Trail Note

Today was the first ride I've gone on since returning to CONUS. We had discussed a 60 mile ride, but ended up only going a little less than 40. I felt like we went closer to 50; I was tired, with a sore seat and lower back. I think I need to adjust my bike seat; the bike I rode in Europe seemed to fit much more comfortably.
The route was great: we rode through downtown Seattle, over Lake Washington on the I-90 bridge, down along the shore of the lake around the south end and came back up along the western shore trail, past Seward Park, over the Mountlake Bridge, and up to the University of Washington, before hitting the Burke Gillman trail for the final miles to home. We got caught in a little Fremont Festival traffic as we headed over the bridge and up the last, steepest hill.
The weather was perfect for riding. It started out cool and cloudy (high 50's?), but the clouds cleared up an hour into the ride, and there were blue skies and puffy clouds for most of the ride, with a stiff breeze keeping things cool.
I rode with my clip-in pedals again today (like all of our vacation riding). I'm much more confident, but still need to be careful. I tried clicking out of just the right foot for one stop (I usually step down with my left foot), and had a classic slow-motion fall to the left. It's a horrible place to be, knowing that you're going to fall and yet not being able to help it. The only thing that hurt was my pride on that one. After that I clipped out of both feet at each stop.