A weekend in the woods - Tour de Lyme

This is the one shot I stopped to take in the woods in over 35 miles of MTB riding this weekend in Chester and Old Lyme, CT. This shot is from Saturday's 8+ mile warm up ride in Pattaconk State Forest in Chester. Coming from Florida, the elevation, thick forest canopy, and rocky terrain, were big and welcome changes. I never spent so much time in the lowest gear. Until Sunday. Tour de Lyme. The Rider's Challenge. Billed as 26.5 miles, but Strava and my legs promise it was closer to 27.5. Loads of low gear seated climbing, but enough level and downhill to keep you moving past turn back points. This is a shot near Mt. Archer, taken along Mt. Archer Rd.:

Great riding to be done in New England!

http://www.tourdelyme.org/cycle-routes/mountain-bike-routes/
The road cycling is pretty nice here, too!

Very pretty

Wish I'd gotten more shots. It's tough to stop knowing you've got a long way to go! That first shot was actually taken at the Pattaconk Reservoir Recreation Area within Cockaponset State Forest.

And the rest of the riding was in Lyme, CT. Apologies for the mistakes!

Hope you had your tick spray on. Two of my nieces/nephews and a sister got Lyme disease up that way ... lots of antibiotics involved.

It IS pretty. The woods there have a sweet smell; mountain laurel?


AA

Awesome!

I grew up nearby and pulled many ticks off after roaming in the woods when I was younger. Sunday night, just before falling asleep, I felt one crawling on the back of my thigh and dispensed of him before he latched on. Lyme Disease is serious stuff.

And, yes, mountain laurel, lilac, dogwood, were all blooming! The scent I love, though, is being in the woods after a rain!

That's near where I grew up too. Devil's Hopyard is another beautiful natural site in the area.

Right up the road!

My wife won the women's road division. Great event!

You didn't miss the sugar sand, palmetto roots and alligators? lol.

Xavier_Dredo said:

My wife won the women's road division. Great event!

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Sweet! Congratulations!

Forged said:

You didn't miss the sugar sand, palmetto roots and alligators? lol.

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Let's just say I look forward to opportunities to ride elsewhere, especially now that it is 90+ with high humidity until October!

I hear ya, I lived in Tampa for 15 years and spent a lot of time MTBing year 'round, had to ride early to beat the heat during the summers.

And when the rains come, the trails here are submerged. Hope you can get time to head to NH and VT. I hear the trails are phenomenal up there!