Colin:
After a great breakfast and a tour of the recently constructed Williams library we met up with my parents.
My mom planned to hike and see the sights while my dad joined Carol and I for however much of our ride he wanted.
We set off heading south out of the Berkshire Valley.
Having gotten a later start came with the unexpected benefit of getting to stop at the Old Forge for lunch. This was a favorite restaurant and bar of Williams students and Carol was deeply excited for the opportunity.
After our lunch we continued snaking our way southeast around, and seemingly more often over the hills and mountains of western Massachusetts.
While I had rarely if ever been to most of the towns we passed, it was nice to see familiar names on the road signs. Beyond that, one colonial Protestant church is much like another and the houses and vegetation do not vary much between there and the coast so everything began to feel very familiar.
While in conversation with my dad and passing by another prototypical New England town green it started to set in that we really were nearing the end of our trip. As life on the road had long since become normal this felt a bit surreal and even as I write this a day later will continue to take time to process.
Later in the afternoon with both the hills and a mechanical issue taking their toll my dad hopped in the support car (what a novelty! ) and drove into Northampton to find a bike shop to fix his shifting.
Carol and I followed more slowly, though not much because the final 14 miles were all down hill.
After getting the bike issue resolved we checked into a motel and went out for a wonderful dinner in Northampton.
My mom planned to hike and see the sights while my dad joined Carol and I for however much of our ride he wanted.
We set off heading south out of the Berkshire Valley.
Having gotten a later start came with the unexpected benefit of getting to stop at the Old Forge for lunch. This was a favorite restaurant and bar of Williams students and Carol was deeply excited for the opportunity.
After our lunch we continued snaking our way southeast around, and seemingly more often over the hills and mountains of western Massachusetts.
While I had rarely if ever been to most of the towns we passed, it was nice to see familiar names on the road signs. Beyond that, one colonial Protestant church is much like another and the houses and vegetation do not vary much between there and the coast so everything began to feel very familiar.
While in conversation with my dad and passing by another prototypical New England town green it started to set in that we really were nearing the end of our trip. As life on the road had long since become normal this felt a bit surreal and even as I write this a day later will continue to take time to process.
Later in the afternoon with both the hills and a mechanical issue taking their toll my dad hopped in the support car (what a novelty! ) and drove into Northampton to find a bike shop to fix his shifting.
Carol and I followed more slowly, though not much because the final 14 miles were all down hill.
After getting the bike issue resolved we checked into a motel and went out for a wonderful dinner in Northampton.
63 miles
3470 miles total
No comments:
Post a Comment