Cape Cod Rail Trail

Somerville, Mass - Now that I am training for a 1500km biking expedition across Africa, I feel like I need to take every chance I can to ride my bike. I started riding occasionally with the Charles River Wheelmen, an excellent group that organizes rides several time a week. But I'm also doing a lot more riding on my own. For now it's not really an organized training program - I'm just trying to get out on the bike four times a week, and clock about 100 miles a week. (Never mind that I will be doing 100 miles a day in Africa... trying not to think about that.)

On Tuesday I was scheduled to give a book promo talk at a bookstore in Hyannis on Cape Cod. Lonely Planet is working in conjunction with Borders bookstores and the AARP to inspire older people to travel (and buy travel books). LP authors are appearing in bookstores all over the country to speak to AARP members. It's not really about any particular destination, but more of a general talk to get people thinking about where they might want to travel and how to go about planning a trip. I have done a few of these talks, which usually do not draw large numbers; so it's kind of an informal chat where I get to exchange travel adventures and planning tips with the audience members.

Anyway, since the talk was on Cape Cod in the evening, I had this great idea to spend the afternoon riding the Cape Cod Rail Trail -- it's a beautiful bike trail that goes for 22 miles from Dennis to Wellfleet, traversing idyllic ponds, salt marshes, pristine woods and peaceful residential areas. Near the terminus is the wonderful, wavy Cahoon Hollow Beach, which makes for a perfect picnic destination. After a bit of rest, you ride back. 

I figured that as long as I had an hour or so to cool down and clean up at the end of it all, I could manage to appear respectable at the book talk. Unfortunately, I totally misjudged the amount of time it would take to ride the CCRT. It's not that I thought I would go faster than I did - it's just that I am bad at math.

For some reason I was thinking it would take about an hour and a half, so I gave myself two hours just to be safe. I had a fantastic ride to Wellfleet. But when I arrived - now 22 miles from my car - I realized that had taken me about an hour and a half. One way! I immediately forgot about my picnic (which was just a Cliff Bar anyway) and hopped on my bike to pedal back.

I don't know if it was the wind in my face or the new awareness of time that made the trip back seem twice as long. I got back just in time to make a quick change in the car and go straight to the bookstore. So much for cooling down and cleaning up!

I had brought a complete change of clothes, but this is the point at which I discovered that I forgot my shoes! So I showed up at the bookstore in biking shoes... I was a little embarrassed but friends assure me that this is perfectly appropriate for a travel writer. (At least the bookstore was carpeted so I was not clicking around on my toe clips.)