caje
Well-known member
This weekend I did sections 8, 7 and 6 of the North East Backcountry Discovery Route (going southbound), which including the highway to and from was around 1300km in 2 days with each day being around 12 hours of riding. This was my second time moto-camping and the longest I've ever ridden in a day and weekend by far, so I learned a lot.
Day 1: Montreal to Pittsburg, NH by highway to the start of the route, then Rhubarb Pond, NH to Gorham, NH through Maine.
Got started at 6:15am and rode for 2.5 hours to the start of the trail, which begins with an out-and-back section that goes to the border. This was probably my favourite part of the whole trip - it felt super remote and was probably the most challenging portion of the 3 sections I did, although still very doable. I didn't see anyone else on the trail for quite a while, other then on some of the road portions.
At the northern terminus of the trail.
Going back down south through Maine, most of the route was on forest roads. These weren't very challenging but were a lot of fun with some nice views. One highlight was the abandoned asphalt road in the photo below. It was nice and easy at first so I increased my speed, but then was surprised when it suddenly became deeply rutted dirt and I couldn't slow down in time. Rookie mistake going too fast in unfamiliar terrain. Managed to keep it upright luckily.
The route through the southern portion of section 7 was a little less interesting - it was mostly windy paved roads and some less interesting dirt roads through cottage country. Maybe it was just because I was exhausted by this point, but it seemed to go on forever.
I camped in Gorham, NH and fell asleep quickly after around 13 hours on the road, but woke up every 2 hours or so as my sleeping pad sprung a leak and I had to keep blowing it back up. This will also probably be the last time I camp in a developed campsite that caters to RVers - I was surrounded by barking dogs and noisy neighbours. Next time will be primitive camping.
Day 2: Section 6 - Gorham to Woodsville, NH
This section is almost entirely through the White Mountains, so I was looking forward to it. I started the day a little later at 8:45am as the road up Mt. Washington only opens at 9am. Unfortunately when I got there I discovered that due to a special event, only ATVs were allowed on the road that day which was disappointing.
Most of the day was spent on roads like this through the White Mountains National Forest.
Spending most of the day riding through forests was awesome, although the last quarter or so was less interesting with more pavement. One nice thing about the route is that most of the pavement is twisty and fun at least.
I finished this section at around 6pm, and while I had another campsite booked for the night, I was exhausted from 2 nights of little sleep and long days of riding, so the prospect of another rough night on a semi-deflated sleeping pad was not appealing. I ended up deciding to ride home, and got back at around 9pm.
Overall these 3 sections of the NEBDR were a lot of fun and I would highly recommend them. One thing I'd note is that there wasn't much of a challenge - the more rugged portions were few and far between and could be bypassed if desired. From what I understand, sections 4 and 5 through Vermont are more challenging but on the whole, the NEBDR is designed to be doable on big bikes. There's also a great Facebook group for the route where you can check out conditions before you go.
Definitely a must do if you're planning to be in the area.
Day 1: Montreal to Pittsburg, NH by highway to the start of the route, then Rhubarb Pond, NH to Gorham, NH through Maine.
Got started at 6:15am and rode for 2.5 hours to the start of the trail, which begins with an out-and-back section that goes to the border. This was probably my favourite part of the whole trip - it felt super remote and was probably the most challenging portion of the 3 sections I did, although still very doable. I didn't see anyone else on the trail for quite a while, other then on some of the road portions.
At the northern terminus of the trail.
Going back down south through Maine, most of the route was on forest roads. These weren't very challenging but were a lot of fun with some nice views. One highlight was the abandoned asphalt road in the photo below. It was nice and easy at first so I increased my speed, but then was surprised when it suddenly became deeply rutted dirt and I couldn't slow down in time. Rookie mistake going too fast in unfamiliar terrain. Managed to keep it upright luckily.
The route through the southern portion of section 7 was a little less interesting - it was mostly windy paved roads and some less interesting dirt roads through cottage country. Maybe it was just because I was exhausted by this point, but it seemed to go on forever.
I camped in Gorham, NH and fell asleep quickly after around 13 hours on the road, but woke up every 2 hours or so as my sleeping pad sprung a leak and I had to keep blowing it back up. This will also probably be the last time I camp in a developed campsite that caters to RVers - I was surrounded by barking dogs and noisy neighbours. Next time will be primitive camping.
Day 2: Section 6 - Gorham to Woodsville, NH
This section is almost entirely through the White Mountains, so I was looking forward to it. I started the day a little later at 8:45am as the road up Mt. Washington only opens at 9am. Unfortunately when I got there I discovered that due to a special event, only ATVs were allowed on the road that day which was disappointing.
Most of the day was spent on roads like this through the White Mountains National Forest.
Spending most of the day riding through forests was awesome, although the last quarter or so was less interesting with more pavement. One nice thing about the route is that most of the pavement is twisty and fun at least.
I finished this section at around 6pm, and while I had another campsite booked for the night, I was exhausted from 2 nights of little sleep and long days of riding, so the prospect of another rough night on a semi-deflated sleeping pad was not appealing. I ended up deciding to ride home, and got back at around 9pm.
Overall these 3 sections of the NEBDR were a lot of fun and I would highly recommend them. One thing I'd note is that there wasn't much of a challenge - the more rugged portions were few and far between and could be bypassed if desired. From what I understand, sections 4 and 5 through Vermont are more challenging but on the whole, the NEBDR is designed to be doable on big bikes. There's also a great Facebook group for the route where you can check out conditions before you go.
Definitely a must do if you're planning to be in the area.
