My Cycling Diary: Day 1 : Mon, May 21, 2012 - 122.80 mi [Cycling] Boston to Provincetown

Tue, May 22, 2012 - 122.80 mi [Cycling]
122.80 mi in 09:51:24 hours at 12.46 mi/h on Trek .. [Cycling] Day 1 USA Tour 2012 : Boston to Provincetown via Quincy, Pembroke, Plymouth, Sagamore Bridge & The Cape Cod Canal, Barnstable, Dennis & Orleans.
The day started cloudy and deteriorated near Pembroke into a downright Cloud burst with about an inch of rain in 30 minutes which turned the roads into rivers.
I took shelter under a tree but still got soaked - the rain eased but at Wellfleet a nasty fog descended for the last 15 miles of the ride - This is Not what I came to Boston for !!

Day 1 started well - my hotel in Boston was just the job - able to take the bike up to my room and assemble it then leave the bike bag and my hand luggage in the locker room until I got back in 2 weeks.
So the bike was ready and after a 7am breakfast I was ready and away I went on my great American adventure ... who knows what lay ahead of me - my plan was to reach Washington via Cape Cod, Nantucket, mathas Vineyard, Long Island, New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore.

So away i went and the first problem I had was finding a road to cross the Massachusets Turnpike - third attempt I was away and under the Motorway and off along Dorchester Avenue which ran straight south to Quincy and was perfect for cycling.Next I turned left and crossed a bridge which took me out onto the Bay past and old US Navy destroyer which was now a training ship in the harbour.

There was a bit of a breeze up on the Quincy shoreline and after a few miles at Hingham I was glad to move inland and get away from the breeze - my pleasure was soon cut short as I entered the Whitney Woods however as my route which was a perfect minor road was fenced off with do not enter signs. About to turn round I noticed a gap in the fence large enough to get my bike through and obviously people were still using the path - so through i went and soon I was passing an abandoned factory - the road continued and soon I was through another fence and back on track - no harm done.

I cycled on through Pembroke and crossed the Pilgrims Highway into Plymouth where I turned onto the sea front hoping to sea a big monument or something to commemorate the Pilgrim fathers landing - I quickly found a replica of the mayflower in the harbour which in my opinion is a poor copy compared to the one in Brixham in Devon.

I found a seafront chip shop with benches outside so it was perfect to stop and get some food and watch the bike - whilst eating my fish and chips the waitress in the restaurant was keen to know what I was doing and she seemed impressed and keen to get a bike as she said she needed to do something. Another guy passing asked if I was from NZ as I had my Kiwi cycle top on - No I replied I'm from Newcastle in England - funnily enough he was from New Castle is Delaware and had been to Newcastle and soon we were talking football, the Baltic Art gallery and even Colmans Chip shop in South Shields.!

We chatted about Tyneside and Delaware one of the only 2 states with a curved border and apparently the border was drawn by a compass with its centre in New Castle ! ... and the other state with a curved border - well it's obvious - Pennsylvania on the other side of the Delaware border !
I asked where the Plymouth Rock was and he replied it's just a few hundred yards down the road under what looked like a small parthenon - he said "You will be underwhelmed!"

So I finished my chips and off I went to what looked like a small Penshaw Monument under which sure enough on the beach was a small stone with 1620 engraved on it - I was overwhelmingly Underwhemled !!

Next i was off and cycling along the Sandwich Road which runs parallel to the Highway and after 10 miles I was at the Sagamore Bridge - a huge steel arched bridge not unlike the Tyne bridge but without the Towers - It was mizzlly and the arch disappeared into the mist.

Across the bridge & i dropped down to the Cape Cod Canal which has a cycle path the length of it & I couldn't resist cycling completely the wrong way along it for 5 miles to see the sister bridge to the Sagamore - the Bourne Bridge which is Identical.

Back along the Canal & I was heading past Sandwich & Barnstable and looking for another cycle path I had seen which was an old railway line and ran for about 15 miles traffic free.However when I got to Falmouth I saw a shower starting and took cover under a large tree ... and watched as about an inch of rain came down in 10 minutes - the road was now a river !

I waited 30 minutes till it looked possible to ride again and off I went past Brewster and Orleans and still I hadn't found the cycle path - a couple mpore miles and I found it and it was Fantastic - brand new smooth tarmac with absolutely no Traffic . I few past Eastham and was soon on my way to Wellfleet where the path ended and I found myself on the main road - Route 6 which although was a bit busy it did have a wide verge which kept me from the traffic.

A rolling last 30 miles past Truro and as the light dimmed and the mist dropped I homed in on Provincetown - and there was my hotel on the left - on the old coast road - i was stuck on a dual carriageway without any way across - after another half a mile I spotted a possible track across and back tracked a hundred yards the wrong way down the carriageway - then corssed it and founs a small path that lead to the old road and a half mile back down it I was at my hotel a bit wet, tired and soggy - I checked in and promptly found out there was no food nearby and would have to cycle a mile and a half into town p rather than face the misty darkness again I opted for a vending machine and some crisps in the hotel !

Photographs

30 Miles : Near Hanover - the cycling is good
and I came across a memorial in an old fashioned
town

30 Miles : An old Library building near Hanover.

43 Miles : A replica of the Mayflower in Plymouth
Bay

43 Miles : A very underwhelming Plymouth Rock

50 Miles : Ooh - It looks just like the Tyne Bridge - If you notice
this design has Towers on either side of the arch which the
Sagamore Bridge does not have.