It occurred to me that the weather was benign and that I hadn't ridden out the Charles this year, so off I went on the Surly Trucker DeLuxe, riding through Harvard Square and across the river, then following the trails along the South bank out to Nonantum and the Charles River Greenway Bridge in an unhurried fashion, stopping from time to time to take photos, often of the fall foliage strutting its stuff. At that point, I checked my email (never do that), and realized I needed to be back in Arlington in an hour, so I switched to the North Bank and sprinted home on the fastest paved alternatives on offer. Made it on time, and had a nice sprint, but no photos of that half of the ride.
Nineteen miles through Arlington, Cambridge, Allston, Brighton, Newton, Watertown, and Belmont, on a mix of asphalt and stone dust surfaces.
Allston, approaching the Northeastern University boathouse: a regular fire drill of shells, bikes, and scooters on the trail. The shells eventually found their way into the water, but they were airborne for several minutes, while the crews discussed I don't know what.
The boathouse itself just sat there looking dignified, and ignored these high jinks.
Shortly thereafter, I passed a drumming circle in the park, and got a rhythmic boost for my pedal stroke.
The bell tower of the Perkins School displays what must be the largest Braille text in town. Think of the hand that will read it.
The Weir. The character of the river starts to change.
Nonantum: the Fall Foliage Ride commences.
The Charles River Greenway Bridge: I didn't know it yet, but that was my true destination today.
The view from the bridge, upstream. Hard to get more autumnal than that.
Some of the leaves that have already fallen are drifting downstream. Perhaps a few will make it to the Harbor. I turned my bike around and raced them as far as Cambridge.
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