Editor:
Is Saratoga friendly to bicycle tourists who come peddling through town almost every day in the summertime?
I’m inclined to think not after observing a situation that occurred this last Friday the 27th. I watched two young men as they approached town hall after 5 p.m. Since the business day was over, they went around the corner to the police station, where I learned later, they asked directions to the nearest camp site and were told they had to go to Saratoga Lake. As I was finishing up my recycling for the day, I watched them peddle around town, first to Veteran’s Island then to the hot pool where I first made contact with them. Having suspected they were told to go to the lake, I took the time to drive there and measure the distance. From the police station to the pay booth at the lake is 2.3 miles. In an attempt to determine the shortest route I took the back road back to Saratoga. It was 1.9 miles.
When I discussed the distance with them they were disappointed, and inquired if there were any closer options. They had traveled 65 miles from Walden that day and didn’t relish two more miles to a patch of grass with a bathroom and no shower. Sadly I could offer no other option. I did suggest Deer Haven Campground only to find out later there was no tent camping allowed, due to lack of public bathrooms and showers.
These men were spending the summer peddling from Arizona to Glacier National Park. They indicated this was the first town they had come to in their travels that had no camping facilities within the town for bicycle tourists. The irony was this conversation occurred beside the hot pool where they could have taken a shower and soaked their sore muscles after a hard day’s ride before going downtown to spend money in our community buying a meal and maybe a beer.
Why couldn’t they have spent the night on that undeveloped land, owned by the city, right behind the hot pool? In my opinion, Saratoga is sending a bad message about their friendliness to bicycle travelers and Continental Divide hikers by not having camping facilities within the town limits. It began to rain and I broke off the conversation. How did these fellows spend the night in Saratoga and what memories did they take with them as they peddled out of “Happy Valley” the next morning?
Sincerely hoping we can do better.
Richard Hodges
Saratoga
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