Spring on the Brompton

And I'm back!

During this year's impossibly long and rough winter here in Massachusetts, dreams of cycling adventures helped see me through to the beautiful months of spring.  If my early season Brompton rides are any indication, it's going to be a good June, July, and August ahead.

Along with some great rides in my neighborhood, such as on the Neponset River Trail next to the old Baker Chocolate Factory....

...early spring warm weather gave me a chance to take my Brompton with me on some trips out the the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts, where I rode the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail.  Running from Pittsfield to Adams, this 11-mile paved path features some beautiful lakeside views of Massachusetts' tallest mountain, Mt. Greylock...

...as well as waterfalls, rocky outcroppings, and nice cycling infrastructure.

And just last week, my Brompton was in all its inter-modal-transportation glory as I took it on the historic Greenbush Old Colony Line train (recently re-added to Boston's Commuter Rail system) to the South Shore town of Scituate.

A bike path leads from the station...

... alongside a vast salt marsh, with seaside homes lining the ocean on the other side...

... on to the harbor.

My goal for the ride was Scituate Light on the opposite end of this little bay.

Riding out on the neck took me by picturesque summer cottages...

...before reaching the old lighthouse on the end.

Riding a bit further up along the Scituate coastline, I reached the second lighthouse of my journey -- the remote and mysterious Minot Ledge Light.  Here you can see it to the right of this photo, completely surrounded by the rough waters of the cold North Atlantic.

And then it was time to ride to the North Scituate train station and head home...

...with my Brompton tucked into the seat beside me.

From the Cafe to the Trail

I had the afternoon off today.  So leaving work, I stopped by Sorelle Cafe near Boston's South Station to relax for a bit with an iced coffee, muffin, and the latest copy of Cyclist magazine.

If there's one thing that's almost as good as cycling, it's sitting in a pleasant coffee shop reading about cycling.

Looking through pictures from the cobbled-classic races like Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders, I felt the urge to ride a different terrain myself.  So arriving home a short while later, I hopped on my bike and rode out to the Neponset River Trail.

I passed by the Granite Avenue drawbridge -- a tiny masterpiece from an earlier industrial age...

...and then onto a section of the trail that has been left unpaved.

It's not exactly cobblestones, but zipping over the dirt and gravel I could at least get the sense of flying over a less-than-ideal surface.  Because that's what it feels like: flying.  Keeping a light grip on the handlebars, it's as if the bike finds just the right way through the nooks and crannies of the dirt path.

A Busy Weekend!

This was a good weekend of cycling!

I've been concentrating many of my recent rides on the Neponset River Trail, which cuts a path along the boundary between Boston and Quincy, and then between Boston and Milton further upstream.  It's not as well-known as the much longer Minuteman Commuter Bikeway further to the west, but the Neponset River area has unique charms all its own, such as the 1940's-era streetcars that rumble by the path (still in everyday use by the MBTA)...

...historical and whimsical murals...

...and the former Baker Chocolate Factory at the Lower Mills area of Dorchester and Milton:



I then continued along the new bike lanes in Milton:

On Saturday, in addition to riding all of the above, I did a loop around the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library on Boston's very scenic Columbia Point:

I've also been experimenting more with acrylics while watching the Ardennes classic races on TV.  So I just finished a painting of the riders crossing the river Meuse in the finishing town of Huy, during the Fleche Wallonne race in Belgium:

And ... I finally joined a cycling club!  I'm now a member of the Charles River Wheelmen.  It's one of the largest clubs in the Boston area, with multiple rides every week, century rides, a newsletter, and more.  I'll be honest, the only reason I hadn't joined the club earlier was because of its name.  Of course there are both women and men in the organization, so "wheelmen" feels so old-fashioned (although it's still a fairly common name among long-running cycling clubs).  But once I discovered all the great things the club organizes -- and I saw that both women and men are in leadership positions (its newsletter is called "wheelpeople") -- I then happily joined up.  I guess old names die hard, like YMCA, where the only letter that's still relevant is the "A".  Anyway, I'm looking forward to taking part in some of their rides, and maybe making some new cycling friends in the process.

So, a good weekend!