American Tobacco Trail - Durham, NC
2016 November 26
I may not have had the opportunity to #optoutside for Black Friday, but you give me even part of a day with daylight in a new city and I'll find a bicycle to rent and take off. Lucky for me, Durham is home to a fine Rail to Trail. If you don't know about this program, it's a series of trails made up of old railroad beds. This can be chert, paved, gravel, dirt, etc. Fortunately, unlike the Katy Trail adventure I just completed, this trail was probably 80% paved. This brings me joy on a deep level.
The American Tobacco Trail extends 22 miles from downtown Durham, NC, south to the wilderness. Along the way you can see old tobacco cutting and drying houses and will likely share it with oodles of other users including bicyclists, walkers, runners and even horses on some sections. The mileage is marked along the way and the trees are lovely companions as you wiz by. Today's trip ended up being 45 miles on the nose. I'm thankful for being here, having the afternoon full of sunlight and for Uber and bicycle rentals.
For the local scoop, I recommend Durham Cycles for your rental. It was by far the most cost effective and convenient to the trail. After you drop your sweet adventure companion back off at the bike shop, you can walk down to International Delights and refuel. When they say platter, they mean platter. The sage tea is great when the sun has set and the cold from the ride is starting to creep in.
I may not have had the opportunity to #optoutside for Black Friday, but you give me even part of a day with daylight in a new city and I'll find a bicycle to rent and take off. Lucky for me, Durham is home to a fine Rail to Trail. If you don't know about this program, it's a series of trails made up of old railroad beds. This can be chert, paved, gravel, dirt, etc. Fortunately, unlike the Katy Trail adventure I just completed, this trail was probably 80% paved. This brings me joy on a deep level.
The American Tobacco Trail extends 22 miles from downtown Durham, NC, south to the wilderness. Along the way you can see old tobacco cutting and drying houses and will likely share it with oodles of other users including bicyclists, walkers, runners and even horses on some sections. The mileage is marked along the way and the trees are lovely companions as you wiz by. Today's trip ended up being 45 miles on the nose. I'm thankful for being here, having the afternoon full of sunlight and for Uber and bicycle rentals.
For the local scoop, I recommend Durham Cycles for your rental. It was by far the most cost effective and convenient to the trail. After you drop your sweet adventure companion back off at the bike shop, you can walk down to International Delights and refuel. When they say platter, they mean platter. The sage tea is great when the sun has set and the cold from the ride is starting to creep in.
How much do I love paved greenways? Let me count the ways!
I'm fairly certain pine trees are taller on the east coast.
Overwhelmingly Happy - The hotel gym is lame, but 4 hours on a bike is heaven and stimulating.
The trail did switch to packed gravel after about 15 miles. I wasn't devastated, but I had to face the beast and keep going. It wasn't so bad!
Old tobacco cutting and drying house. The sign said over 50,000 of them still exist in North Carolina.
Caught the tail end of the leaves changing in North Carolina. Yellows and reds abound!
I was skeptical of my 7-speed Raleigh, but she was a champ. The saddle was oddly padded. I won't say I didn't like it, but it was certainly a different experience.
Apparently this trail is part of the East Coast Greenway that extends from Main to Key West, Florida. I'm afraid to google it. There may be no turning back once I'm aware of the potential adventure...
The ol' route for the day! Note the slight detour near I-40. REI happens...
Get outside! Winter is coming!
Glad you could ride the ATT and discover the East Coast Greenway! Please do read about us, greenway.org, and ride -- and write -- some more. We want to spread the word as we work to complete the 3,000-mile route.
ReplyDeleteI am definitely intrigued and will be looking for more rides along the East Coast Greenway! Thank you for your efforts!
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