Jam Room Music Festival's Bicycle Events

Jay is celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Jam Room Recording Studio.  In honor of those years of working with bands to create great music in Columbia, Jay hosted a music festival on Main Street on October 13, 2012. He had a great team of people who helped make it a phenomenal event, with a bicycle ride and valet bicycle parking. In the planning stages, one of the things we wanted to do was make the festival bicycle friendly. We had bicycled to other festivals and found it a challenge to park our bicycles. Plus we knew that a number of festivals have 5Ks associated with them. What could be better than a morning bicycle ride to get people ready for beer and live music.

I got in touch with Natalie Britt, the director of the City's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC). They were super excited about the festival and the bicycle possibilities. At the same time, in conjunction with the Palmetto Conservation Foundation (PCF), the were starting the Handlebar Happy Hour series. The events are family friendly gatherings meant to foster open discussion about topics the bicycling and pedestrian community faces on a local and statewide level. The Happy Hours, held on the second Wednesday of each month, include organized bicycle rides to the Publick House. We decided it would be fun to kick-off the festival bicycle events with a Jam Room Music Festival themed Happy Hour. Tunes from the Jam Room 300-song compilation and the 25th Anniversary LP set the mood. We gave away some T-shirts and other swag, and a representative from Citizens for a Greater Midlands discussed the Penny referendum and benefits this would bring to cyclists and pedestrians. It was a fun evening of beer and bicycles.

On October 4 at First Thursday, we kicked off the festival with a screening of the documentary, 25 Years and Counting, produced by Wade Sellers of Coal Powered Filmworks. It was also a night of celebrating the opening of the new Nickelodeon Theater on Main Street. To celebrate, the Nickelodeon hosted a parade down Main Street. We decorated our bicycles and pedaled down the street promoting the Festival. It was a blast!    

On the day of the festival, bicyclists converged in the Vista at River Runner. Thirty or more cyclists joined Jay and I as we pedaled around Columbia in the early morning. We rode through USC, passed 701 Whaley, went up Heyward to the Holly Hill neighborhood, down Rosewood Drive, passed the Jam Room, and through Shandon. We continued down Devine Street through Five Points and campus, passed the Historic Columbia Foundation sites such as Mann Simons. We ended the ride traveling down Main Street to check out the new market, Soda City and then pedaled through the Vista Greenway tunnel back to our start location in the Vista. A map of the route can be found here.  The overall consensus was that Columbia needed more rides like this! 

Later in the afternoon, we organized a number of rides from different neighborhoods to the festival. The idea was that bicyclists would start riding from West Columbia, Earlewood, Rosewood, and Shandon to converge at the festival around 2 PM when it started. These rides were largely unsuccessful, but thank you to everyone who worked to make this happen.

What was successful was our bicycle valet! The BPAC and the PCF coordinated free and safe bicycle parking in Boyd Plaza in front of the Columbia Museum of Art. Bicycles were parked on barricades and watched by great volunteers, including the Regulators Derby Team. Bicycles were out in force. Over 100 bicycles parked at the valet and there were bicycles parked all around the festival on parking meters and light poles.

Thank you Columbia for making the Jam Room Music Festival a great music event AND a fun bicycle friendly celebration of 25 years of the Jam Room! I'm looking forward to more! So get your bicycle tuned up and put air in your tire. You don't want to miss the next one.
 

What Are Swamp Rabbits?

Jay and I recently took a trip to Greenville. He loaded our bicycles on the back of the car and we set out for an overnight adventure. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express, which is located conveniently on Main Street downtown. We usually prefer more mom and pop type hotels, but we wanted to ride our bicycles - not drive.

We pedaled down Main Street to Falls Park on the Reedy River. Columbia sure could take some lessons from Greenville. They have created a great park that utilizes the location on the river.  Liberty Bridge crosses the river providing a nice view of Reedy Falls. They have also developed a series of multi-use (walking/bicycling) paths that connect downtown to other parts of the city.

Called the Swamp Rabbit Trail, the greenway traverses along the Reedy River, an old railroad corridor and City parks to connect Travelers Rest with Greenville. On our first afternoon, we pedaled north and south on the trail from Falls Park.  It was a beautiful ride past shops and restaurants, scenic vistas, industrial parks, and old airplanes.

