>>7458
I did a night ride by accident last winter when I underestimated how long a day ride would take. Ended up getting home at close to 10p when I originally planned on 6-7p. (It was a straight path, so the only shortcut would've been to turn back sooner.) The night ride was both exhilarating and terrifying. The bike path I took was elevated above the suburbs for some portions so I could see into people's backyards. At night, I'm almost completely hidden on the path in darkness if I turn my lights off. It was definitely a unique experience.
>stopped at a dam for a short break
>met some stoner trying to hit me up for weed (I don't do drugs)
>he tried hitting up some homeless right before
>said they were chill but they weren't sharing weed
>ended up having a 30 minute conversation about politics, his existential crisis due to various health issues, and just life
>couldn't believe I was still about 2 hours away from home by bike at night, he only lived 10 minutes from there
>riding home I found a shit ton of small farms, horses, and other livestock in small suburban backyards (at least they were quiet at night)
>found one house with a bunch of people watching some sport game with their horse in the backyard
>saw a couple homeless camps away from roads and houses, occasionally saw small fires at night
>had to cross a few tunnels or under streets that were shaded in the day but pitch black at night
>a couple of them sounded like they had multiple homeless camping under them
>forced to just bike through quickly and hope nothing happens
>almost ran into a couple late night joggers who didn't have reflectors or lights
>saw one woman riding the other direction on a BMX bike carrying a full-size pickax
>I stopped and looked back in disbelief
>would've taken a picture if it wasn't too dark
>finished by pulling off path into foggy park before taking my street home
I did that same ride in May when there was more light out, and left earlier in the morning. I got home before dark which was nice, but I realized most of the memorable stuff from the first ride was seeing all the crazy shit at night. That, and by chance running into the stoner and crazy miner chick. I'm debating doing it again at night, but some of those bridges were actually a bit sketchy to ride under, especially if I heard people. I might just stick to my own neighborhood if I do more night rides.