We were chatting with the first group when another bike pulled in. One of the folks Chris and I had met at the Tibby's Lady's Garage Party arrived with her husband. We made our introductions and were starting to really look forward to getting out on the road.
We had a nice surprise when a friend and neighbor pulled in to join us. He'd brought a friend who is another regular on the site. In fact, she'd recently submitted the PAWS ride to ensure it made the calendar.
It was around this time I received a call from my good friend Bill who was in Suffield and on his way. He arrived about 10 minutes later and the ride was just about ready to get going. We had 10 bikes and 12 people for the first TOW ride of the season!
After everyone finished up the snacks they'd picked up at RJ's we saddled up and hit the road.
We headed off towards Southwick on 168 and worked our way up in to Granville along Route 57. This winds through the beautiful Granville Gorge area as you head up between Sodom Mt. and Drake MT. Once in Granville, we turned off to head back towards Westfield down Old Westfield Rd. This took us along the base of Cobble Mt and past the Springfield Water Works. There are some small lakes and ponds along this route offering the riders some "eye candy" along the way.
Once in Westfield, we worked our way over to General Knox Rd. This is a beautiful, well kept road that offers some beautiful sweeping curves as you wind your way up to Blandford. The sun was on it's way down as we passed Camp Moses which made for a beautiful backdrop over the camp's lake (Russell Pond).
This road is named for the famous Revelutionary War General Henry Knox who arrived in Westfield on January 24, 1776. If you're a Revolutionary War buff, there's a marker on this road as well as one in the center of Westfield. In fact, this is a stop mentioned on a Revolutionary War Tour of the US (see the second link below).
Info on General Knox:
http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/served/knox.html
http://www.revolutionaryday.com/usroute20/westfield/default.htm
When we reached the end of General Knox Road, we headed down the hill on Route 23 heading for the scenic Route 20. Route 20 is another beautiful riding road offering the rider some long sweeping curves and an opportunity to opn up the bike a little. Speed limits top out at 55 for a few miles. It also runs along the Westfield River and provides several areas to stop for a picnic or some pictures along the way.
We took 20 up into the small town of Huntington where we turned off on to Route 112. As we passed through the center, we had several young kids smiling and waving at us. You've got to love seeing that! We turned off of 112 and headed up to the Littleville Dam. This was our first stop of the evening.
We pulled down to the boat launch and parked the bikes to take in some of the breathtaking scenery. The timing was perfect, the sun was just about to set behind the mountain! We spent about 30 minutes chatting and taking in the the views. Though we didn't take advantage of this on this trip, you can walk out on the dam if you're looking to get a bird's eye view of the lake and the surrounding mountains.
It was getting late, the sun was dropping, and Dave from Southwick was hungry so we decided to head back down Route 20 and stop at the Russell Inn for a bite to eat. Three riders decided to leave us at this stop and bid their farewells.
After a relaxing dinner, we headed back out and I took the time to guide one couple from Agawam back to the center of Southwick and directed them on getting back to roads they were familiar with.
Thanks to everyone who made it and also thanks to RJ's for hosting us. If you'd like to try this ride on your own, find your way to RJ's, bring a copy of our riding map and enjoy!
If you missed this ride, you missed a nice one! Keep your eyes open for some future rides and perhaps you can join us.