j0ew00ds

Ride every day, rain, snow, sun, whatever. Somerville/Arlington line, to downtownish. 12.3 miles round trip. On weekends for fun I ride to and around Concord, Carlisle, Lexington, etc.

Jim from Boston

I'm a year round commuter from Kenmore Square to Norwood. What is your route and what time of day? Mine is a reverse commute so I don't have to deal with as much traffic in the dark. I use lights mostly to be seen because I find street lighting nearly everywhere on my route sufficient to see.

Gene in NE

I have about a mile and a half ride from our house on local streets in Newton into
Newton Center. Then it's a straight shot down Beacon St. to Kenmore Sq. I agree that
the street lighting is mostly sufficient to see to ride - I'm more concerned about
drivers not seeing me, even with my lights on. I usually ride in between 7:30 and
8:30 in the morning, home between 5:30 and 6:30 in the evening so I often have to
contend with a fair amount of traffic.

Jim from Boston

Thanks for the reply. Those are sure prime commuter times. I like riding Beacon, but the stretch from Coolidge Corner to Park Drive is tight. I have on occasion taken some parallel residential streets, including Seawell, to avoid that segment.

Veloria

Well, I checked out the Cambridge->Castle Island route, and it looks like Summer Street into S Boston is outside of my comfort zone for now; too fast and industrial. Maybe in a couple of months! The rest of the route is absolutely fine though.

That path along Columbia Rd and the loop around Pleasure Bay are such nice places to cycle! I think I'll take my bike on the T one of these afternoons and get there that way.

Gridley

Just checking in - Rutland to Worcester (and back up!), three days a week...

NewEngland

I just started biking this year. Usually weekdays I go about 5 miles on route 66 to downtown Northampton, and often on the Florence bike path to Florence, then home. 15 miles round.

On weekends I might go south to westfield, Southwick or CT, west to Lenox or NY, or North to Greenfield and VT. I'm going to go east soon, along the beautiful Norwottuck Rail trail to Belchertown, then past the Quabbin to who knows where. About 130 miles a week for me.

I'm surprised about the lack of presence from Western Mass. besides myself. We have some serious bikers out here, including Northampton Cycling Club which attracts many.

Bat22

Last Friday I saw 3 people riding to work at 6:30 am. That 3 more than I usually see
along my route.

Veloria

Even though it's been a couple of months, I wanted to follow up and say that I've finally cycled to Castle Island. From Cambridge/Somerville, we first went on the Charles River trail, then on Charles St, and from there through the Commons onto Winter St which becomes Summer St. And as you said, Summer St will take you straight down to the S Boston waterfront. It was great fun and not nearly as intimidating as I thought. I did this on my vintage Raleigh DL-1 with rod brakes, in a dress, coat and high heels - so anybody can do it! Thanks so much again for the suggestion.

Old Town

I have a sister who lived in Truro and recently moved (with her horses) to Hamilton. I rode from Hamilton to Marblehead through Beverly and Salem and thought the whole area was very scenic. Especially that area along the water in Salem-Beverly. I passed Salem State College enroute. Lots of bikes in that area. Marblehead reminded me of Key West without the palm trees. Lots of old wood-framed colonial houses tucked away on tight streets, big mansions out on the neck area. Bike being the best way to get around.

bmt074

Cool I'm glad you made it out there! The Harbowalk train is really nice! I love it right out at the end - it is usually very peaceful and quiet out there (a nice contrast from the Sullivan's side ). Next time I have to try it in heels! (can I get heels in a size 13?)

Yea, Summer St is really not that bad out past South Station.

Glad you enjoyed it!

Veloria

How far down does that path go? We went as far as Dorcester, and according to the map it keeps going - but it wasn't clear. The Dorcester side was not very peaceful: lots of teenagers hanging out at dusk and taking photos of each other standing by the water and looking melancholy. We thought it was funny.

And we were surprised how hoppin' Sullivan's was, in November, in the late evening, on a Sunday night at that! Apparently November is "75 cent hot dog month", so perhaps that is why : )

MacCruiskeen

I live in east Cambridge, currently commuting to west Cambridge. I was also just looking at a map the other day to see if there was a possible route up the north shore and wondering if 99 was a reasonable way to cross the river and through Charlestown. Maybe I will try driving it first! Otherwise I'd go up through Malden.

dognamedbanjo

Riding from North Framingham / Sudbury line to Wellesley. About 14 miles one way. I weave my way through Wayland and Natick. Nice roads for the most part 'cept for one teeny stretch of Rt 30.

dognamedbanjo

And are any of you that recumbent cyclist I see from time to time going the other direction? The one with the American flag blanket/cover thingy? Looks like we share a bit of the same route.

bmt074

Haha I've never run into any melancholy teens... Did you follow the Harborwalk trail out to the end? There are a few benches at the end that almost always seem empty. One night I sat there for over an hour spacing out. I noticed the hotdog deal last time I was there .

THe path isn't too long - maybe 6 miles total? Once you go off the main road along the water it's only 2 or 3 miles I think.

See image attached - that is where I am talking about...

bmt074

If you look at the previous pages in this thread cycling to the North Shore is discussed - as far as I know it's difficult to bike to the North Shore from the Boston area. I've never tried it personally though - I believe you would have to take 99 for a bit though.

Veloria

Yup : )

bmt074

Ahh yes that picture looks vaguely familiar .

bmt074

BTW great blog post about the trip... It was a really good read!

srmatte

Northbridge to Shrewsbury via Grafton. Rt122 for some of the ride, and country roads for the rest. About 13 miles one way. Lots of hills.

slugman

My route is from Framingham to Brighton, mostly by rt 30. I've been slacking off a bit this summer on biking and running, was much easier to ride in when I lived in Watertown and could get to work in 15 minutes if I was running late. Thinking of going up to rt 20 for the wider shoulders considering that on rt 30 having any shoulder is a bonus.

Fenway

Fenway to the South End. Really wish the rebuilding Massachusetts Avenue would proceed faster with better than Soviet style efficiency.