad riders resting outside.
I enjoyed my latte and waffle, and managed to return home before the rain started.
Trip #3 took me back into the hills to Konditorei, a place I'd discovered in online searches last year, but hadn't yet visited.
The ride up wasn't nearly as bad as I'd worried, given my lack of recent hill-climbing experience. A mix of bike lanes and not, though plenty of cyclists out, so drivers are fairly courteous.
The latte at Konditorei wasn't particularly amazing, but it's nice to know there's a stop here. I also took advantage of the taqueria next door to start my Burritoneuring challenge.
My favorite local coffee shop, slightly less local since I moved.
Mountain View has recently added more bike parking downtown, so riding here is a breeze.
Since it was election season, I enjoyed my pour-over coffee while researching. I didn't even manage to finish the county guide before my mug was empty.
5.1+ miles on Saturday, November 12, 2016 (Strava)
One of my favorite places in Palo Alto is in the back of a running store.
I got up early Saturday morning for the low-stress ride to Palo Alto's second downtown before continuing on to the theater. (Weekends are an illusion for those working in theatre.)
It's hard to go wrong with a drink from ZombieRunner; on this stop, I enjoyed their take on a dirty chai.
A fairly easy ride south along the Caltrain tracks to Sunnyvale's downtown. It's been a while since I've spent time along Murphy St in Sunnyvale, and quite a few new places have opened up, though Bean Scene has been here as long as I can remember.
The coffee wasn't particularly remarkable, but it was nice to visit again.
9.4+ miles on Saturday, November 19, 2016 (Strava)
My final trip was another stop "along the way" to the theater to a place I've been many times before, following much of the same route as trip #1. As in that trip, this route was mostly along low-traffic roads, bike lanes, and separate bike paths, for a rather relaxing ride. The tailwinds from an approaching storm helped keep my pace up.
I ordered Cafe Borrone's namesake drink, as well as a seasonal waffle, both of which came out much more dessert-y than I'd intended. I think I meant to order a Cafe Borgia.
