Monday, October 4, 2010

We resume riding at last.

Oct. 3, 2010

Shuttle Meadow Reservoir in Plainville glistens in the mid-afternoon sun.
We departed from the Jeff Manzone residence of Newington and headed south towards New Haven.

In a strange but satisfying way, I'm relieved because I can attend an Out of Darkness anti-suicide fundraiser on the one year anniversary of the very untimely passing of everyonés good friend, Mike Altieri. We had to cut our route short, but I think it's  for the better.

We ride west from Fisk Street towards New Britain. There are a few unpleasant hills climb until we reach Shuttle Meadow Reservoir at the New Britain/Plainville town line. Nicole and I stop briefly for a cliff bar lunch and enjoy the rustic view before getting back on our bikes and coasting down a steep descent towards Plantstville.

Nicole  shows off her new shoes and flexibility.


We cross a few bizarre bow-tie intersections before we find relief at a section of the Farmington Valley Greenway. It's a portion of the New Haven-Northampton Railroad that we haven't seen before and it's instant relief. No more hills, no more traffic, no more crazy intersections. Perfect.

Just when we think we will reach New Haven in decent time, we see people lined up along the road, blocking us from crossing the street. Uh oh. Then we see why: It's some sort of Harvest Day parade! It wouldn't be a trip across America without a parade of some kind, but Nicole and I have no idea how long this parade stretches. I  have to think fast. I see a break in the action and we boldly make our move.

"Excuse us," I say, as Nicole and I weave through the crowd. "Excuse us, where on our way to Florida on bikes!"
An old rail depot outside of "Downtown" Plantstville, Connecticut.

The crowd lets us pass and we are back on our way. The trail ends in Milldale, so we hop on to Route 10 until we are halfway through Cheshire and the trail begins again. Except for a very unpleasant interruption due to trail repaving near Quinnipiac University, we ride the trail into Hamden and towards New Haven.

Right behind the Stop and Shop near the Hamden/New Haven line, we get a real wildlife surprise. We see what looks like a large dog on the side of the bike path. As we get closer, we see it's a baby deer!

Of course, we can't get the camera out in time to get a good photo. The deer hides in the woods, and Nicole and I try to capture it on camera as best we can. I try to walk closer and take a shot. The flash goes off. The deer is scared and prances away. What a sight!

Our feline friend is less exotic than the nearby baby dear.
We ride into New Haven and eat Ivy Noodle, a longtime favorite of Nicole and mine. Later, we meet up with James Walsh and his friend, Dan, before we all head out to Bogart Humphrey's.

Why the inverted name? Beats me. But this was Mike's choice to sing karaoke every Thursday night. Tonight a Beatles tribute band electrifies the crowd in a convulsion of emotions. The biggest cheer of the night is for the cause, when we discover that we've raised $1400 for the cause, so Mike's close friends can continue to spread the word that no fleeting moment of shame is worth forgetting how much other people love you and forgive you .
Beacuse, a Beatles tribute band, rips through another favorite tune.

At this point it's late. James Walsh invites us to stay at his place, and we enjoy a nice night in New Haven's East Rock neighborhood.

38 miles. Tomorrow we head west towards New York State . . .

No comments:

Post a Comment