The Taconic Twist
Stewart’s, the best place for Ethanol free gas and gas station hot dogs
I was planning on finishing up the Ducati, but that got called off the night before. Now I had Sunday free, a warm day and with a low chance of rain. I’d take my chances again and head out on a day trip to western Massachusetts and into New York to get some ethanol free gas and iced tea from Stewart’s. I pulled up Garmin Basecamp and using my memories of good roads along with recommendations from the excellent resource that is New England Riders I planned my route. Mass pike onto 91 north and from there 116 to backroads to 2 out to the Taconic trail into New York. From there I’d hit up Stewart’s onto route 22 back down south where I’d return to mass through Bish Bash falls to US20 and back to the pike for the last run home. An all day ride and home just in time for dinner.
I left shortly after 8:30am, stopping to top off the tank and grab some water at the local shell station. From there it was a blast up 146 to the Mass pike to 91 north where I got off in Deerfield and picked up 116, one of the best twisty roads in Mass. The bike was running great, the heaps of torque from the LC8 while it roars choking down as much air as it can is addictive. Nothing is better than overtaking a car and having the front end go light from an accidental power wheelie. From there I crossed a bridge I’d been meaning to stop by for awhile, Bardwell’s Ferry; It’s an obscure bridge construction and there aren’t many left of it’s style. I wish I had checked it out sooner, as the road leading to it is fantastic.
At this point I'm thinking to myself: This is why I tour on motorcycles. Riding in a car just isn’t the same. On a motorcycle, you're part of the world, you're in it. The cold, the rain, the sun, the heat, you can’t escape them. You're physically moving around on the motorcycle, using your body to help the bike turn, you're kept active and attentive to the environment. In a car you are encased in a capsule traveling through the world. You have heat and A/C to make yourself comfortable, the windows separate you from the different smells, you have pillars and a roof to stop your 360 degree view. On a motorcycle, you're there, enveloped in it. It’s simply the best way to travel if the destination isn’t the goal and highways are the last thing you want to be on.
From Bardwell’s Ferry I’m spat onto Route 2, a good old friend. Out past Shelbourne it turns into a 2 lane road following the Deerfield river, often mirroring its twists and turns. In Florida it starts climbing into the Berkshire mountains, a southern offshoot of Vermont’s much more well known Green mountains. The road reaches its climax with a hairpin turn going into North Adams, with a breathtaking view looking over North Adams and onto both the Green and Taconic mountains. After a slow ride through North Adams and Williamstown, I take a right onto the Taconic Trail, a road connecting Massachusetts and New York by winding its way through the Taconic Mountain range. A favorite road of mine I don’t ride nearly often enough, especially since it’s been recently paved and it’s no longer rutted enough to shake your fillings out. While crossing the Taconics the clouds took a very intimidating shape and color, I was sure I would end up being rained on again, but this time I didn’t have any rain gear with me, just a cover for my tailbag.
From here I turned south onto New York 22, a road that winds through the Taconic valley. I’ve only ridden the northern end to about mid mass where I pickup the pike near Lee. But today I followed it much farther south. I make a stop at Stewart’s and stock up on Iced Tea for me and Cream Soda for the girlfriend. And as is tradition for me I grabbed a couple hot dogs off the rollers there. They're nothing special, but they’re pretty good for being gas station hot dogs, especially their Cajun Dog. The stretch of 22 south of the pike is an overlooked gem, it gets nice and twisty and is over for me far too soon. I turn onto 344 which takes me through Bish Bash Falls state park and back into Mass, a narrow windy road with an extremely low speed limit and punctuated by horrible concrete; 2/10 would not recommend.
The last stretch was a crawl on route 7 through Sheffield, Great Barrington and Stockbridge, nothing of note besides a lack of UFOs and a rolling protest coming the opposite way that didn’t hinder me in the slightest, well any more than the already slow traffic was. Then I turned onto US20 in Lee and this was an utterly sublime road. Following a creek pockmarked by small ponds it snakes its way across southwestern Mass across some glass smooth pavement. I had a great time chasing a Chevy Tahoe with blown struts down the road, I was sure he was going to crash with how much that truck was rolling. Finally I gassed up one final time in Westfield and jumped on the pike home. A typical boring highway blast and home just in time for dinner.
It was a great day out on the bike, and really got my mouth watering to head out on more than just a day trip. I’ve added some roads to my “Great roads” list and with the benefit of having some dope sweet tea to drink while I write this. I luckily didn’t get caught in any rain besides some drizzle when I first got onto US20, which was actually a kind of a nice way to cool down from the humidity. With it basically being June now, it shouldn’t be an issue to steal away on a weekend and explore a nearby state, I may already have some trips planned out, seeing new things in favorite states, as well as exploring states I haven’t really traveled.