Another quick access of Google Now is to tap the search button (magnifying glass) at the very bottom right, below the screen.
Yes, I can access it that way and I've added the Google search bar to a home screen, but hitting the magnifying glass softkey or the one in the search bar or the word Google in the search bar, opens Google Now with the keyboard. This is a tiny annoyance, but an annoyance nonetheless. I have to hit the back key to be able to see all the cards in Google Now.