It was supposed to be a beautiful weekend so it seemed the perfect time to explore the area on my bike. As luck would have it, our program director sent out a list of local events and attractions this week. The Minuteman Bikeway was relatively close and free (again - relatively: we won't mention the cost of sitting on that hard seat for all of those hours). What better way to see the area and get some much-needed exercise?
I googled the directions to the beginning of the Bikeway which began at the "west side" of the Alewife station. Not being a good scout, I did not have a compass or a sextant or even a good sense of direction! I found a path on A side of the Alewife station, but I began to wonder if it had not been traveled since the Revolution until I saw all of the graffiti along the fence. The artist was definitely a modern-day poet. You could tell by the alliteration and repetition of words beginning in "f" and "s". I kept telling myself that I would turn around when I could, but that turned out to be well beyond my starting point. Following some other people on bikes, I discovered that the Minuteman Bikeway has no graffiti and that it has big banners announcing its location!
Now I know!
The first stop after I joined the trail was the Spy Pond. the picture is at the beginning of this post - doesn't it look exactly like the pictures of small New England towns? Now this is interesting:
Did you know that the pond is over 100 acres and that ships used to come into Boston to take huge chunks of ice from the pond as far away as Africa and South America? That does not explain the name, but it is fascinating.
There was no marker, but I am guessing that this is where General George Washington stopped to feed his troops after all of the tea had been dumped into the hahbor.
The Bikeway is 11 miles - I am not sure if that is round trip or one way, but I do know that it is uphill both ways and that there are some sassy young people in spandex who kept passing me, but when the ladies who were older and larger than I passed me, that is when I had to stop gazing around and defend my pride. Look what happens to you if you don't make it:
Given the 3 mile journey to the station and the 3 miles back PLUS the 2 miles (at least) that I traveled through the Hood, I think that I earned the 10 Advil and the nap that I took when I got back!
If you are interested in learning more about the bikeway, the link follows and anyone who wants to come visit is welcome to go with me to explore again!
http://www.minutemanbikeway.org/Pages/intro.html
I must thank Andy for his comment explaining to me that a piece of equipment in my apartment is upside down. I value input like his and hope that you will feel free to help me with my decorating faux pas(es?) as my good child has done! That is why we have children, after all.
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