Summer Road Riding North of the Notch         

 

It’s taken Sue and I a few years to get back into road riding, both of us used to do some riding but fell out of it in favor of trail running and mountain biking.  We’ve recently discovered a couple of incredible rides that have gotten us enthused about riding the roads again; they’re away from traffic and wonderfully scenic.

 

North of Pinkham Notch just east of Gorham off Rt 2 is the North Road in Shelburne. Park your car at the small gravel lot just over the hydro electric dam on the North Road and you will be at the beginning of one of the nicest rides around. The route takes you to Bethel, Maine via a relatively smooth, paved, (except for 250 yards of gravel at the ME/NH border – what’s up with that?!) rolling hills route that roughly parallels Rt 2. There are a couple of jumping off points like the steel bridge in Gilead if you wanted to go over Evans Notch. This is a delightful ride for any ability and as scenic as it gets with rivers, bridges, hardwood forests, and farm fields. About 23 miles each way.

 

For a shorter ride with steeper hills take the North Road – Lost Nation Road out of Jefferson. Right, different North Road completely – this one is off Rt 2 west of Gorham just before Santa’s Village theme park. Look for the sign for Josselyn’s Sawmill and Log Homes. Park in the small gravel turnout at the beginning of the North Road. This ride takes you through rolling hills and flat valleys, beautiful scenic mountain vistas and lots of working farms. The largest farm in NH is out here. About 5 miles into this trip take the right on Lost Nation Road. Stay on this route to Groveton. About 17 miles each way.

 

These rides are what we've been doing on days off recently.  Where have you been riding?

 

Howie

Add comment