Well, bikeforums just ate my long-winded description of this lovely 53 mile, hilly gravel ride I did in the Berkshires of western MA. So rather than recreate my lost narrative, here are some shots from one of the loveliest days of riding I've experienced. It was a cool, crisp autumn day, the fall foliage in full vibrancy. Out of 53 miles, probably over 75% was on gravel country roads or jeep track forest access roads. It took a whole day for me to come off the high from this ride.
On to the pictures:
My riding buddies, one of whom is a neighbor and friend, and the other I met just that day, both had 650B bikes. From left to right: Rivendell Saluki, my Rawland Stag, Soma Grand Randonneur.
Plenty of muddy jeep track was to be had on this ride:
The last of three major climbs, and the gnarliest of them all that day-- a climb on an unmaintained access road which was 14% grade over two miles. It had been paved at one point, but had washouts with rocks the size of baseballs. I was not ashamed to have to walk my bike through the worst of it!
