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| Cape Cod by Bike - Independence Day Weekend, 2005The weather was absolutely perfect here. The forecast had threatened a bit of leftover rain and clouds on Saturday morning, but at 6:00 when we got up, the last of the clouds were receding. By the time we had all (Jodi, myself, Ken, and Adele) enjoyed the homemade breakfast Jodi made for us, had cleaned up, and were ready to set off for the Cape by bicycle; around 8:00 or so, it was a glorious sunny day. Saturday was a long ride for Jodi and I, who hadn't done much cycling this season. By the time we got down to the bridge to the Cape it was a bit past noon, and I was starting to feel the 50 or so miles we had put in. We stopped for lunch just before the bridge, and soon after I felt all those calories flowing helpfully to my legs. We kept on at a moderate pace, and I soon recovered my energy. Another 20 or 25 miles later I started to get cramps in my legs. Darn, forgot the bananas! (Bananas are a staple of a cyclist's diet, because the potassium helps avoid cramping.) Just as our route turned off the road onto the Cape Cod Bike Path, I got a huge cramp in my left leg and barely made it off the road onto the grass before I fell off my bike. Fortunately there was a store just across the road, and after walking over there to get a sports drink, my legs were nearly back to normal. We ended up with a bit over 90 miles on the odometer before we reached the hostel in Eastham on Sat urday afternoon. Jodi was amazing. With a total of about 35 miles of cycling so far this season, she finished the ride without a complaint. After dinner Saturday night, we walked the couple of miles down to the beach in Orleans to watch the fireworks. On Sunday we did an easy and meandering 35 miles or so to the hostel in Truro. This is about the prettiest spot you could imagine. The hostel was built in the 1930's as a Coast Guard Station, and is right in the National Seashore. It's just over the dunes from the beach, and is beautifully quiet. Sitting on the front porch all you hear is the insects in the bushes, plenty of birds, and the surf pounding the beach. The beach here is so beautiful that even I enjoyed hanging out on the beach for a couple of hours in the afternoon. On Sunday night the hostel was having an all-you-can-eat 4th of July picnic for $5.00 per person, so we gorged ourselves on salad, hamburgers, hotdogs, veggie burgers, sautéed veggies, watermelon, home-made brownies, soda, chips, & etc. After dinner we fell into conversation with an older gentleman who was also staying at the hostel. His story was fascinating. He is a Russian Jew who emigrated to the U.S., by way of Switzerland and Israel, back when Jews were first allowed to leave Russia. In order to do so, he had to give up his citizenship. On Sunday we had a lazy morning and rode the short 10 or so miles into Provincetown in time for a late breakfast. We locked up the bikes in front of the library, then strolled down Commercial Street until the 4th of July parade started at 11:30. After the parade, we had lunch overlooking the water, and wandered around some more until it was time to catch the fast ferry (90 minutes) back to Boston at 3:00. The ferry brought us into Boston through the Harbor Islands, passing right by Logan Airport, before docking in South Boston. From here we had to ride less than 10 miles back home to Quincy. A great weekend! Now we're trying to figure out a cheap way to stay in Provincetown. The nightlife there has to be something else! We did check with the Chamber of Commerce, and they said they often have last-minute deals on unsold rooms for as little as $50/night. So maybe we can make that work, along with the fast ferry, to stay in Provincetown for a weekend sometime. |
Copyright © 1996 - 2011 Allen F. Freeman |