It was getting to be about Happy Hour time and beer and bicycling always go together. We decided to check out The Velo Fellow in the West End Market.  The Velo Fellow is a cross between The Whig and Hunter Gatherer. We sat at the bar where they had Highland St. Terese’s and Murphy's Irish Stout (among others) on tap. Vintage bicycles hang on the walls, making this a great place to stop after a ride.

We enjoyed the atmosphere and the company of the bartender so much that we decided to stay for dinner. The fish and chips were delicious. Jay had the Chicken Potted Pie and it looked pretty tasty. Next time I'm going to try their daily curry.  We ended our evening with a cocktail and a dessert at Coffee Underground. 

In the morning, we hopped on our bicycles and pedaled to Travelers Rest. One of the coolest things about the path is that it utilizes space that may not be seen as the "best areas". It extends down an old railroad corridor, along transmission line and gas pipelines and through old industrial neighborhoods.













But bicyclists and walkers are also transforming it. There are bicycle shops, restaurants and bathrooms along the way.  I know it's weird to get excited about public restrooms and water filling stations. In this day of privatization of water (where we buy too many plastic bottles of water) and businesses that only provide restrooms for paying customers, I can't help be excited.

Pedaling along to Travelers Rest, we came across Alley Kat's Watering Hole - complete with a bicycle rack! Unfortunately, it wasn't open. That's just another reason to come back again. 

In Travelers Rest, we stopped in Main Street Guitar & Drums. This building is full service - hardware store, music store and recording studio in one - complete with Rush Limbaugh on the air waves. We followed this up with lunch at The Cafe @ Williams Hardware. I had a delicious black bean burger with a side of apple, Gorgonzola slaw. Jay had a Rueben, which he always likes. We topped this off with a couple of bottles of beer - Yeungling Black & Tan for Jay, Sweetwater 420 for me. This is a great place to stop along the way since they have plenty of bicycle parking and indoor and outdoor seating.

I'd also suggest stopping at Swamp Rabbit Cafe & Grocery. It is closer to Greenville. It's a small grocery shop/cafe that reminds me of England. They have the most delicious desserts as well as lots of locally made food - bread, cheese, chocolate and beer.

So what is a swamp rabbit you ask?  What is this multi-use greenway in Greenville named after?

It's the largest of the "cottontails". As the name suggests, the rabbit inhabits poorly drained river bottoms and coastal marshes. It is well adapted to a semi-aquatic habitat in that its dense fur "waterproofs" its skin, making it at home in the water.

So we finished up our day back in Greenville with a pint at the Blue Ridge Brewing Company.  I had a pint of their tasty Rainbow Trout ESB. Jay had the Total Eclipse Stout. 

I'm looking forward to the next trip to Greenville.  



 

Summer Storms, Waterfalls and Picnics

Driving north to Dupont State Forest, we looked forward to a few days in a temperature cooler than Columbia's 100 degrees.  We opted to drive through Hendersonville (rather than Hwy 11) in order to pick up a few last minute provisions on the way. Once we left Hendersonville's city limits, we watched the numbers on the thermometer drop. We made a friendly wager on what the temperature would be when we reached the forest.  Laura said, she thought it would be 86. I said 88 and Jay said 89. We weren't asking too much. In the distance, dark storm clouds hovered over the mountains. As we neared, we turned the air conditioner down as the temperature gradually passed each of our predictions to a pleasant low of 76. The cooling effect was brought around by a magnificent thunderstorm.

Main house at Black Forest Campground

Cabin 617

We picnicked on the porch of our cabin at Black Forest Campground and watched the rain. As we pondered a trip to Brevard, the sun began to shine. Jay and I opted for a bicycle ride.We left Laura lying in the hammock reading a novel and headed out for a ride.

Grassy Creek Falls

Dupont Forest is crisscrossed with singletrack trails and old country roads that wind up and down mountainsides.  Make sure you take a map.

