A coastal glide

A beautiful weekend, with sunshine, blue skies decorated with fluffy white clouds, very comfortable temperatures (in the 70s), and a reasonable amount of wind...

I've been waiting for a weekend like this one, hoping to do a 2-day (1-night) bike trip in south coastal Maine. What I didn't figure in to my plans is that it is very difficult to pull off last-minute lodging plans at this time of year. My preference is a bed & breakfast, but B&B reservations generally can't be canceled. Well, they can be canceled, but there usually isn't a refund unless the owners can find another guest to rent the room. That's probably a reasonable business practice, but it puts a crimp in non-planned last minute weekend getaways. I can either make a reservation and go, regardless of the weather, or I can wait until the last minute and find that there's no room at the inn! No problem - maybe I'll manage a quick trip later, in a cooler and maybe less popular month.

For today though, Maine still provided a temptation for me and my bicycle. I drove to Wells, and rode from Wells to Biddeford Pool and back again. I followed the Southern Coast Tour cue sheet (from the Maine Department of Transportation web site) for the outbound portion of my ride. It nicely identifies the roads leading to the ocean, following the jagged coastline. I have to admit that by the time I reached the turnaround point I was done following directions, and I followed Maine route 9 back to my car. It's a very reasonable road for riding, two lanes with reasonable paved shoulders for the most part. And it was totally in character for me to wander back without following the cue sheet's many turns - although I was happy to have the help to direct me towards the water on the ride out.

Wheels rolling, stopping, rolling, stopping, camera clicking, absorbing sunshine and scenery...

What fun to be able to capture this sea gull's interaction - standing in the water, running, flying - with the wave rolling in!

More photos from today's wandering can be found my Meandering in south coastal Maine - 2006 photo gallery.