Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
Rain, rain take a hike. Erik wants to ride his bike. This was the refrain going through my head this morning as we woke up to varying intensities of precipitation that continued until 10 am, delaying our start. The sky spits at us as we mount our bikes, coasting down to the LVRT. We take […]
After a great breakfast at the Danville Restaurant and Inn (Ted had blueberry pancakes with real maple syrup), we start our 49-mile day by entering the trail next to the old Danville train station. The morning is sunny though unseasonably cold in the 50s. Our tires crackle as we pass through a grove of white […]
Much like Blanche DuBois, Ted and I have very much relied on the kindness of strangers when we find ourselves in a pickle during one of our road trips. That happened again today when we experienced four flat tires between the two of us. I led off the puncture parade two miles into the day […]
For the eighth time in nine years, Ted and I leave our homes to hop on our bikes for the great unknown. This time it is a cris-cross through northern Vermont with a brief visit to Canada. We will be biking nearly 250 miles over five days on the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail (LVRT) and […]
It’s a cold morning at 37 degrees. Not biking weather. But it should warm up to the low 50s by the time we hit the road. After a tough 39 miles on Corridor Aerobique the other day, we decide to alter our trip a bit. We were supposed to bike back the same way, which […]
We start the morning not with breakfast, but with a bike ride as our hotel does not offer this morning meal. Ted discovers a fantastic breakfast place where he has a fish-filled crepe that spans the entire plate and I have a similarly huge omelet. We are fueled and ready for our trip on Corridor […]
The sun is playing with the clouds as we head south on Le P’tit Train du Nord. It’s an easy pedaling day as the trail will tend to be downhill (mostly) and unless we take detours, our mileage should be around 35. We push hard though a forested grotto, which is cool and damp. A […]
It’s a clear sunny morning, not a cloud in the sky. We have nearly 50 miles to ride today. There are no other cyclists on Le P’tit du Train Nord this morning. Within 15 minutes of starting we strip layers next to a beaver den. By the time we get to Rivière-Rouge, we have both […]
A short ride takes us to the end of the trail at 200 km. Another 1 km takes us to an abandoned and boarded up station house where the trail actually ends. Now we retrace yesterday’s pedaling on yet another cloudy, coolish day. Leaving Mont-Laurier, we come across a cattle field filled with daisies, red […]
. . .grandpa wants a dry bike [ride] It was supposed to stop raining around noon but that never happened. So with 36 miles to finish the complete leg of Le P’tit du Train Nord, we don our rain gear and head off. We are fortunate that the base for the rest of the trail […]