It should be clear to the followers of this blog that my number one outdoor passion is hiking. It doesn't get better than that when spending time in the great outdoors. However, since I started hiking many years ago, it has opened my interest to many other activities as well. One of those activities is mountain biking. Last year, a few colleagues from my work would go biking one day a week at lunch and it appealed to me. So, I went out and bought a pretty cheap, low end bike to give a it a trial run last summer. As I imagined I would, I loved it!
This year, I sold the cheaper bike and purchased what I consider to be a beginner's intermediate bike at DG Cycle Sports in Epping, NH. It's a Giant Talon with 27.5 tires and features hydraulic disc brakes, a fork with hydraulic lockout and 24 speeds. The color is pretty snazzy too, blue and orange. I chose this color scheme because my daughter informs me that they're my favorite colors on a regular basis...and I honestly have no idea why she thinks that...true story!
This summer, a few of the guys at work and I have decided to make our bike ride a weekly event. So far this year, we've been exploring the Londonderry Rail Trail. This trail has a few different terrains and can accommodate all skill level riders, walkers and runners. We typically try to park in a restaurant parking lot in Londonderry, on Auburn Road which is adjacent to Route 28. From that point, we can head southeast on trail that is a bit rough and gets rougher as you go which we like. If we want to take it easy, we head northwest toward the airport where it's completely paved.
I highly recommend checking it out if you have a chance to. The town has done a great job updating these trails for recreational use. You can visit the Londonderry Trailways page here.
End of the pavement and start of the dirt.
One part of the dirt rail trail. Pretty flat and easy to manuever.
Memorial bench on the trail
Swampy area off to the side.
Old spike on the trail...history of what used to be here.
After you cross 28 at a point, the trail is rougher and more grown in.
Overpass on the trail. There's a lot of garbage here.
Steep hill looking down
Brook crossing the trail with a rope swing
Pond that the brook flows in or out of.
One of my buddies heading into a drain pipe that goes under the road.
It doesn't look that bad until you get inside and then it gets dark quick.
Packing up after a fun ride!
