Bicycle Tour: Spacious Skies Minute Man, Day Two

Monday, May 20, 2024, was the second and final day of my tour to Spacious Skies Minute Man Campground. (For the first day, see Spacious Skies Minute Man, Day One.)

During the night, I was awakened a few times during the night by train horns or noisy trucks. I carry earplugs, which would have prevented this problem, but I hadn’t worn them. I woke to birdsong at 5:30 a.m. Nearby campers were still sleeping. I explored the park thoroughly, after which I ate breakfast, packed up, and departed at 9:15 a.m.

Unfortunately, I made a wrong turn early, wasting about five miles of effort. And as happened on the trip out, I missed a turn and ended up on Routes 111 and 27 between West Acton and Acton once again. I managed to reroute myself onto some decent back roads until I reached the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. I rode to West Concord and took Route 62 to the head of the Minute Man Bikeway, where I paused thirty minutes for lunch. I cruised down the bike trails into Somerville and home, arriving at 1:30 p.m., having ridden 37.33 miles in four hours fifteen minutes.

I managed my effort much better on the ride home, with 41% Zone 1, 49% Zone 2, and 10% Zone 3.

I was very, very tired after this two-day trip, for which my total mileage was 71.06 miles in 24 hours. I had been training by riding my Trek Valencia 25 miles three times a week, with my longest ride reaching 35 miles, but I have a ways to go to get into shape for longer touring.

The weather was perfect with not a drop of rain or dew. This was a very good first tour for 2024.