Tuesday, June 28, 2016

The Andover Ride, 9:30 am start in Bethel at the riverside park

Reminder: Bartlett 4th of July Parade!! I signed the bike club up for a spot in the parade again this year. Meet at the Attitash parking lot at 9:45 am on Monday July 4th, ready to ride to Bartlett Village to line up and be ready for the parade at 11:00! Bring bikes, red white and blue and your houseguests, kids and grandkids!


Thursday, June 30th, 2016

Looks like Thursday will be a beautiful day for a great ride along the rivers and fields of western Maine!  It is time to get out of the rapidly crowding valley and explore some quiet places!


The route to Andover from Bethel is a beautiful, mostly shady ride on quiet roads. It is not a hard ride, only a few short hills on Intervale Road. It is a ThursdayBike favorite!

Start at the park on the Androscoggin River in Bethel 
(where we picnic on the North Road ride) and go north on Intervale Road to where it ends at Route 232 in Rumford Corner.  Take a left and cross the Androscoggin River on the new bridge. A very short ride on Route 2 then right on Whippoorwill Road  to Andover Road and eventually into the center of Andover where there is a great general store and perfect town green with gazebo for lunching.

Return south on Route 5 for a short distance, then cross the Lovejoy Covered Bridge (Maine's shortest covered bridge) then retrace the route back to the cars.


Total distance: 49 miles   (a few short laps on the flats and you can call it a 50 miler)

Lunch: The Andover General Store is a good food and ice cream stop located across the park and gazebo. 

Starting Time9:30 am Ready To Ride from the riverside park at the end of the bike path in Bethel on Route 26 (our usual lunch stop with picnic tables, porta-potties and playground).

Parking: There are not a lot of parking spaces at the riverside park. If the lot is full, park near the convenience store/DunkinDonuts on Route 2 where the bike path crosses the Androscoggin River.


Carpool: If you want to carpool, meet in Jackson at the parking lot across from the J-Town Deli at 8:20 am, otherwise, see you in Bethel! 


Shorter Options:  

Rumford Corner to Andover and back by Whipporwill Road and back via Route 5 is about 25 miles. Park at the intersection of route 2 and route 5 on the side of the Ellis River. There is a small parking area on the right side of Route 2 at this intersection just before the bridge over the Ellis. Ride east on Route 2 a short distance and take a left onto Whipporwill to join the ride.


Park along the edge of Intervale Road, north of our starting point at the park. You can cut out up to 16 miles this way (it is 8 miles to the intersection with East Bethel Road, located on the right off of Intervale Road where the cows are), and avoid the 2 hills at the very end of the ride!  Meet with everyone else at the park at 9:30, then drive up a ways, park, hop on your bike and join the group as we ride by! 


To see a map of the ride click the link:

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/9696224

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Brownfield Loop, 10:00 am

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Looks like a good day until mid afternoon with potential showers. How about the Brownfield Loop -- it has options for long or short versions that you can choose from, depending on your energy level and the weather forecast. We should return before the sky's threaten. 


Meet: Maine Visitors Center, Fryeburg. It is on the right, just over the NH-ME border on Route 302.

Time: Ready to ride at 10:00 

Haleytown Road to Hampshire Road to Pig Street and back by Sam Brown Hill. Great view from the top!

The loop is 22 miles, cut it a few miles shorter if you like, bypassing Sam Brown Hill. Do a lap on the bike path when we return and add 8 miles to the day.


I will try to beat the jet lag and join in!


Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Crank some Crawford! Ride to the Willey House 10:00 am

Thursday, June 16th, 2016

A beautiful day is forecasted for Thursday!  How about enjoying the views on the way up to Crawford Notch?  Start at the Attitash parking lot at 10:00 am.

Destination: Lunch at the pond across from the Willey House. Pack your own lunch or snacks. 

Meet at the Attitash parking lot, ready to ride at 10:00 am.

The ride to the Willey House from Attitash up route 302 is about 29 miles round trip. It is NOT HARD -- it is easier than Bear Notch Road, a gradual climb with flatter sections of relief. The ride back is marvelous.

Those that want to burn some extra calories can continue 2.5 miles up the notch to the Crawford RR station, then return to meet everyone else for lunch at the Willey House.

For a shorter option, start in Bartlett Village (24 miles total) or at the parking area for the Fourth Iron Campsite (on the right, just before the bridge over the Sawyer River and Sawyer River Road; ~18 miles total).

Join the crowd as they ride by: ~ 10:15 at Bartlett Village, ~10:25 at Sawyer River Road.



Tuesday, June 7, 2016

The Basin. 10:00 am

Thursday, June 9th, 2016

The weather forecast looks good again for ThursdayBike! How about Fryeburg Farm Fields and the Basin? Ride as far as you like, many options to choose from.  Check out the former location of the Red Iron Bridge. Check out the new pavement on Union Hill Road (only about a mile, but we'll take it!!) Stop at the Stow Store for lunch or snacks. The spring fields will be green and beautiful!

Meet at the corner of South Chatham Road and Route 113 in North Fryeburg, alongside the park next to the Saco Valley Fire Station. As you already know, please do not block the fire station parking area.

The last quarter mile up to The Basin is a dirt road, and I am not sure of its condition at this point of the season. If it is a wash out, you may want to just use the campground at the entrance as the lunch and/or turnaround spot.

The starting time, ready-to-ride will be 10:00 am.

Doing the ride starting south on 113 with a left on Fish St and left on MacNeil, it will be a 28 mile ride.  Add another 5 miles if you add the Cornshop-Rt 5-Fish Street loop.