Day 4: Brunswick, ME -> Portland, ME - 32 miles “Joy”

What an excellent day. Not too much out of the ordinary; after the last trying few days, that can be a good thing! I slept in at the most lovely AirBnB I could have imagined, hosted by a family with one son. I had a cup of coffee to fortify myself for the walk to Bowdoin. It was forecast to rain, so I opted not to bike, but rather walk, even though Google Maps told me I’d barely make it, but I did. Lovely college tour, nothing groundbreaking I thought per se. There were some similarities to Hawken, and Brunswick itself is lovely.
Donuts and more coffee were consumed on the way back to the AirBnB. I got back around noon. I knew I needed to pack and hit the road, but I was invited to play Fortnite with the family’s son, and I didn’t resist the siren call of the screen. Finally I was packed, filled with gut-busting biscuits and gravy (simultaneously best / worst cycling food) and on the road at 2.


It was a spectacular day to ride. Overcast, warm, and windy. Even though I incurred a strong headwind, I was fortunate not to be an overheated week like the last couple of days. I had to veer off the mapped cycling route to get to Portland. No matter, my friend, Mark had sent me detailed instructions on the best Coastal routes to follow to execute the 30 mile ride into Portland. These were verified a second time by the AirBnB host. I followed a lovely, large shouldered country road all the way into Yarmouth, at which point I branched onto Rt. 88, which I likened to Lakeshore Blvd. through Bratenahl for all of my Cleveland readers! All in all, it was a great day of riding. Didn’t overheat, moved quickly, scenic, fulfilling, all the bastions of a good ride. Finally I rolled over the two bridges into Portland.


I was actively arranging with Mark, my cycling buddy to stay with one of his friends in Downtown. It’s really interesting, Mark made the entire itinerary for the next two weeks, and it is airtight. But he played a little more spontaneous for my accommodations this weekend. I just found out yesterday that he actually doesn’t live in Portland, but on an island in the bay. After a brief hotdog stop I made my way to his friend Rebecca’s apartment. She is the most hospitable person ever. She helped me disassemble my “rig” to carry upstairs, and helped me brainstorm the food plan for this weekend that I’m currently actualizing. After a shower and some mental decompression, I headed for dinner.


After a one hour jaunt around town, and one failed excursion, I landed quite nicely at Pai Men Miyake, where I thoroughly enjoyed fried Brussels sprouts glazed in fish sauce, and a spicy tuna roll. Afterwards, following the bad lead of my server, I had a lackluster brownie. No matter, it was a great way to walk around the city. Tiredness ensued, and I went back to the apartment and to bed.