We have two obvious choices when leaving our new house by bike to take a bit of exercise. The two options both start by heading down to the ocean. Turning right at the shore offers the opportunity to bike along the breakwater promenade which parallels the Lynnway.
The latter is a four lane road with a lot of relatively slow moving traffic that lies between the breakwater and a mix of beach homes, apartments, and large restored Victorian houses. You are sharing the promenade with all varieties of pedestrians, dog walkers, baby carriage pushers, joggers, skaters and other bikers. Therefore, the pace is of necessity a leisurely one. The view of the Bay is lovely and there is often a breeze.
People watching is definitely a distraction. About halfway on this ride the path veers south and follows the causeway on a separated trail to Little Nahant and Nahant. The beach at Nahant is wide and shallow even at high tide. It seems perfect for kite flying, paddleboarding, sand castles, and wading.
There are great views back to Swampscott, out to several islands in the Bay, or toward the packed houses perched on the hills of the Nahants.
One way distance to the far end of Nahant Beach 3 ¼ miles.
[Other photos to be added as they come available, that is, as I remember to bring my camera along]
Turning left at the shore has us riding in traffic through an older commercial section of Swampscott offering a smattering of restaurants, ice cream places, a great Jewish bakery, and many beauty parlors and dentist offices. After a brief stretch, the road enters a residential section and we bike along with traffic on a wide two lane road. There would be adequate width, I believe, to define a bike lane, and certainly there are plenty of bikers travelling in both directions, but none is delineated. At the Swampscott/Marblehead border, we pass Trudi’s favorite town beach, Preston Beach. Once in Marblehead, the road widens, the pavement improves, the traffic lessens a bit, and the road becomes shaded on both sides with stretches of maples and beech trees. Turning right on Ocean Street leads to Marblehead neck and Devereaux Beach, which we have not tried as yet. Across the causeway from the beach is Marblehead Harbor, a sheltered harbor so stuffed with sailboats that you could probably walk across it from boat to boat without getting wet. One way distance to Devereaux Beach 3 ¾ miles.
In both cases, the rides could be extended by riding the circumference of Nahant or Marblehead Neck, which I am sure we will do at some point in the not too distant future.
Dad, your titles are awesome.
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