May 23 Conway To Woodstock, NH

I spent the night in the Eastern Slope Family Campground where I had the tenting section all to myself.  It was quiet but cold.  Again I slept in that down jacket that Karen persuaded me to buy and I was grateful for it.  Even though it’s cold once I get my jacket on I’m sleeping very well.
Today’s ride was beautiful and the weather was good for climbing.  The first 10 miles was on the Passaconaway Road which ran through the national forest and along the Swift River.  There were signs indicating that moose crossed the road there but I didn’t see any. I’m convinced I heard a moose, a bellowing sound like none that I’ve ever heard before.
Once I turned on the Kancamagus Road I was climbing all the way to the Kancamagus Pass.  It apparently is about a 9%climb for five miles.  I actually liked this climb better than some of the steeper,  but shorter climbs I’ve been doing on this trip.  It is more gradual but less stressful.  One cyclist I met today told me that some of the climbs we had done in Maine were 25% climbs.  I think that might be a bit exaggerated but he did have an altimeter.  He was a cyclist who had started in Bucksport and was heading to Vermont.
I met a cycling group going east who had begun in Wisconsin and planned to end in Bar Harbor.  I also met Rob from Brooklyn, NY who is riding the Northern Tier. He arrived at the Pass just after me so we took pictures and traded info.  I was a bit intimidated by his plan to do 70 miles a day.  I stopped for an ice cream cone in Lincoln and debated whether I should try the next pass this afternoon. I mean maybe I’m being lazy and not motivated enough.   While there I met a woman, Jane, who recently retired as the marketing person from the white mountains tourist association.  She was helpful in finding a reasonably priced place to stay but she also pointed out that she had seen the other cyclist pass through just before me.  Yeah, you’re quite a bit older than him, maybe you shouldn’t try to keep up. Helped me get some perspective.

Passaconaway Covered Bridge

Passaconaway Covered Bridge

Lower Falls, White Mountains 

Swift River Covered Bridge