One of the best ways to see the historic Missions along the San Antonio River is to bike to each location which extends over the course of 12 miles. And when looking for a bike shop I wanted it to be conveniently looked near the Riverwalk, which doesn't allow vehicles, only bikes and pedestrians. Blue Star Bikes meet the criteria, on top of that it was really cheap, $15 per half day. Ideally it would have been nice to have a road bike compared to a hybrid Townie. But the Townie does allow for a more relaxed ride.
When reading some reviews of which tours to do in town, some people who went by themselves, described the challenges of finding each mission. I do have to admit that it was sometimes difficult to follow the road signs to each location. Sometimes you had to go a mile or so off the trail to find the mission. I did bike past Mission Concepcion without getting off and taking photos. For the remaining 3 I did get off and walk around and take some photos.
The Alamo is in a different location. I did visit it when walking around the Riverwalk downtown.
All of the frontier mission outposts were established by the Catholic religious order to spread Christianity to the natives. Mission Concepcion was established in the late 1600's. It was one of the bigger missions.
It was neat to see how well the stone art looked after several centuries. I really enjoy the Spanish architectural design. San Jose was a large complex with several structures and a wall going around the entire thing. It was established in 1720.
Mission San Juan was established in 1716. It was a smaller structure but it was uniquely different. At each of the locations there was a someone who could help you take the tour and provide more details.
The last mission was San Espada which was established in 1690. Structurally it is the smallest.
When biking I realized that I didn't have anything to cover my head and protect it from the beating sun. It was 95 degrees plus humidity, made it feel like well over 100 degrees. So at this last mission while taking pictures, an idea struck me to ask the only other person there, who traveled there by car, if he had an old hat or bandana that I would buy off him. When I asked this Hispanic middle aged man, he pulled out a bandana from a laundry bag that he just washed and said I could just take without charge. It was an answer to the quick prayer that was prayed a few minutes prior!
Enjoying my bandana, which literally saved my scalp from a major sun burn. I had recently gotten a shorter haircut and my scalp was really exposed.
Overall it was a great trip biking trip. I biked 22 miles. My sunblock lasted just enough, so no burns. I had 2 L of some really warm water but I stayed hydrated. And my scalp still felt good. Thank God!
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