Memorial Day Ride

We spent Memorial day weekend in Brewster, on Cape Cod. A&E went there Thursday and I followed Friday afternoon. I biked there from home, via the high-speed ferry.

Home to the Boston Harbor ferry terminal took only an hour of pedalling, but wall clock time was longer because of the many stops in Cambridge and Boston. This was only my second ride into Boston, and it felt empowering. I rarely drive into the city, and still feel intimidated by the prospect, so biking in feels like a real accomplishment. At the same time, the bike paths and lanes help make the trip safe, and the small scale of the city makes biking a very reasonable way to get between points. This leg of the ride had summery weather, but my jersey pockets had another layer in case of rain.

The ferry steamed toward the right edge of a rain cloud, but I had hopes of missing it until we pulled into the Provincetown channel and into patter against the windshield. The sun set as we docked; I turned on my winter headlight before starting off. The rain continued for the ~30 miles to Brewster though it tapered and sometimes paused.

My friend TMC recommended Gu as a mountain bike energy food. I rarely use one on the road, but I ate one just before I got onto the main highway for the next ten miles. A moment later I was struck that Route 6's shoulder was a great surface to ride, smooth and clean, and at the same time the rain stopped. Amazing what a little caffeinated glucose polymer can do!

From Route 6 I jumped onto the Cape Cod Rail Trail, this section new since last Memorial Day. What a nice path! Fresh, smooth pavement took me directly to my destination, in contrast to last year's highway ride on bad pavement and through an ugly rotary. I didn't see a soul on the path, freeing me from my concern that my headlight could be too bright for oncoming traffic. Better yet, the warm wet pavement created a ribbon of "sea smoke" fog over the trail, bracketed by fog-free grass. The headlight played up the fog for a dreamy ride. I reached A&E at ~9:10, earlier than I expected.

This was really a great ride. I cringe when I consider the alternative of trying to drive there in rush hour.