Day 3 - Bethel to Littleton, New Hampshire - Sea to Sea - CycleBlaze

May 12, 2022

Day 3 - Bethel to Littleton, New Hampshire

Great weather continues for this trek.  I was fortunate to have John join me for the first twenty miles today, following North Road on the north side of the Androscoggin River, from Bethel almost to Gorham NH.  This came after a great evening with John, his wife, and mine - the two Cheryls!  North Road has a great surface, almost no cars, and postcard scenes of the White Mountains.  

John and Bob ready to start from Sudbury Inn
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Eric & Elaine HendricksonGood luck Bob perhaps we will see you in the mid west later nthis summer.
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View of the Presidential Range from North Road
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Cheryl MarvinneyProbably some of the most beautiful scenery on the ride!
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John had to leave after North Road and I continued on Rte 2 to Gorham and second  breakfast.

A favorite rest stop when we travel through Gorham.
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From Gorham, I followed the Cross-NH Adventure Trail (XNHAT) which uses an excellent rail trail system for many miles.  Rather than going up the steep hill on Rte 2 west of town, the rail trail goes around it at a 2% grade for 10 miles up, then 2% down for another 7-8 miles.  Beautiful woods and streams.  The XNHAT also uses several back roads with little traffic.

Valley Road, looking east toward the Whites.
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Pondicherry NWR
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The last stretch was from Whitefield to Littleton on Rte 116, which has a few large hills and an excellent shoulder.  My hosts for the night, Pat and Gardner, who are friends of friends back in Maine, picked me up in town so I wouldn’t need to ride the 13% mile to their house.  Thanks so much for your hospitality!

A classic New England scene
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Pat and Gardner at their house on top of a hill overlooking Littleton
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Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 182 miles (293 km)

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Bob TuckerA gorgeous 3-day start to your journey! You've already done the equivalent of the Trek across Maine. Onward to new states and new adventures!!
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