The East Coast Greenway: Trip Introduction

A mile from my house in Newark, Delaware, runs a convenient and popular path known as the

 

"James Hall Trail."  It's a pleasant few traffic-free miles that make for an easy bike, jog or walk, provided you hold onto your hat when the adjacent Amtrak trains blow by on their mad dash to New York City or Washington, DC.  If you're paying attention, you'll notice the occasional sign marking this route as part of the East Coast Greenway.  

For many years I wasn't paying attention, but eventually I broke through the fog of familiarity and started to notice these Greenway signs in other nearby places - sometimes on a nice, interesting path wandering through a local park, but other times along some god-awful section of roadway - which got me wondering exactly what this designation was meant to convey.  Whatever it was, it not only ambled near my house, but also skirted the hospital where half of Delaware works (and the other half are patients), slogged passed the county airport, dipped its toes in the Delaware River in historic New Castle, and ran the urban gauntlet of Wilmington.  Research was in order.

I'm guessing that if this trip log caught your attention, you may already know or have an interest in the East Coast Greenway.  I came to discover that it is a heroic effort by a small group of dedicated people who, in their words, are "fostering a safe walking and biking route through the country’s most populated corridor."  It runs from Maine to Florida, and connects some 450 cities and towns, according to their website.  

My adventure imagination soared.  I immediately joined as a member and started pouring over their mapping tool, formulating various trip ideas.  Having seen enough corn and soybeans from the seat of a bicycle to last two lifetimes,  the idea of touring right across Manhattan... are you KIDDING ME? Now we're talkin'.

The pitch to my neighbor, Bill, went something like this:  "Hey Bill, what say we ride to Boston, right through the urban corridor, along this Greenway?   If we time it right each day, we should be able to avoid most of the gunfire."   

Bill hesitated. "Uh, I dunno... I'd have to check with Kathy."  

"Did I mention that we could stop at B&B's every day?" (as in 'Bakeries and Breweries')  

"I'm in," he said. 

Trip Logistics:  We'll leave from New Castle Delaware, and make our way up to Boston's North Shore (Marblehead) via the Cape Cod route, some 640 miles (1030 km) and 12 days away, counting one day of whale watching from Provincetown.  We'll be hoteling for 5 days, camping for 6 days, and spending one night in my son's apartment in Brooklyn.   Most of the route stays true to the Greenway, but we do have to go off-trail for accommodations, and I also routed the occasional shortcut when I needed to trim our daily miles.  The Greenway map was transferred to Ride with GPS for ease of navigation, which can literally be block-by-block in some dense areas.  It was quite challenging to find accommodations that were affordable, available and spaced at reasonable distances (60 mi / 96 km), and those logistics took up most of the trip planning.  Consequently, all reservations were made in advance.   We will meet my wife in Marblehead, where she will be visiting relatives, and will drive back home.  If you were doing this without car support, however, if would be easy enough to use Amtrak for a shuttle.

Two days from departure. Bags packed, bikes prepped, and bodies... um... well, bags are packed and bikes are prepped.

Trip Overview.  In case you were wondering, that's Connecticut rearing its

comely head(lands) on the elevation profile. Hopefully I'll be in shape by then. 

My plan is to diet for the first four days and then attach a tow rope to Bill's bike.