August 2019 – Biking 100

Kennebec River Rail Trail, Gardiner, Maine

August 30, 2019

We stopped in Freeport to visit LL Bean on our way to the trailhead.

Freeport was a bit too touristy for us . A real shoppers paradise. We managed to escape LL Bean for under $200. Yay!!

This was the LLBean flagship store. Incredibly large and busy as was all of Freeport.

We had fun!! This trail provided some nice hills, some steep, some short and sweet! The trail was within site of the river almost the entire time which kept it interesting. We began our ride in Gardiner and took the trail to Augusta, state capital, of Maine.

The state of Maine has preserved the railroad tracks hoping to one day put them back into use. We crossed from one side of tracks to the other several times.

Along the Kennebec River in Augusta, only 39 navigable miles from the Atlantic.

Across the river from the trail in Augusta we could see Old Fort Western, an 18th Century wooden fort built in 1754. Benedict Arnold used this fort during the American Revolution.

The trail took us through Hallowell, a quaint little town with a friendly river front area.

Granite City park, along the river front in Hallowell. This is a tribute to the cities past, it was know as “Granite City “.

We had lunch along the river in Hallowell. Lenny and Landen enjoying main course of PB&J!!

Most all of these little New England towns have beautiful churches with tall steeples. I enjoy seeing everyone of them.

We enjoyed this uncrowded trail with it’s scenic river views, small towns and of course that biking thing. We have banked 25 miles in Maine and will return in the future to complete our 100.

Tomorrow we head back to Massachusetts to complete our 100 miles., the LORD willing.

Eastern Rail Trail, Portland, Maine

August 29, 2019

We moved to our campsite yesterday morning. Landen a bit tired so let him get a good nap and then headed for Sam’s Club to resupply.

We got caught in a downpour at Sam’s and the cashier made Landen a rain hat.

The Eastern Trail is also known as the East Coast Greenway. We started our ride at Bug Light Park. No, not Bud Light.

Bug Lighthouse was erected in 1875. The unique style sets it apart from any other lighthouse in the world. It is the official seal of the city of South Portland.

There is a fort just to the left of the lighthouse. Someone told us it was built but never used.

This was the perfect place to begin our ride. We love breathing in the salty ocean air. It reminded us both of California.

This trail goes all the way to Kennebunk about 30 miles away. We knew that some of the trail was paved, some hard pack and some on road. Our plan was to ride as far as we could before the pavement ended.

Remnants of the original railroad track.

Loved riding through these tall pines. We passed some areas of forest that provided nice cool shade. Also, some salt marshes where we saw various marine birds.

We were able to ride as far as the Wainwright Sports Complex before the trail began to follow a busy highway. The sports complex was beautiful with soccer fields, baseball and football fields.

Liberty Ship Memorial in Bug Light Park. During WWII the park was the site of a major ship building facility. At one time 30,000 people worked here.

Oh what a perfect day, our first Maine miles, a nice bike ride, breathing good salty sea air, a bit of history and PB&J’s.

Hobo Train, Lincoln, NH

August 27, 2019

Today was all about Landen. We left Ames Brook Campground for Lincoln where we had reservations on the Hobo Train.

Landen wasn’t too sure about the conductor. He did give him our ticket to be punched.

Never a bad time for ice cream. A train ride and ice cream – he couldn’t believe his good fortune. Not a time for him to feed himself.

Joy, the clown, made Landen a balloon turtle. As people were leaving the train another passenger gave him a balloon flower.

He was amazed by the balloon turtle. He preferred siting on our lap at first but eventually felt secure enough to stand and look out the window.

Fascinated by the world going by. The scenery was beautiful. We crossed over Pemigewasset River on a trestle bridge.

Landen holding his turtle sees another train.

Leaving the train balloons in hand! Landen would have stayed for another ride.

Sadly it was time to leave the train behind.

The train ride was about 90 minutes long. All the children aboard had a great time. The balloons were a real hit with everyone.

We hopped in the motorhome and were off to Scarborough, Maine to spend a night at Cabelas. We have reservations for the following 3 nights nearby and have some rides planned in Portland.

