Mile 664 - Google Bike Maps, Thumbs Down!

Today was bike commute day, on a route I had never done before.  There's been a lot of recent hoopla about Google's new bike maps, so I decided to use it, and ride whatever route it came up with.  Survey Says: Up Yours Google!  Without a doubt, the worst way to get there, with a long stretch on Rainier Ave, a 4 lane road with zero shoulder.  I rode for miles on the sidewalk, cursing Google the entire way.  It'll be while before I use it again without consulting a whole lot of other resources.  Here is the route I took.  I only post it here so you know exactly what to avoid.  Here's some photos of the ride, including a bonus dog photos at the end of the slideshow.





On the way back, I used my friend's directions, coupled with some help from the Seattle Bike Map.  The route was pretty bad the whole way: terrible roads, no bike lanes, only "sharrows".  It's better than nothing, but only just a bit.  Drivers were very respectful and safe, which made it fine.  But overall, the bits of south Seattle I rode were not fun at all.  Compared to the places I've been in north Seattle, it's a whole different ball-game, when it comes to bicycle infrastructure.  The city's got a long ways to go before you'll get a casual cyclist to brave some of those roads.  For reference, here's the route back.