Welcome to Aging Adventurist. I am attempting to do one adventure every day for the month of August, 31 days, 31 adventures, some big, some small, some physical, some mental. I hope you’ll come along, or join me!
Day 13: Friday, August 13
Bike ride: to and up Mt. Holyoke, Skinner SP, Summit House, RT
The ride to Mt. Holyoke in South Hadley makes for a nice outing. It takes me along the Norwottuck rail trail through Northampton, then across the CT River, onto Bay Road and to Route 47 with a straight-on view of the Holyoke Range. It takes about 40 minutes to reach the Skinner Park entrance and begin the thousand-foot steep climb up to the Summit House. Among the three Pioneer Valley mountains with paved roads – Mt. Tom, Mt. Sugarloaf, Mt. Holyoke – the climb to the Summit House is, I think, the hardest. It’s the longest and highest. The first half-mile is steep and unforgiving before it eases the incline a bit and actually flattens for one stretch where it crosses the NET Trail. Then it gets very steep again with a couple hairpin turns to the top. I always complete the climb by riding up the ramp onto the Summit House wraparound balcony.
Adventure: Bike ride to and up Mt. Holyoke, Summit House, RT
Distance traveled: About 20 miles cycling
Challenges: Maintaining good mph; bike climbing up a steep 1000-foot incline
Risks: Cycling risks: dumb ass drivers; rider error leading to hard crash; losing control on fast mountain descent.
Difficulty scale 1-10: 7
Highlights: This makes a great, compact workout out and back; and of course, the view from the Summit House is among the best in the Valley.