Originally Posted by
dmort
I'm visiting my brother in East Boston over memorial day weekend (I live in NYC, the bronx). Can anyone suggest a decent ride starting in East Boston? From looking at the map it seems like it makes sense to head north up towards Salem or Marblehead but I don't know those roads. What is 107 like? What about 1a? I'm a fairly experienced road rider and my bro is new to road cycling but he's pretty fit.
Originally Posted by
rholland1951
Depends on how long a ride you want, and under what conditions. There is a good, relatively short, relatively local ride to be had out to Deer Island, with a side excursion up to Revere Beach… Revere Beach is the oldest public beach in the US, and has a certain charm.
If you want to get up to the North Shore, there's water in the way. The highway engineers and city planners haven't made things easy for us over the last many decades. Neither Route 107 (the Salem Turnpike) nor 1A (called the Lynnway, once you cross the bridge) are welcoming environments for even skilled cyclists. I rode the Lynnway from Lynn to Revere once, and count myself lucky that both myself and my tires survived…Perhaps others on this list have direct personal experience with that road, and can chime in.
If you want to ride North, best approach is to ride inland on Revere Street and Malden Street, then turn north on Lynn Street, or if the bikes you're on are running 28mm or fatter tires, try the Northern Strand Community Path. Either route will get you into Lynn, and once you've ridden through that (avoiding the Lynnway), you get to Swampscott and points beyond. You have a choice to make: Marblehead and Nahant are near destinations. For a longer trip, you can ride through Salem and Beverly, and then take your pick of Cape Ann and North Shore destinations.
The Google Maps bicycle view is your friend here, just take what it shows you about the Lynnway with several grains of salt.
If you have access to a car and a bike rack, another approach is to drive to Beverly, and start from there. Another approach is to ride from East Boston to Chelsea (crossing at the Chelsea Street Bridge? I haven't tried that on a bicycle, anyone have relevant experience?) and follow on to the
Chelsea commuter rail station, on the Newbury and Rockport line. Take that North as far as you are interested, and either ride back to E Boston (with all the caveats above), or take a train back to the Chelsea station. There are some nuances about when and how you can take bikes on the train, but it is one of the traditional ways folks from Boston get to the North Shore riding areas.
Sorry for all the hedges in the above.
This part of town is somewhat fenced off from other areas by geography, history, and civil engineering, and my personal experience with it is partial. There are definitely parts of any ride in this area where your Bronx-honed cycling skills will stand you in good stead.
rod
Originally Posted by
dmort
Hey rod, thanks for all that info. I'm going to sebd it off to my bro and see what he makes of it. He rides sub ten mile rides partly because he has 6 month old twins and partly because I think he's not sure where to go from east Boston. I was hoping to push us out to around 25ish miles - partly because I ant to ride for more than 45-60 minutes and partly because I want to help him get a moderate and reasonable reprieve from parenting. …I really appreciate the insights.
My initial questions were, like rod’s, how far and where to go (and time of day). I have posted a
Cyclist’s Guide to Metro Boston, with this brief description of the North Shore:
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
Welcome to Boston and environs; I love riding in and around this town. I'm a year round commuter from Kenmore Square downtown to Norwood 14 miles southwest of Boston and an ocasional centurian. Just this Sunday I rode through Saugus on my way back to Boston on a 60 mile RT ride up the coast to Marblehead…
Even though I've lived here for over 30 years, I always get lost on a new ride. Streets are laid out in a haphazard fashion; many streets, particularly the one you are riding on are not marked; they surreptiously change names; and in rotary intersections it's easy to lose your sense of direction. (I don't have a GPS.) On a happier note, the Transportation Authority (MBTA) allows bikes on subways and commuter trains with certain restrictions and that's a nice way to get out of town without city riding.
MBTA > Riding the T > Bikes on the T
ADDENDUM: See also this
post about local bikepaths / MUPS in the City of Boston proper, and nearby.
I would describe the sectors as (mostly for road riding outside of Rte 128):
North Shore: Beautiful Atlantic coastline, especially north of Lynn, to include Nahant, Marblehead and Marblehead Neck, on through Salem, Beverly and into ritzy Beverly Farms, and up to seafaring Gloucester, Rockport, Ipswich, etc….
FWIW, there is also a
private ferry service from downtown Boston to Salem.
I rode once to Deer Island, but I would save the miles, and instead extend my ride as far north as possible along the coast. I recall Winthrop as a nice ride. Revere Beach is interesting, right along the road, but can be crowded, likely on Memorial Day, and that would include the rideable sidewalk. The Beach front is I estimate about 2-3 miles long. Take note of the legendary Kelly’s Roast Beef, also with good fried clams. Afterwards is a slight stretch of the pretty residential Point of Pines, then followed by the Lynnway for about 2-3 miles as described by @
rod. I’m okay with it as an urban rider, on a skinny tire road bike, and you can ride the sidewalk over the bridge.
The riding from Lynn northward is a favorite. I would recommend a loop around around Nahant, and there is a rocky outcropping to visit, with no need to park a car, with an old World War II gum emplacement. Swampscott is pleasant residential riding with some coastal views. Marblehead, particularly the old section is very interesting, especially as a walking segment. Prior to Marblehead Center is ritzy Marblehead Neck, also well worth a detour to the park at the end.
Salem of course is very interesting, and then Beverly and beyond are prime cycling destinations, especially Cape Ann with Gloucester and Rockport. As rod suggested, you can eliminate much of the gritty urban riding by taking the train. Also note that the Blue Line subway, with a stop in Maverick Square, as I recall, will allow bikes at off-peak hours, and will take you to Revere Beach.
Of course if you have a car, or want to ride through more urban parts of Boston, there are many interesting areas, that are more car-free on the weekend. Personally I hope to do a Memorial Day ride somewhere of about 30 miles. Feel free for further inquiries.
Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
...Consider me as Metro Boston's Ambassador to BikeForums....