Franconia Notch Recreation Trail, White Mountains, NH

August 26, 2019

We were on the road early to catch the shuttle up the mountain to be begin our ride “down” the Franconia Notch Trail. Sport Thoma in Lincoln provided the shuttle.

Kudos to Sport Thoma. we were early for our scheduled shuttle so they took us up the mountain while delivering bikes to Canon Mountain. Landen loved the ride in the van and they provided a nice clean car seat. The driver gave great safety advice and tips on the best sights to see.

Preparing for our ride at drop off at Canon Mountain.

Echo lake, where we started our descent. You can see some of Canon Mountain ski runs.

Taken from Echo Lake. You can just barely see the aerial tram to the top of Canon Mountain.

Some of the down hills were quite exhilarating but we were caught off guard by some of the very steep climbs.

Interesting tree along the trail. I was certain I would seen a gnome around somewhere.

Landen took a little nap before lunch. He missed out on some fast down hill riding and beautiful scenery.

We had a beautiful spot for lunch along the Pemigewasset River.

This was a waterfall near the Basin along Franconia Notch Trail. No pictures of Basin too many tourists putting toes in water.

The trail was forever changing. Our descent was very rapid at times.

This was a tough climb. Hard to tell from picture but our hearts were pumping.

We had such an awesome time. Scenery was beautiful. The ride was fast and fun at times but had some challenging climbs as well. The ride from the end of the trail to Thoma Sport where our car was parked was over 2 miles of downhill. AWESOME!! Fun for all!

We have ridden 58 miles in New Hampshire.

WOW Trail, Lake Winnisquam Scenic Trail Laconia, NH

August 24. 2019

We arrived in Ashland, NH about 3:30 yesterday. The drive north was slow due to Friday afternoon traffic. The area is beautiful, heavily forested, narrow winding roads. It is much cooler here, feels great. We are staying at Ames Brook Campground for 4 nights.

Landen was looking forward to a swim Water was very cold. Both were chilled but Landen just happy to be in the water.

We were off to Laconia to ride the Wow Trail and the Winnisquam Scenic Trail the next morning. Beautiful drive through forest to reach trail.

We parked at the Laconia B&M Railroad Depot. Depot is now restaurant on one end and sort of abandoned on the other.

The city of Laconia is in the lakes region between Lake Winnipesaukee and Lake Winnisquam. Lake Winnipesaukee is a glacial lake with 258 islands.

This was at the beginning of the trail in Lakeport. WOW was so named for the 3 bodies of water it passes by, Lake Winnipesaukee, Opechee Bay and Lake Winnisquam.

This trail did not disappoint. The ride was beautiful and the weather perfect.

The two trails came together seamlessly. The Winnisquam Senic Trail is relatively new. The trail surface was some of the best we’ve seen.

The Winnisquam Trail had some big hills. A blast going down but made the muscles burn on the way up. And Lenny was pulling Landen, who didn’t break a sweat by the way.

More of the Winnisquam Trail. Twisting turns, up and down hills made a fun ride.

Ha! Ha! Saw this in a yard on our way to our ride. Good topic of conversation throughout the day.

We ate lunch at a picnic table at the end of our ride. Landen cried when we loaded up the bikes. Gotta love him!!

Londonderry Rail Trail, Manchester, NH

August 22, 2019

This was a short trail but had many of the things we like to see. First there was some shade – hate to be redundant but it’s another HOT day.

There was road construction at the trailhead so we parked in a school across the street. Glad we weren’t driving the motorhome, there would have been no place to park.

Some parts of the trail were on the raised rail bed which is part of the original infrastructure. We always enjoy these rides.

These benches are memorials to fallen heroes. This young man died in South Vietnam in 1967. These same memorials are numerous along Derry R/T.

We have completed 33 miles of our New Hampshire 100. Tomorrow we will be in the lakes area of New Hampshire near the White Mountains.

Relaxing following an afternoon on the trail.

Rain Day – Newburyport, MA

August 21, 2019

We awoke in our new campsite to rain. Our plan was to ride the Clipper City R/T and Harborwalk but with the rain we had to make alternate plans.

Our peaceful place in the woods. This the quietest campsite we have ever experienced. We cannot see another camper out our back or side window.

