Sunday, July 8, 2012

Presidential Rail Trail - Gorham Side

It looks like Tuesday July 10th is going to be a wonderful day for a ride. So it'll be a great day to ride the eastern end of the gentle and very scenic Presidential Rail Trail.

This easy trail, on the old B&M rail bed, will take us through lovely woods with beaver ponds and meadows and some beautiful mountain views. From the Route 2 trail head we'll ride the old rail bed to the intersection of Pinkham B Road. Then we'll switch to Durand Road and take that to the rail trail's height of land at the Castle Trail in Bowman (Randolph). The return journey will be wholly on the rail trail. 

The ride back to our starting point will be a breeze as it is ever so slightly downhill. In all we'll cover about 20 miles.  The surface of the trail is mostly dirt with some ballast and an occasional sandy spot.  We usually ride this trail earlier in the season as it is a good "starter trail".  But we had all rainy Tuesdays in May.

Directions: Go north on Route 16 to Gorham. When route 16 meets route 2 at the T intersection turn left. Go through Gorham on Routes 16 and 2 until Route 2 diverges to the left at the traffic light . You'll see the trail head parking lot on the right about .8 mile after you turn left on Route 2.


Carpooling:  Meet at the Old Jackson Town Hall at 9:15.  We should start the ride in Gorham by 10:00am. 

Bring sunscreen, plenty of water and a snack (or lunch).  For those who are interested in amazingly good panninis, we can go to Saladino's in downtown Gorham for lunch after the ride.




No comments:

Post a Comment