Map of Dupont Forest

This trip to Dupont Forest was highlighted by a series of sky crashing, earth cooling, thunderstorms. Our days were marked with a thundering foreboding and ended with the sun peaking out from behind the clouds. On Day 2, we parked in the Lake Imaging lot. We bicycled to Grassy Creek Falls and around Hooker Creek Trail. Thunder could be heard in the distance. We passed a group of girls pushing their bicycles up a steep incline.  I could smell the rain coming.  Yet we were at least two miles from shelter. The sky was turning dark. I pedaled hard, sweat dripping, dreading the thought of the rain beating down on my glasses. We made it to the shelter at Lake Imaging within minutes of the rain pouring down.

Lake Imaging

Picnicking Day

Dupont Forest is known as the land of waterfalls. Day 3, we parked at Hooker Falls. We biked up the road to the High Falls Access Area. We cycled through the covered bridge and around to Bridal Veil Falls (which are famous for their appearance in The Last of the Mohicans and The Hunger Games. We followed the trails around Jim Branch to the new Holly Hill Road back to Hooker Falls.

Bridal Veil Falls

Picnicking Day 3

After a picnic lunch overlooking the creek, we headed up to Triple Falls. The thunder started rippling through the mountains. We hiked up amid families heading up the mile long trail to see the falls. We made it up to the first fall, before Jay recommended that we turn around. Jay hurried ahead to get the car. As we made it to the road, he pulled up and the rain started to fall. 

Triple Falls

No better way to spend a few days - thunderstorms, waterfalls, and picnics with friends.

A Night in Charleston

I love going to Charleston in the summer time. I'd love to spend a week at a time, but sometimes my schedule just permits an overnight. I like to stay downtown or at the beach, but I really dislike spending a lot of money on a room. Fortunately, I discovered the Not So Hostel a couple of years ago. It is a European style hostel, with shared and private rooms. The hostel's annex, located on Cannon Street, has a number of private room with shared bathrooms. On this trip, we discovered that the Kendall Room has a private bath. This is a great location for getting around Charleston.

After a trip to Sullivan's Island where we drank a couple beers on the beach and did some people watching, we checked in to Not So Hostel. From the hostel, King Street is a short walk. We got on our bicycles and headed out for dinner and drinks. Jay has wanted to try Jestine's Kitchen the last few times we have been in Charleston. This trip, we timed it perfectly and had a delicious dinner of lowcountry fare in the small restaurant on the corner of Meeting and Wentworth Streets. People line up down the street for fried chicken or a seafood platter. It is a bit touristy, but good. 

After dinner, we bicycled down King Street to Battery Park. I love riding along the Battery, with the wind from the harbor blowing through my hair, admiring the architecture and the sailboats, and watching the fishermen cast their lines. We stopped by the Charleston Beer Exchange, one of my favorite shops to stop in while in Charleston. picked up a six pack of one of my favorite beer's, Anderson Valley's Summer Solstice. This beer is summer time. 

We decided to stop in the Blind Tiger Pub on Broad Street. I had to ask the bartender which ESB he had on tap, because I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. It was Fuller's ESB, an ale I have not had on draft outside of the UK. I enjoyed this tasty brew outside in their nice brick walled garden. 

For breakfast the next day, we bicycled over to Jack's Cafe. Jack's is a little greasy spoon with a hometown feel. After another bicycle around the streets of Charleston, we head to Isle of Palm County Park for a day on the beach. Since we were driving back the same day, we decided to park at the county facilities since they have bathrooms, outdoor showers, and changing rooms. The beach was crowded near the bath house, but it opened up with a quick walk down the beach.

Pint at Dunleavy's

For lunch, we hopped back on our bicycles and rode to Sullivan's Island. The tacos at Taco Mamacita were yummy. I had a Thai shrimp taco and a vegetarian jerk taco with their jalapeno corn slaw and a Negro Modelo on draft. We decided we needed another beer, so we stopped in Dunleavy's Pub.  Jay had a Guiness and I had a pint of the Holy City Brewery's Summer Ale. It is nice tasting, slightly smoky ale. Just when it occured to me that the beer could use some fruit, the bartender started slicing oranges. I'm not usually the person to put fruit in my beers, but the orange accented the smoky flavor in a delicious way.