We decided to take in the sights in Newburyport on foot instead of on two wheels. It was clear when we left our motorhome but soon after we arrived it began to rain.

Took this picture just before rain began which was just prior to the tornado warning. Needless to say our walking tour of Newburyport never happened.

I was able to brave the rain and purchase this very cool shirt in the Life is Good store.

We stopped at a local bike shop and got some information on a rail trail. It’s close to Boston but may work for us.

One of the locals told us about a good restaurant, Mr Mike’s, so we stopped for dinner. Can’t beat local knowledge. We had a delicious meal and Landen enjoyed himself too.

Derry R/T, Windham R/T, Salem Bike Path, New Hampshire

August 20, 2019

We packed and moved on from Boston Minuteman Campground to take our first ride in New Hampshire. We parked at the Winham Trailhead and rode north on the Derry Rail Trail.

This took us into the quaint New England town of Derry. The paved part of the trail ended in Hood Park where there was parking and a large pond for fishing. The trail was mostly forested with areas of wetlands. We saw many of the stone walls tumbling into the forest.

Boston and Maine C-16 caboose near Windham Trailhead.

Lunch at restored 1849 Windham Depot. From here we continued our ride on the Winham R/T.

Landen really enjoys our traditional PB&J lunches.

The Windham R/T travels thru shaded forests, marshes and wetlands. Much of the trail is on a raised railroad bed which we really enjoy. The raised railroad bed enables good views of woods, wetlands and valleys below. We both agree that this was our favorite ride in New England so far.

Riding thru these areas of cutout stone the temperature would drop at least 10 degrees. Unfortunately the mosquito population in these areas was overwhelming.

A closer look at one of the cutout areas.

One of the many stone walls we saw along the trail. I am really fascinated by these gray walls. They are everywhere on the backroads and trails here. They date back to when the pioneers began clear cutting the New England forests.

It’s good to have begun our New Hampshire miles. There are so many trails here but most are gravel, dirt, cinder, ballast, sand or some combination of these. We are sticking to asphalt and cement while having Landen on tow!!

Pool Day – Ahhhh

August 19. 2019

Moved to campsite across from the pool which had strong wifi signal – hooray!! Landen and I took a walk through the campground but all he could talk about was the pool.

Ready for a dip in the pool on a 90 degree day.

Landen loved his pool day. He really was quite comfortable in the water. Time for swim lessons.

This was a nice day off for us all. No travel, no biking just relaxing. After his swim Landen took a 3 hour nap. Lenny and I had quiet time.

Landen is standing on flooring Lenny made to cover the steps. We don’t have to worry about him falling. When not in use piece stores beside table top. Lenny’s spring/summer project.

It’s so different traveling with a 2 year old but we are all adapting.

During the day Landen’s bed is on our bed.

At night Landen’s bed is on the floor. Always sleeps well with his alligator and turtle.

So, with a few changes a two year old fits in quite nicely. Best part is he loves that whole biking thing.

Bruce Freeman Rail Trail – Lowell, MA

August 18. 2019

Fixed big breakfast this morning, recovering from our evening ride yesterday. Landen “helped” Lenny get the bikes ready. We had a storm last night with lots of rain and thunder. Bikes stayed dry under awning.

We are off to ride the Bruce Freeman R/T. We started from a park in Acton. MA. This was a very hot day but this trail is nicely shaded and we had a little breeze.

Beautiful shade under tall trees on Bruce Freeman R/T. This was pretty typical of trail.

We rode thru beautiful areas with ponds, wetlands, tall pines and one small lakefront community. There was a beach with public access and a very tempting hotdog stand. Drivers were always very courteous at the well marked road crossings.

Welcome shade on hot day riding Bruce L Freeman R/T near Lowell, MA.

There were some long up and down grades. As always love those downhills!! We stopped at a swim and tennis club for lunch break. Landen so happy running and laughing but eager to get back on the trail .

Sometimes he sleeps!! We are so thankful Landen is enjoying this adventure with us.

This was really a beautiful trail, well maintained and smooth. Somewhat busy the closer we got to Lowell.

We have now completed 80 miles in Massachusetts. We are off to New Hampshire on Tuesday. We plan to complete our Massachusetts 100 as we pass thru on our return to Ohio.