June 1, 2023
No Bears, Just Lily
East Canaan to West Hartford
My first B&B experience turned out well. After I arrived I spent some time on the double decker porch, just chillin with the breeze. A local pizza place delivered a chef salad and a bowl of pasta fagioli soup. I couldn’t eat it all but I gave it my best effort. I spent the rest of my night guzzling ice cold water. I must have downed a gallon. Climbing hills in this heat will suck the life out of you.
Breakfast was pancakes, eggs, bacon, coffee, and an English muffin. Ready to roll.
I had thought my first few miles to Norfolk would be a downhill glide next to a small river. Well, it turned out to be an uphill slog as the river was running opposite to what I assumed. I think I climbed about 1,000 feet.
After Norfolk things mellowed out until I missed a turn. After a half mile of climbing I stopped to double check my route on my phone. Oops.
At least I had the downhill as compensation.
Back on track I made it to Coldbrook, a quaint crossroads. There were detour signs and after checking the Google I learned that the road ahead on my route was blocked.
I followed the detour for a few miles and stopped to check my progress. A guy in a pick up stopped and told me to turn left. “You’ll go down a very steep hill and rejoin the route near Robertsville.” He ought to know. This hilly road used to be the Atlantic Coast route before southbound bike tourists complained about the ridiculously steep climb. It turns out the driver was the local person who gave Adventure Cycling a new route – the one that was now closed. The only drawback for me was the less-than-ideal road surface. Also the road was shaded making irregularities in the asphalt hard to see, especially at speed. I had to feather my brakes most of the way. I’m sure I broke 30 mph much of the way down anyway.
I’d lost my 1,000 feet but gained a beautiful windy road along the Farmington River. Connecticut may be hilly but it has some awfully nice roads between the mountains.
At Pleasant Valley I crossed the Saville Dam and began another 1,000-foot climb over Pine Cone Mountain. I won’t lie; it put the hurt on me but granny and I made it all the way up. Then it was a screaming downhill to Granby, just me and a ton of traffic. Again the road surface kept be from letting The Mule romp but it was still a blast of a descent.
After stopping at a Cumbalun Fahms for a tuna sammie, Gatorade, and chips I turned my fate over to the Google again. I left the Adventure Cycling route to head south to West Hartford where my daughter Lily lives.
Amazingly I rode half the distance on a paved trail, the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail. It was sweet. At one point it was covered in cottonwood snow. No wonder I’m feeling under the weather; it’s tree pollen season up here.
In Simsbury I rejoined the motorized rabble and climbed over Tapscot Mountain. Not bad. I cruised into downtown West Hartford and celebrated my day with a cup of Cherry Garcia.
After some chain maintenance and checking brakes for rubbing (they’re not) I headed to my daughters’s place a mile away.
Today's ride: 55 miles (89 km)
Total: 575 miles (925 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 0 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 0 |