Of course a day at the beach in the Charleston area has to be followed up with a trip to Bottle's and Trader Joe's. 

Pubs & Pints III

Colchester & Ipswich: Day 9 

The Purple Dog in Colchester

We spent a day in Colchester sightseeing with a little bit of shopping. We stopped in The Purple Dog for a pint and some lunch. I had a pint of Crouch Vale Brewer's Gold - a refreshing, slightly fruity, slightly hoppy ale - from Essex. I also had a delicious falafel sandwich. Great spot, located in the center of town.

Isaac's on the Quay

It's Friday night in Ipswich. After a pint of Adnams Explorer - a light pale ale, at the Kesgrave Social Club with the family, we head to Isaac's on the waterfront. It was built in 1636, as a merchants house, with warehouses at the rear opening directly on the dock front. Today, this pub has four bars and an outdoor courtyard with a view of the harbor. It was packed when we arrived. We started off outside at a picnic table, but as the warm day started to get a chill we moved inside. We ended up with a private room overlooking the courtyard. I drank a few pints of Adnams Southwold Bitter, one of my favorite Adnams.

 
London: Day 9

In the morning, we headed back to London. Jay and I boarded the train with a John Smith Extra Smooth in hand. It was a nice malty ale.

We arrived at Paddington Station ready for a pint. Fortunately for us, there were a number of pubs near our hotel. We stopped in the Sawyers Arms for one while we waited for my cousin to arrive. This pub became our home base for our final days in England.  The Sawyers Arms is a multilevel pub with tables out front. Since the weather was beautiful, we sat by the window drinking our pints and coveting a table. I had a pint of Greene King IPA and Jay had a Guinness.


The Greene King IPA brewed in Bury St. Edmunds in the Westgate Brewery, which has been brewing cask ales since 1799. It is slightly hoppy with a malty flavor. English IPAs are never as hoppy as craft brewed IPAs in the US. In comparison, they have a taste of hop, which I grew to like after I change my expectations. 

We were finally successful in securing an outside table, so Jay bought a cuban cigar from the shop down the street and we wiled away a couple of hours people watching, drinking pints and waiting for my cousin to arrive. We met a lot of friendly people here - a couple who are retired pub managers and a group of pub crawlers to name a few.

From the ladies room in The Victoria

After Brian and Kevin arrived, we enjoyed another pint and made plans for the evening. We met up at The Victoria. The walls of this pub, built in 1838, were covered with photographs and memorabilia of Queen Victoria. It is rumored that it is thus named from a famed visit by the Queen herself. Another bit of trivia is that Charles Dickens spent time here. I had a pint of the Fuller's ESB - malty, caramel flavor, slightly hoppy, with a bitter finish. Yum!

O'Neill's

We followed this up with a taxi ride to Soho. We visited O'Neill's. O'Neill's is a multi-level chain pub with live music in one room, a dance floor on another level, and pub style seating on the ground floor. It was loud and packed. I had a couple of pints of Moorhouse's Black Cat - a ruby ale with a chocolately malty flavor. Moorhouse, in Lancaster, has been brewing ales since 1865. The beer was delicious and a fun evening was had, but the pub was not one of my favorite.


London: Day 10

After a late night we set up for some sight seeing on our last day in London. We stopped in The Crown in Covent Garden for a pint. It was a quaint little pub with seating with lots of windows with bar stools facing the street. We enjoyed pints of Wychwood Hobgoblin, which I had never had on tap. The ruby ales has a chocolatey malt flavor with a hint of bitterness. A nice place for a pint, but my lesson learned here -- don't ask the bar keeper for food recommendations.

The Two Brewers in London

My family had been telling Jay that he needed to eat a traditional English roast before he left. We wandered the streets looking for a suitable pub. I asked the bar keeper at The Crown if he could recommend a place. He referred us to The Two Brewers. With a little google research, I now realize that they are owned by the same company...  But we ordered a couple of pints - The Young's London Gold for me and a Guinness for Jay. The Young's London Gold was a little light for me, but with it's citrusy flavor and hints of fruit, it was refreshing after walking around London all morning.

