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The weather so far this month has been even marvelous and it did not disappoint for this ride. Eight TOHG members met at the trailhead near downtown Mansfield. We began by riding past several neighborhoods before wheeling through wooded areas. Mansfield Airport brushed up against the trail as we eased from a paved surface to a short gravel part of the trail. The mystery is why this short portion of the trail has not been paved. Continuing on we ended our ride in Norton about 7 miles from our start. Reversing direction we headed back but stopped at Mansfield Airport’s diner for coffee and lunch with the hope of watching some air traffic.
All in all it was a perfect day!
Alan U
Autumn was starting to show its true colours as nine TOHG members met in Winchendon to ride about 14 miles round trip on the North Central Pathway.
We began our ride in an old commercial part of town with old mill buildings and long vacant commercial buildings alongside Whitney Pond. The paved trail is flat and “railroad-straight” as it passes a small parking lot with a large bicycle sculpture. It continues on past bogs, woods and streams and with clear, bright and sunny skies it made for a beautiful autumnal day.
Four members of the Hub Mystery Group gathered for a fascinating tour of the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation in Waltham, MA. The Museum is in the Francis Cabot Lowell Mill (the original Building 1 was built in 1814) adjacent to the Charles River. The Francis Cabot Lowell Mill was the first industrial mill in the U.S. with revolutionary water-powered textile machines that incorporated carding, spinning, and weaving, as well as a machine shop and foundry. The Waltham mill operations became the model for nearly all later mill buildings in New England and across the U.S. The Waltham mill also had a specially crafted Paul Revere bell in the bell tower (with a history that the first two cracked, but the third one remained intact and is on display at the Museum).
The Museum was incorporated in 1980 and officially opened its doors in 1988. The Museum also houses a collection of tools and inventions that shaped U.S. technical and business innovations from the industrial revolution to the present, as well as artifacts and the history of the making of Waltham Watches.
Our tour guide, Nick, a high school intern, enthralled and fully engaged us with his in-depth knowledge of the history, workings of the mills, and stories of the "Mill Girls", the female workers who were pioneers in the role of women in industrial America.
The very informative and enjoyable morning tour was followed by a tasty lunch with lively conversation at a nearby Waltham restaurant called In A Pickle.
Nancy B
Janice U
The first day of Autumn was celebrated by new TOHG Members Glenn and Lillian with Hy and Sandy, Dana and Ride Leader, Dick. These pedal warriors did a 16 mile bike ride through some of the 3,526 acres of Wompatuck State Park, Hingham, MA including the Whitney Spur Rail Trail. Wompatuck stretches through the towns of Hingham, Cohasset, Norwell, and Scituate. Stops were made for scenic views, the Aaron River Reservoir, Mount Blue Spring and J J's Ice Cream on Rte. 3A in Cohasset. The weather was sunny and brisk and a great time was had by all.
Dick R
Nine members of the North 128 group met at Clay Dreaming Pottery in Beverly to create fun pottery items (which will be fired in their kilns). Then eight of us enjoyed a lunch at A&B Burgers. Linda S
We couldn’t have asked for a nicer day as 6 Gang members biked from Stoneham, through Woburn and into Winchester before continuing on to Upper Mystic Lake Dam with the hope of seeing a bald eagle as we have on past rides. Unfortunately that was not to be.
Instead we stopped in downtown Winchester for coffee and bagels, a welcome stop on the return. Perhaps our next ride will include an eagle sighting.
We found a mild sunny day to ride the newly opened portion of The Bruce Freeman Trail from the Concord - Sudbury line to the “diamond” where the BFT intersects with the Mass Central Rail Trail. The trail, being new, is in beautiful condition with lots of signage and markers indicating points of interest such as original rails and other railroad equipment along the trail.
When we connected with the MA Central Trail we rode on that towards Hudson. This is not quite finished yet as yellow flashing lights and other trail enhancements are waiting to be installed. But it was a beautiful ride along the Assabet River Refuge, passing through woods and marshes.
We ended our ride where this portion connects with the Assabet River trail Returning to our starting point in West Concord we stopped at the Nashoba Bakery for coffee and a bite to eat.
Six hikers walked through part of the Breakheart Reservation in Saugus MA. We walked up Hemlock Road to Flume Road, then Spring Lake Road ending at the beach at the Pine Tops Road. We then took a much more challenging route (Fox Run Trail) back to the visitor center. It was a perfect day for hiking—sunny skies and temperature about 70 degrees. The trails were all shady, but there were several hills and huge rocks.
Breakheart is a very large area with a variety of trails, a beach, and a visitor center. All are maintained by the State of Massachusetts. It has an entry in Wakefield as well as the Saugus entry where we started.
After the hike, several of us went to the Istanbul Diner where we enjoyed a variety of Turkish sandwiches and plates.
Neal S
First Ride: Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail St. Albans to Sheldon
More than three dozen TOHG members headed north for our now annual trip to Burlington VT from Saturday to Wednesday.
Many of our members stopped at the Quechee VT Highland Games where Alan U was working the Scots Charitable Society tent before continuing on to the Burlington Best Western Windjammer, which once again was our home during our stay.
Our adventures began for those bicycling on Sunday with a 15 mile round trip ride on The Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail from St. Albans to Sheldon VT. This portion of the trail was newly regraded and offered a beautiful ride through the Vermont countryside and woods before ending in Sheldon.
On Monday many of us gathered at the Ethan Allen Homestead in Burlington for a short ride on one of the Burlington Wildways Trails. After our ride several members toured the homestead and grounds. Later in the day we embarked on the Spirit of Ethan Allen for a 1 ½ hour long narrated cruise of Lake Champlain. The scenery of the Adirondacks to the west and the Burlington skyline made for a beautiful cruise while we learned about the history and ecology of the Lake and its environs. A buffet dinner at Zachary's in South Burlington followed where we all had a chance to get caught up on events and make new friends.
Tuesday was the premier event as most of us rode on the Island Line Trail from Oakledge Park in Burlington to Allenholm Farm on South Hero Island. To say that this is a spectacular trail would be to understate it. The trail not only parallels Lake Champlain, it also runs right into it with a causeway that crosses from the mainland portion to South Hero Island. A bike ferry took us across a short cut in the causeway to the north side where we continued our ride. We ended at Allenholm Farm, where we stopped for lunch and maple cremee ice cream cones.
Wednesday brought the only rain we experienced during our trip. A few of us took our chances and stopped in Stowe on the way home to ride the 5.5 mile long Stowe Recreation Path. Yes, we did experience a short rain shower about halfway through our ride but the scenery and ride itself were amazing.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end. However, this was tempered by a stop at Ben & Jerry's for ice cream on our way back home. Needless to say it was the perfect ending for a perfect trip!
Last Ride: Stowe Recrestion Path
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