Day 1: beat the rain into York Beach - Coasting the New England Coast - CycleBlaze

September 24, 2021

Day 1: beat the rain into York Beach

(I know I may be tempting fate stating that)

Looking at the forecast, the rain was supposed to start at 2; so our goal was to beat the rain to York Beach - I mean, what else were we supposed to do? Crossing the bridge out of Portland Maine, the infrastructure treated us with a well- defined bike lane. Once in south Portland the route would dovetail onto the well-defined and quiet Eastern Trail.

We totally sail along the Eastern trail!
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If you thought the route was harsh, it’s not at all riding through the salt marsh
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Can ride two abreast since the trail isn’t narrow, and you can see oncoming bikes since the trail’s straight as an arrow
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We take a slight detour to see Old Orchard Beach since we heard it was quaint and well within our reach. Most of the businesses are closed - what could be the reason? Could it be that we’re riding through in the off season? The public restroom is .50 to entree; we had our dollar but there was no one to pay (we used it anyway by the way).

During summer season this place is hoppin, with people enterin’ and people shoppin’
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I was feeling rather blue, when the closed sign said, “no rides for you!”
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Then we turned our bikes into the 10mph breeze, and headed to Biddeford for a sandwich of egg, bacon, and cheese. Then back to our trail to ride some gravel, and 6 more miles to travel. Then on through Wells and Kennebunk but I have to admit, I was really looking forward to reaching Ogunquit.

A panorama is the way this was created, which means Kath’s hand is separated due to the scan - she’s not decapitated
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The view of this farm was really nice, and especially since the season is pumpkin spice
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The rain’s holding out, not nary a raindrop, we cruise into Perkins Cove, which is our next stop. I came here before on my 2019 tour - I liked it enough to bring my wife to explore. It’s not that large, but definitely worth a stroll; there you can buy anything from pottery to art to a lobster roll. 

The buildings are shingled with mostly grey paint, which only adds to the uniformity of the village being quaint
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I thought this interesting so I took the shot. Was it worth it? Yes, I like it a lot
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Made to York Beach and started to write, messaged former neighbors to see if they’re alright. They drove from Wells to meet us for dinner and regailed us how living in Maine is a winner. After dinner we walk on the beach and get sand in our toes, rain’s supposed to come tomorrow but who knows?

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Today's ride: 50 miles (80 km)
Total: 50 miles (80 km)

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