We were famished, so we also ordered lunch. Jay ordered the Sunday roast. I had the Roasted Vegetable Suet Pie -- roasted Mediterranean vegetables bound in a tomato sauce, served with mashed potatoes, and mushy peas. If these items had been freshly prepared they probably would have been good, but the microwaved fare we received tasted like rubber.  This was definitely a pub food fail.  Skip it.

Our time in London was coming to a close, so we had our last pint in London at the Sawyers Arms. I had a Hawkshead Bitter and Jay had a Bass Mild. The pale, hoppy bitter was brewed in Staveley in the English Lakes District at the Hawkshead Brewery, a relatively new brewery founded in 2002. We sat in a little corner booth and reminisced about our trip. It was a great time. We will have to return, because there are so many more pubs to visit and beers to try.

Pubs & Pints Part II

From the train station in Ipswich, my cousin Brian picked us up. He lives in Kesgrave, a village between Woodbridge and Ipswich.  That evening, we met up with my family at The Farmhouse for pints.

Family at The Farmhouse

The Farmhouse is a large family-friendly pub. It has a large L-shaped bar, surrounded by four large rooms with dining tables. The pub has lots of windows that look out into the garden. My cousins brought their children and we had a nice family reunion. We occupied two high top tables with stools.

One thing that differs from drinking beer in a bar in the U.S. is that you do not purchase beers individually. If you are in a group, you should buy a round of drinks for everyone with you. A lot of rounds were purchased. I had the Abbott Ale. It is a slightly fruity, malty cask ale brewed in The Greene King Brewery, founded in 1799, in Bury St. Edmunds.We soon filled the tables with pints.


Ipswich: Day 4

Ipswich

We headed to Ipswich for a little shopping along the narrow streets lined with shops. For lunch, we stopped in Mannings for a pint.  

Mannings was first established in 1689 as a wine and spirit shop. The pub is long and narrow, with historic photographs covering the walls, a coal-burning, gas fireplace along the wall and a large round table next to the bar. Situated near the Town Hall within a Ipswich's shopping district, the pub serves a number of cask ales and lagers. I had a pint of Adnam's Broadside. Broadside, ruby red in color, with a slightly malty flavor with fruity overtones, is brewed to commemorate the Battle of Sole Bay fought against the Dutch Republic in 1672. For lunch, I had a jacket potato with beans and cheese. Jay and Brian both had steak pies. They both went with their standard pints - Guinness for Jay and Carling lager for Brian.

Adnam's Broadside at Mannings

Later that evening, we head back to The Farmhouse for a pint and dinner.  After the previous nights drinking, I stuck with Guinness. I had a leek and cheese veggie burger for dinner. It was okay, but the pub definitely favors value over quality.



Bicycling to Felixstowe: Day 5

After getting a bit turned around in Martlesham, we pedaled our way to Felixstowe. We arrived just after lunch time and we were hungry.  I got out my trusty Good Pub Guide, but there were no pubs with recommendations. Even more surprising was that there were only two pubs listed in the guide for Felixstowe. The Good Pub Guide (GPG) includes three different levels of pub listings. Red have GPG recommendations. Yellow have GPG user recommendations and blue are known pubs. The two pubs included in the guide were blue. We rode our bicycles in the proximity of the pubs. The first one we see is The Cork. I walk in the entrance on ground level and its not what I had in mind.  It is a modern looking bar (with no cask ales). So I opt for looking a bit more for a place to eat.

The Grosvenor

Guinness and a Southwold Bitter

We end up at The Grosvenor for lunch. It is a touristy pub, but the food was decent. Most importantly, the beer was good. I had Adnam's Southwold Bitter.  It is a nice coppery color with a nice hopped flavor. Adnam's brewery, founded in the 1870s, is located in Southwold in Suffolk.

