Early Fall Ride in Southwest Hunterdon County

yet another picture of the Delaware River

5 October 2013

Back in February 2012 I came up with a list of roads and routes that I wanted to try, someday, eventually, maybe, whatever.

Looking back on it, I see that I've completed a few:  I've been up Pine Hill and Parsonage Lot; I've gone to Easton and Phillipsburg; and I did a sort-of-hilly century this year.

One road on the list is Tumble Falls.  The plan for today was to climb it, since the route I had in mind  -- Lambertville to Upper Black Eddy -- would go right past it, and we'd need to get off of Route 29 anyway.

I left home with little time to spare, which got me mad at myself because lately I've been early to rides.  I pulled into the parking lot three minutes before the ride was supposed to start.  Joe was two cars ahead of me, so neither of us had to rush to get ready.

There were nine of us today:  me, Cheryl, Blake, Joe, Jim, Ron, Bagel Hill Barry, Might(y) Mike, and a new guy named Jerry.  We took one of my usual paths out of the valley in Stockton by turning onto Lower Creek Road.  I was a little bit ahead of the pack when I pulled out my camera to get some shots of the turning leaves.  Three out of five came out blurry, which is just as well, because I shouldn't be taking pictures while I'm riding.  It's time for me to strap on the helmet camera.

We climbed Upper Creek to get to the ridge, and noodled around there for a while, aiming for Pittstown.

"Pittstown, as in don't blink," I told Jim, who wasn't sure he remembered it.  I reminded him of the perplexing sign:

I took this picture 5 years ago.   

"Do not enter.  This is not an exit."  On the other side is a stairway.  We passed by Perricone's, the deli that is the essential second rest stop on the Double Reservoir Ride.  It was closed, and through the windows we could see clothed tables and cloth napkins.  The only joint in town has gone upscale.  Time to re-route.  Good thing we passed by today.

We were close to 29 miles in by the time we crossed the Delaware in Milford. The water was glassy today, something we rarely see.  It was also low.

Blake asked, in a sideways manner, whether we were staying on the Pennsylvania side to go home.  I said we weren't.  That's when he admitted that he wanted to know if we were going up Bridgeton Hill.  The road is open again.

At Homestead General Store we sat outside.  A fluorescent green spider wandered near my muffin.  I let it walk on my finger and then took it to Miss Piggy.  How often does one find a spider to match one's bike?

I like spiders.  I find them fascinating and often beautiful.  Ya gotta respect a creature so small that can instill so much fear into a human being.    Plus, there's this.  Go on, click on it.  It's not gross.  Really.

Anyway, the little creature spun its way to the asphalt, which is where it was when we gathered to depart.

Mike and Joe were thinking that they didn't need to go up Tumble Falls.  The others were game.  No problem, I told them.  "We're going to go down Federal Twist to Raven Rock.  You can go up Federal Twist and meet us there."

"We can't do that," said Blake.  "The Raven Rock bridge is out."

You know already what I was thinking.  But before I could say anything, Blake added, "I mean out, out.  I was there last week.  There's a chain link fence."  Brige, 1, OLPH, 0.

So now we had to figure out a way around that without winding up back on Route 29, which nobody wanted to be on, and without adding miles, because 55 was enough already.  Blake checked his memory; I checked Google maps. Tumble Falls would have to wait for another day.

Meanwhile, as we headed from Milford to Frenchtown along the river, Blake and I considered every uphill option between where we were and Stockton.  We settled on Horseshoe Bend.

Near the top, Miss Piggy decided to throw the chain off the rear cog into the spokes again.  This time I landed on my feet.  She's due for a tune-up next month anyway.  My delay gave Blake time to check a map on his phone, and when I finally got to the corner he'd come up with an upland route to Sergeantsville.  I let him lead.

This is the view from the top of Locktown-Sergeantsville Road, looking south towards Sergeantsville.

By taking the route we did, we saved ourselves three miles.  I think we did about the same amount of climbing as we would have had the bridge been open.

Might(y) Mike, who hasn't been riding much this season, and who has cut out early on just about every ride I've seen him on, stayed with the group for the entire ride.  At the end, Cheryl and I decided that he can have his y.  Welcome back, Mighty Mike.

Here is the route we took.  I promised Jerry I'd post it.  Once we left Lambertville he had no idea where we were.

*****

R.I.P. Sean and Dale's Vinnie Ireland, who decided today that 18 years of being a cat is quite enough.