A man playing the bagpipes entertained the riders on the 2010 D2R2 in Deerfield, Mass.
If you are a regular visitor of the BikeRide.com Blog you will know that we like to ride dirt and gravel roads. Recently I came across this very creative video invitation to the Gravel Metric ride on May 30th organized by North Central Cyclery in DeKalb, Illinois. If I lived closer, and I would be there.
May 8, 2010 — The weather this morning in Connecticut certainly scared many cyclists from getting out on the roads, but luckily I was watching the radar online and saw that the early thunderstorms and rain was predicted to clear up around noon.
I had planned a ride starting in Canaan, Connecticut that included some of the great back roads in the northwest corner of the state, and put out the word to some of my riding amigos for an afternoon start. Scott, Dave, and Ken were up for the adventure, so we loaded into Scott’s Eurovan, and drove about 40 minutes northwest toward blue sky and the start at Lawrence Park in Canaan.
River Road
We headed south from Canaan on Route 7, but quickly veered off onto Sand Road, and some other side roads. Part of the route south included River Road, a fairly smooth dirt road following the scenic Housatonic River down to the West Cornwall covered bridge.
White Hollow Road in the distance
From West Cornwall we crossed Route 7, and made a steep climb following the road west toward Sharon, CT. Another dirt road cut off brought us back north on White Hollow Road toward the Lime Rock Park where we stopped to see some of the cars testing out the auto racing track.
Lime Rock Park
From Lime Rock we headed north on Salmon Kill Road toward Salisbury. This stretch of road is very scenic and you pass by some impressive “summer cottages”. In Salibury we stopped by the town market where Scott and Dave refueled on some Sushi (they said this was a first for sushi while on a bike ride), and then filled our water bottles at a natural spring in the center of town.
The Natural Spring in Salisbury, CT
Leaving Salisbury we turned north off Route 44 on to Taconic Road to head toward Sheffield, Massachusetts. Once we crossed the Connecticut - Massachusetts line, the roads turned to dirt, and there were a number of places that had been recently covered with a fresh load of loose rock. Three of the four of us flatted on Foley Road, so I’d probably avoid that route the next time.
Heading North into Massachusetts
Since we spent a little too much time fixing flats, and touring the auto racing track, decided to cut the original planned route a little short and took a more direct route back to Canaan from Sheffield, Mass.
The Dirt Road That Cost Three Flat Tires
All in all, it was a great day on the bike. If you like staying on traffic free roads, look for the thin lines on the map and even go for some dirt roads. There are many dirt roads in northwest Connecticut, and the Berkshire hills of western Massachusetts and these are some of the most scenic routes in the area.
I recently mapped out a cycling route that linked many dirt roads near where I live in northwest Connecticut and the southern Berkshires of Massachusetts. I called this loop the BDF2R (Berkshire Foothills Dirt Road Ride). I recently attempted the route with some of my cycling club friends. On May 24th we met in Pleasant Valley, Connecticut at the elementary school parking lot. On the way to the ride, Stuart and Laura witnessed the aftermath of a hit and run cycling accident which is not what you want to hear about before heading out on a holiday weekend ride. The 18-year-old driver was drunk when he hit two cyclists at about 7:20 in the morning. I hope the cyclists will be o.k. It certainly makes you think twice when an accident like this happens of roads you frequently ride on.
As we were getting ready to start the ride, Scott noticed he had a cut in his tire. he patched it up with some duct tape, and we were soon on our way. We started out on East River Road along the Farmington River, then took a right on Greenwoods Road into the People’s State Forest. This one lane road isn’t dirt, but it is broken pavement in a few places with some gravel, and is a challenging climb to start the ride with. I noticed a lot of people camping in the State Forest for Memorial Day.
Greenwoods Road through the Peoples State Forest
After Greenwoods Road we connected to Route 20, then turned left on Mill Street, left on Hogback, and downhill to cross the Hogback Dam until we got back to Route 8. On Route 8 and Sandy Brook Road we saw a steady stream of cyclists heading the opposite direction that were participating in the Angel Ride, a two day charity ride that crosses Connecticut.
Off of Sandy Brook Road we turned onto Campbell Road which was our first dirt road section. This connected to Beech Hill, then we turned left on Simmons Pond Road. This is where it got interesting.
Simmons Pond Road had a Dead End sign that we should have taken seriously, but we continued on. At first the road was just gravel as it passed through the Algonquin State Forest, but it soon turned to big rock with a lot of water. Basically it was like riding in a stream. I found some old topo maps that showed these roads, but they are not on current maps, and even on a mountain bike they would be challenging. 
It was too late to turn around so we forged ahead. Jim was riding his road bike with 23c tires pumped up to 135 psi and it was pretty amazing that he made it through this section. He took his road shoes off and hiked barefoot with his bike for a while! Before long the road got a little better, but there were a lot of steep hike-a-bike sections. We eventually connected to Roberts Road, which had a more rideable dirt surface, and that came out on New Hartford Road, which took us north. There are some other dirt roads off of New Hartford Road that I will have to explore some other time.
New Hartford Road
From New Hartford Road we turned left on Dodd Road, which was another dirt section. That road passed a couple of farms, then turned to a double track as it entered the Sandisfield State Forest. The Road is a little wet and rocky in places, but rideable.
Dodd Road
At the end of Dodd Road we took a left on Forest Road, past York Lake, and crossed Route 183 to East Hill Road. 
York Lake
East Hill Road is another scenic dirt road that descends to Southfield, Mass. Rock walls line the road and there is a Lama Farm that made for a good photo opp.
After East Hill Road we arrived at the Southfield Store for a food stop. The store was renovated a few years ago and is a little more upscale to cater to the many owners of weekend and summer homes in the area. Being that this was Memorial Day weekend, it seemed like there were a few new employees in the store to gear up for the summer. They seemed a little frazzled when our group came in. The service was a little slow, but they had a some good food. Gourmet pizzas, sandwiches, baked goods, and pastries were available. There were a few tables out on the patio where we sat. I had a small Mahgarita Pizza, a scone, and a Coke.
After the food stop we turned off of Route 272 to Canaan Southfield Road and then veered off onto Keyes Hill, another dirt road that passed a farm with a great red barn. At the bottom of a steep dirt descent on Keyes Hill we crossed Canaan Southfield Road to climb Rhoades and Baily Road. If we do this route in the future I would continue straight on Rhoades and Baily, but we turned right onto Cagney Hill and dropped down another twisting descent to connect back with Canaan Southfield road. We eventually turned right onto Cross Road to Canaan Valley which is another dirt road that starts with a climb.
Cross Road to Canaan Valley Next we turned left onto Campbell Falls Road which is a dirt road that climbed up to Route 272 past the scenic falls that run under a stone bridge.
Once we were back on Route 272 heading toward Norfolk, we turned left onto Elmore Road (dirt) and that turned onto Wheeler Road and connected to a number of other country lanes until we got to the store at Colebrook. 
Wheeler Road
The Colebrook store is currently closed with a for sale sign in the window. From the store we headed down Schoolhouse Road which becomes Pisgah Mountain Road. That is a fun dirt descent that connect back to Sandy Brook Road. I have seen that road many times while coming up Sandy Brook but had never ridden down it. We headed back to Pleasant Valley on our normal route Down Sandy Brook, Route 8, then past Riverton.
It was a great day of adventure discovering some new backroads. I’d like to plan this ride again with a few alterations to avoid the unrideable sections, and maybe connect a few other dirt roads that I have yet to ride.