The Cork - pub upstairs, bar downstairs

View from the balcony at The Cork

After wandering the streets of Felixstowe, looking in the hardware store and the bicycle shop, we head back down to the coast.  We walk along the seashore until we get the taste for another pint. Jay notices that there is another entrance to The Cork, so we give it a try.  We climb the steps to enter through the center of the building. Inside the doors, there is another flight of stairs.  The hall smells musty and a bit dank. The pub is a large open room with a bar in the corner.  I order a Bold Forester brewed by the Ringwood Brewery in the south of England. It's my least favorite beer that I have ordered so far. It tasted warm and a bit sour - altogether not quite right.  I don't know if it was the beer or the way it was served. But we sat out on the balcony overlooking the seashore. Despite the not so good beer, it was a lovely way to while away the afternoon.

Later we learn that our hotel, Brook Hotel also has a bar. After a meal of fish and chips on the beach and a walk around town, we stop in for a night cap. The bar is small and quaint, but has too many televisions for my taste (there were small televisions on the back of the beer taps). We each had a Tetley's Bitter, my late-granddad's favorite beer. The Tetley's has a full-bodied hoppy flavor and refreshing crispness.


Felixstowe to Orford: Day 6

The Shepherd & Dog at Hollesley

On our ride from Felixstowe to Orford, we passed a number of village pubs. We stopped in Hollesley at the Shepherd and Dog. I had a pint of Woodforde's Wherry, a crisp, refreshing ale with a slightly malty flavor and a citrusy hop finish. Woodforde's is a Norfolk brewery founded in 1981. We sat outside in the front garden and had a lunch of a egg and watercress sandwich (me), a sausage sandwich (Jay) and a side of onion rings (to share). My sandwich was more mayonnaise then egg, but otherwise it was a tasty meal. The bar keeper was very friendly (He checked whether the Butley Ferry was operating for us).

The Jolly Sailor at Orford

In Orford, we visited two (both with red recommendations by the GPG) of the three village pubs. We stopped in the Jolly Sailor, located along Quay Street toward the Orford quay, or wharf. The 16th century pub is rumored to have been built from wrecked ship's timbers. We ordered pints, Adnam's Ghost Ship, a slightly malty pale ale, for me and Bass Mild for Jay, and headed out to the garden. The garden, lined with picnic tables, provides beautiful views of the marshes and saltings, located along the river Ore. I followed this up with a Bass Mild, since I was envious of Jay's. The Bass Mild is dark mahogany in color, with a smooth, creamy, malty, slightly sweet flavor. 

The garden at the Jolly Sailor

The Jolly Sailor, has accommodations upstairs, and can be considered a gastropub, with their emphasis on fresh quality, locally-sourced food. I had a delicious meal of linguine with a Gruyere cream sauce, fresh wild mushrooms, crouquette (or zucchini) and rocket greens (which remind me of arugula). Jay had a sirloin steak with onion sauce and chips. It was delicious meal in the quaint main room with walls covered with sea-faring lore.

The King's Head at Orford

We stayed in The King's Head, a 13th century pub with accommodation, located in the town center directly in front of the St. Bartholomew church. When we arrived in the afternoon, the doors were locked. The pubs closed from 3 til 6 PM in Orford (which differed from all of the pubs we had visited thus far). There is a local craft shop next door to the pub. The shop keeper let us into our room which was on the second floor at the back of the pub.  It was a nice room, with sloping floors and views of the town center from the window. 

Our room at The King's Head

We stopped in for a pint after our dinner at the Jolly Sailor. The pub had a L-shaped bar along the back wall, and tables and chairs lined the wall. I had a half pint of the Adnam's Sole Star and Jay had a Guinness.  The Sole Star was a tasty amber beer. We sat at a table and flipped through the books of photography and history that lined the shelf in the pub.



Woodbridge: Day 7

The King's Head at Woodbridge

After a good English breakfast at The King's Head in Orford, we set off on our bicycles toward Woodbridge. In Woodbridge, we stopped in The King's Head for a pint. It is located in the center of Woodbridge on Market Hill. The small bar is set in the corner with a fireplace in the center of the room a number of tables out front and a garden out back.

We sat out front and drank our pints.  Jay had a Guinness and I had Adnam's Diamond Ale in honor of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. 2012 marks 60 years of Queen Elizabeth's reign. The ale was refreshing - malty with a crisp bitterness. 

Next stop, Kesgrave for more family time.