El Norte by Cycle
What with three-track operation on Chicago's north side, humidity lessening the allure of snuggling up to one's neighbors on the El, heavy auto traffic downtown, and the threat of steamier days lurking around the corner, May is a simply lovely month for cycling around the city.
Cycling along the lakeshore is an accessible, easy yet often-chaotic option, while cycling through the city yields a completely unique street-level perspective offered by no other form of transportation. To bike north out of the Loop, take either Dearborn or Franklin, eventually jogging over to Wells, which eventually runs into NW-/SE-bound Lincoln. Once on Lincoln the whole north side opens up; aside from Lincoln's own allures there are scads of restaurants and other charming venues on N-/S-bound Halstead and Southport.
Favorite northside cycling destinations along this route --- for breakfast, let's say --- include the Golden Apple at Lincoln & Southport. Just a bit further but well worth the entra few pedals is the Lincoln Restaurant at Lincoln and Belmont. Getting back downtown is as easy as a reverse blitz down Lincoln and Wells.
