Bike Ride to Littleton NH

One of Many Rail Bridges

Yesterday took a lot out of me so instead of doing a big hike, I decided to explore the local rail trail. It’s called the Ammonoosuc Rail Trail. I was told the trail went 6 miles to Littleton (The Glad Town) and 12 miles to Woodsville. The trail goes an additional 6 miles past Littleton.

It’s a subtle uphill ride from the KOA campground to Littleton. It seems that they came in and removed the rails and ties and leveled it out and not much more. In some places it is very stony as in the stone base used around railroad ties. Other places there are a lot of cinders. In a few places close to Littleton, they’ve done a better job of leveling and used smaller stones. There are remnants of the old railroad all around. I was on a mountain bike and set the front shock absorbers to very soft. This helped a lot.

This is a different trail to ride. You certainly need a mountain bike or gravel bike. On some parts of the tail there were four wheeled motorized RVs. It was clearly marked that motorized vehicles were not allowed. This is New Hampshire and it seems that these types of signs are more of a suggestion.

Riding this trail you are taken back in time. I tried to image what it must have been like to have ridden this route 150 years ago. There were many buildings along this route that were at least 150 years old. Some of the old depots had been converted into pub restaurants or small shops.

I met a guy along the way that was born in Littleton but now lives in Florida. He explained the rail system which at one time was very comprehensive. He told me they took up the rails recently an additional six miles outside of Littleton. He said, “you’ll see where they stopped taking up the rails. He was right on. I got to the end and couldn’t go any further. The milage was exactly twelve miles.

One thing that really surprised me was a dam above town that had been extended upwards by putting some fence poles at the top of the dam and attaching planks of wood. Having grown up in Central Pennsylvania, this brought back memories of the various Johnstown floods. If you’re looking for a captivating read, check-out John McCullough’s The Johnstown Flood.

The water is seeping through the wood slats. If this did break through, It probably wouldn’t do much damage because the riverbed is very wide and could handle all the water. Nonetheless, I’m not sure how any engineering teams would sign-off on this.

At various points there is colorful art, sculptures and graffiti.

Downtown Littleton, NH

On the way back, I stopped in Littleton just to explore the town. I was pleasantly surprised. The town isn’t very large but I discovered several yoga studios (all were closed), a few really good restaurants, a nice hotel and a vibrant down town area. One of the restaurants I wanted to try was Tim-Bir Alley Restaurant service farm to table meals. It the front window is a sign that says “That’s What I Do, Get Tattoos, I Cook and I Know Things”. It had a French Cafe look inside. I didn’t make it back for dinner.

I met a man in a very nicely renovated office space. He told me his life story of living off the grid. He said he was a renegade and tried to avoid everything. He also told me that unfortunately he’s now 74 with almost no social security. He said he has to work to pay for his health insurance and basic living expenses. There were some regrets concerning his earlier life style and not saving or reporting work done.

Wayne Clinger: Hammering Out Tunes

Riding through the center of town I saw a guy playing alto sax. So, I stopped to listen. He was very good. He was playing a song that reminded me of Stan Getz and I told him. He said, “this is an alto, Stan played a tenor”. I agreed and told him I was referring to the style of music. We both laughed. He was sitting in front of a music store (Northern Lights Music). I parked the bike for about 20 minutes and listened. He was playing 50’s bebop music. I had an urge to break into a little jitterbug with the backbeat he had going. I restrained myself.

It was funny just observing the reaction of people as they went by. It was clear some people had no feeling for this music and others would spontaneously break into some form of dancing. We started chatting and he told me he was from New Jersey originally.

He is 84 now and still has the lungs for an alto sax (kudos). He told me some funny stories about things that happen on the street as people come by. There was a guy that stopped and told him he was in a in a band in New Jersey and they needed a sax player. Was he interested? Further inquiry indicated that it was his former band in New Jersey, albeit with different musicians. He asked what I was doing and I told him about my trip. He said he’d checkout the blog.

KOA: Dan and Debbie

Dan and Debbie work at the Littleton / Franconia Notch KOA. They are extremely friendly and helpful. Somehow Dan and I got on the subject of their new EBikes and some issues with properly adjusting the seat height. I offered to help get some of the basic adjustments right. After about 45 minutes, we got both the bikes adjusted so that their legs weren’t fully extended when peddling. We adjusted the handlebars so that their shoulders weren’t pushed up to their ears. They were both happy that the bike felt more comfortable. Also, thank you for making my stay so pleasant.

It is off to bed early for a long trip to Baxter State Park in Maine. This will be about a 6 hour drive.