Sharon wanted an adventure today. So we rode most of the "long ride" of the NSCYC Let's Go Coastal ride, Newburyport, MA to Portsmough, NH, with some side runs to keep us along the coast. I just programmed it into my GPS and followed the beeps. Well, mostly followed the beeps. (Note, there is one L vs. R error in the online route notes! Fortunately I discovered it working out the route last night. Otherwise we'd be out in the Atlantic somewhere.) We got lost a little coming out of Portsmouth, explored a few unintended roads, got back on course, decided not to do the final detour further inland, but still ended up doing about 65 miles.
It was a pretty hectic day. This being June the beaches and stuff were all open and busy. Traffic was heavy but generally quite polite and courteous. Still, it's tiring. The biggest problem was the crosswind. It was a lot of work keeping the bike moving in a straight line, especially when we'd transition between beach house and open moor and beach house and open moor and beach house and open moor. As directed by traffic signs we walked across a few drawbridges with metal-grate road surfaces.
Crossing the Merrimack River from Newburyport into Salisbury:
The busy Hampton Beach strip:
A rest stop at Jennes Beach (I think it was):
The obligatory lunch without which biking would be impossible, Wallis Beach:
A rest at a churchyard in Salisbury nearing the bridge back into Newburyport:
Across the road from that church (this pic is a homage to JJScaliger):
