A good ride overall. Some frustrations when I missed a turn (no street signs again). There were no indications I was on the Greenway from the Newburyport Train Station until Topsfield at the Border to Boston Trail. Maybe I just happened to miss them all? I had to ride around the Train Station parking lot to find the beginning of the Border to Boston Trail. It looked like a small path that had a posted sign next to it. But in fairness to the ECG, they nailed the description-barely improved. Understatement at the beginning, especially. Picture is of that part of the path. It was pleasant enough, and I saw a hawk fly over my head, just in front of me. Cool. Though I couldn't ID it. Marsh Hawk, maybe?
The Topsfield part of the trail has these cool markings at trail/road access points.
My cue sheets had me going around on a road section that puts one onto the Border to Boston Trail (BtoB) a few miles down the road. But when I saw the section with the miles posted for North Shore Mall, I decided to jump on it there and stay off-road. The first mile or so is more like hard-packed single-track with rocks. When one gets to the point where the road section of the ECG puts you on the BtoB, the trail is much more refined.
The pic that follows was one of the many along the BtoB where there are parking areas or little walking trails. If you note the ECG trail mileage at the bottom, you may say "Hey, wait a minute. You haven't done any 400-plus miles" No; I have not.
Now is a good time to speak to the term, non-EDIers ("Every Damn Inch"ers). I would like to call myself more of a non-EDMer (Every Dang Miler). Perhaps I didn't start out that way. It is my intent to pay homage to the distance, for sure. I think it is more practicable to ride EDM when you are self-supported or staying along the route in hotels or the like. Pulling an RV day to day is a whole different experience. You have to find starts and stops nearby a place where the RV can actually park overnight. And park to drop you off, if the place is not on the route. That's all I will say about that. If I have disappointed you, well, then, you are disappointed. As I said someplace earlier. If I ride 2,000 of the approximate 3,000 miles, I will have accomplished my goal.
I arranged to stop at a place just off the Independence Greenway in Peabody today. Just so happened that it was in the parking lot of a Chinese restaurant, Su Chang's. And so, here I will thank Kristen Smith for my meal! Eggplant with garlic sauce, to which I added fried tofu. Quite tasty. DL had MuShu Shrimp. And we each have at least one more meal out of that. That was soooo perfect after 40-miles. My fortune: "Flying is simple. Not hitting the ground is hard." Indeed.
Tonight, we're staying in Winter Island Park in Salem. Interesting place. Just drive right up onto the big lawn. Bath house is right on the water, and there is a nice view of the lighthouse off the parking lot there.
40.99 miles / 241.17
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