My wife and I went for a ride on the Bruce Freeman today. It seemed like a good opportunity to get out there, and also avoid the possible holiday throngs on the Minuteman. We drove out from Arlington and parked at the West Concord BFRT lot. Like last time, we agreed on a 20 mile roundtrip. This time we just headed north (as opposed to doing the short trip south to the Sudbury line), which took us a mile or so beyond Hart Pond.
The weather was great and the trail was pretty quiet in most places. There autumn colors were breaking out all over.
You can see here that we had this stretch to ourselves:
We stopped to use the restrooms at Nara Park, but they are closed for the season. No problem - we used the porta-potty at the next parking area.
Hart Pond was peaceful:
This camera didn't capture the full text of this sign, which actually says "Beach closed due to high levels of algae":
I suppose, besides the chilly weather, that also explains the sparse crowds at the pond.
Continuing the journey, I hadn't previously noticed the dragonfly motif on the wayfinding posts:
Completing the ride, we stowed the bikes in the car. As has become our habit when we visit the BFRT, we had lunch at Nashoba Brook Bakery afterward.
It was pretty busy, even at 2pm:
We sat outside to enjoy our meal, as did many other cyclists:
A great early fall day.
Tom