merlinmurph
07-08-2013, 09:05 PM
Over the 4th, my wife and I went back to a campground we haven't been to for a few years. It sits right on the ME/NH border at the foot of Evans Notch.
We went for a ride on Sat, and I kept it in the valley to keep my wife happy. (The last time we rode together, I screwed up and hit one too many hills.....). The plan was ride for about 2 hours, she would end it at the campground, and I'd continue and climb the notch.
Now, the last time we were here was 6-8 years ago. I made the climb then, went down the other side, turned around and came back. I didn't remember anything real gruesome about the climb and thought it was a semi-long, gradual climb. No big deal.
Well, it was a big deal.
Because I thought it was relatively easy, I was kind of aggressive going up heading north, getting out of the saddle a lot and working hard. Then, it just kinda kept going on a steady 7-10% grade and not letting up. I needed a break, and kept thinking about the 13-29 cassette I meant to put on before I left home. Way harder than I ever thought. Man, I've gotten old. I made it, but it wasn't pretty. Heading north, the climb was ~850 ft in 2.5 miles.
Ends up I just burned myself out on the first half, and when I hit the steeper section, I couldn't recover. The next day, I took it easier starting out and did much better. The climb on the other side (heading south) is much easier.
I highly recommend this area for camping and riding. It's a quiet area with lots of farms, some lakes and rivers for swimming, lots of hiking, and all sorts of riding with very little traffic. The craziness of N. Conway is just over the ridge, but you'd never know it.
The riding options are all over the map. You can stay in the valleys and keep it flat, or you can suffer on the various notches. It looks like there'as a lot of dirt options, too, with roads named Something Hill Rd all over the place. I don't know how many of those roads actually go thru rather than just being dead ends. Might have to research that.
Just one warning. If you're mapping a route out using something like Google Maps, that line on the map could be anything - smooth road, rough pavement, dirt, or barely road at all. Kinda cool riding.
Enjoy your ride,
Murph
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130706_130656_848_xx_zps905779f8.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130706_130656_848_xx_zps905779f8.jpg.html)
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_125414_524_xx_zps792daa4e.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_125414_524_xx_zps792daa4e.jpg.html)
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_130541_437_xx_zps9dc61c73.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_130541_437_xx_zps9dc61c73.jpg.html)
We went for a ride on Sat, and I kept it in the valley to keep my wife happy. (The last time we rode together, I screwed up and hit one too many hills.....). The plan was ride for about 2 hours, she would end it at the campground, and I'd continue and climb the notch.
Now, the last time we were here was 6-8 years ago. I made the climb then, went down the other side, turned around and came back. I didn't remember anything real gruesome about the climb and thought it was a semi-long, gradual climb. No big deal.
Well, it was a big deal.
Because I thought it was relatively easy, I was kind of aggressive going up heading north, getting out of the saddle a lot and working hard. Then, it just kinda kept going on a steady 7-10% grade and not letting up. I needed a break, and kept thinking about the 13-29 cassette I meant to put on before I left home. Way harder than I ever thought. Man, I've gotten old. I made it, but it wasn't pretty. Heading north, the climb was ~850 ft in 2.5 miles.
Ends up I just burned myself out on the first half, and when I hit the steeper section, I couldn't recover. The next day, I took it easier starting out and did much better. The climb on the other side (heading south) is much easier.
I highly recommend this area for camping and riding. It's a quiet area with lots of farms, some lakes and rivers for swimming, lots of hiking, and all sorts of riding with very little traffic. The craziness of N. Conway is just over the ridge, but you'd never know it.
The riding options are all over the map. You can stay in the valleys and keep it flat, or you can suffer on the various notches. It looks like there'as a lot of dirt options, too, with roads named Something Hill Rd all over the place. I don't know how many of those roads actually go thru rather than just being dead ends. Might have to research that.
Just one warning. If you're mapping a route out using something like Google Maps, that line on the map could be anything - smooth road, rough pavement, dirt, or barely road at all. Kinda cool riding.
Enjoy your ride,
Murph
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130706_130656_848_xx_zps905779f8.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130706_130656_848_xx_zps905779f8.jpg.html)
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_125414_524_xx_zps792daa4e.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_125414_524_xx_zps792daa4e.jpg.html)
http://i886.photobucket.com/albums/ac62/merlinmurph/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_130541_437_xx_zps9dc61c73.jpg (http://s886.photobucket.com/user/merlinmurph/media/Bikes%20and%20rides/IMG_20130707_130541_437_xx_zps9dc61c73.jpg.html)