Again, the Wind

I had a plan. Today was 'long ride day.' The wind was straight out of the E at 11 when I left. I'd ride north to 'Hill' as a turnaround point -- where Lakeshore meets the road that goes to the PPS. Crosswind. It was a nice ride out, warming from 59 to 65. The plan: with an east wind, I'd be able to ride Lakeshore Drive until the lake breeze kicked in, cancelling out the east wind most of the way home. It worked yesterday, like a charm. Today it was actually warmer near the lake -- and the ride down Lakeshore was very pretty. Only the lake breeze never kicked in. Instead the E wind strengthened to 15, gusting to 26 as I headed south. So eventually there was nothing left to do but turn into the wind, find a gear, and grind it out. Ugh. A very nice ride that turned harder than I'd hoped. But still a great ride. 24.35 miles. Enough. I took a couple of pictures of Ruby on top of 'Hill' -- but neither made the cut. It's a dusty spot, and no view other than the tops of pine trees. I do find it interesting to look down on the tops of some fairly tall trees from there. So instead I present this photo of a tulip tree. The flowers look tulip-like, hence the name. With the wind expected to pick up tomorrow, the blossoms may not last long, but they are one of my favorite flowering shrubs this time of year.