Day 63 Danvers, MA

June 26, 2019

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Today was a beautiful day for cycling. It was warm and sunny. I think rainy days make days like this even better. We took our time this morning and didn't leave until after 10AM.

Our first stop was at Walden Pond. It is maintained for public use and there were plenty of people out enjoying it. There is swimming and boating and there are multiple trails for walking and hiking.

At the pond, we went across the street to the Visitors Center. There was a lot of information about Thoreau's life and work, as a well as the natural history of Walden Pond. The center itself was completed only a couple of years ago. Much of it is constructed of local timber. While clearing land for the museum site, the Massachusetts Park Service brought in a portable lumber mill and milled lumber from the trees that were felled. Several chairs, benches and tables in the museum were built using this lumber.

The architecture of the museum was impressive.

While clearing land to construct the museum, this red oak was cut down. Some of the staff used a cross section of the tree to note important dates in Thoreau's life and legacy on the growth rings of the tree (Zoom in to read the dates).

Our next stop was Concord. At the Concord Museum, we got an excellent tour from museum educator Victor. He was very knowledgeable and also very patient with our many questions.

This is purported to be one of the two lanterns used at the Old North Church in Boston to give the signal arranged by Paul Revere, "One if by land, two if by sea."

After seeing the museum, we explored the town of Concord a little bit before we rode on to Danvers.

Tomorrow, we'll finish this westerly loop we made to skirt around Boston and head back to the ocean, visiting Gloucester and Rockport.

Today's ride: 40 miles (64 km)
Total: 2,403 miles (3,867 km)

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