The Sauvie Island Bike Jam

[Jonathan Maus]

Greetings Bike Funners,

This Sunday, June 4, is the 2006 season opener for the Sauvie Bike Jam.
The Bike Jam is a group ride out to Sauvie's Island (clothing optional
crossing the St John's Bridge) to pick seasonal fruit 'til we're bored
followed by an olde-fashioned jam making session.

For you flat-landers, the current seasonal fruit is Strawberries.

Start Location: Peninsular Park Commons (http://www.penparkcommons.org/)
Start Time: 9:10 sharp! Coffee will be provided (berries keep best when
picked in the morning)
What to bring:
dollars
shallow tubs to place picked strawberries into (1 quart yougurt
containers work nicely)
empty canning jars, lids, & rings
jelling agent of choice, if you have one
beer
What will be provided:
sugar
house jelling agent
bike trailers for hauling back all the picked fruit
heat source and pots for sterilizing, cooking, etc.
canning jars, lids, and rings will be available at nominal cost (75
cents or so) for any flat-landers that don't already have such

Again, flat-landers are welcome. If you've never made jam, but always
wanted to, or not, don't let that dissuade you.

Cycle on,
-Allan

[Anonymous]

Jammin with Sauvie
Today we headed out with the Cougers for a berry picking ride to Sauvie's Island. While some folks would take heed of the 80% chance of rain and decline a trip on Hwy 30, we didn't let a few dark clouds spoil our mission for fruit. We headed out of North Portland and made our way to the bridge with nary a drop in sight. As we massed across the St John's bridge (sorry all clothes remained on) we got a slight sprinkle, but not enough to deter serious berryers.
Hwy 30 was the usual mass-cars/trucks and the mild sprinkle continued during a short stop on the way. With our mission bidding us on, we persisted in our quest for the berry. We conquered the Sauvie's Island bridge and swung around to the Sauvies island farm. Our timing was perfect and the drizzle ceased shortly after we arrived. Breathing in success (or was that some other smell), we cycled through the mud to the strawberry patch.
Yes we biked where few Trek Portlands' dare to go and persevered in our hunt for berries (Dat's never going to let me borrow a rainjacket again). The sky was amazing and the <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/60961560@N00/160636718/">views were so much the better for it.
Slaving away under the mostly blocked sun, we consumed almost as much fruit as we bagged. It took at least a half hour before I began getting sick of eating strawberries. But it was completely worth it and I had enough for at least 4 batches of smoothies. Some cougers among us never got tired of eating the super sweet fruit.
Getting out of the field was much easier than getting in due to my newly attached mudshoes. I could virtually float over the soil. We wandered through the rasberry field on the way out and found our mission for the next berry ride. As we all hosed off our bikes, we marveled at how an 18 lb bike could handle 10 lbs of mud. Finally we got the berrys and Cody wrapped up for the ride home.
Despite the tempting burrito stop (pre-pedalpalooza) I had to depart early to meet up for the Exchange Cycle Tours ride. Thankfully everyone wanted a shorter ride because I was already shleppin 9 lbs of strawberrys which my fellow riders helped consume. We had a nice spin along the Willamette, then after the Barbeque, we had another good spin.