A Bike Trail Smorgasbord +1!

North Shore Bicycling For Fun

Looks like relatively mild weather on Tuesday with high temps in the mid-60s -- a perfect day to ride. Come join the Grand Poobah on one of our favorite group events, as we combine multiple short rail trails in Amesbury, Salisbury, and Newburyport into a single ride through a varied landscape and over some historic trails. This is our smorgasbord ride -- a little bit of everything on this one! [See the historic photo album in the site's photo section!](https://www.meetup.com/North-Shore-Bicycling-For-Fun/photos/32268434/)[ ](https://www.meetup.com/North-Shore-Bicycling-For-Fun/photos/32268434/) And this time around, we'll also explore a special [bonus trail](https://coastaltrails.org/the-trail-network/gloria-braunhardt-bike-path/) -- one that I ride only on rare occasions. Our total riding distance for the day will be 27 miles round trip.

•  Garrison Trail

•  Bonus: [Gloria Braunhardt Bike Path](https://coastaltrails.org/the-trail-network/gloria-braunhardt-bike-path/)

•  Amesbury Riverwalk

•  Ghost Trail

•  Old Eastern Marsh Trail

•  Clipper City Rail Trail

From the solar farm, our ride starts out on Rabbit Road and then crosses Elm Street (Route 110) to the Garrison Trail, which takes us via the Whittier Bridge over the Merrimack River. After that, we'll hit our bonus trail - the [Gloria Braunhardt Bike Path](https://coastaltrails.org/the-trail-network/gloria-braunhardt-bike-path/), which utilizes a reclaimed, abandoned northbound section of Interstate 95. We'll return via the Garrison Trail and transition over to the Amesbury Riverwalk, taking a short break in the historic lower mill yard before returning to the parking area and the start of the Salisbury Point Ghost Trail.

At the end of the Ghost Trail, we'll turn north onto the Old Eastern Marsh Trail and ride up to Seabrook, NH. Upon returning to Salisbury, our ride continues to the other section of the Marsh Trail, which takes us out to the old railroad bridge over the Merrimack River. We'll stop here to regroup and enjoy the scenery for a few minutes.

The trip resumes when we travel over the Gillis Bridge via the dedicated bike lanes to the Clipper City Rail Trail on the Newburyport side of the river (We'll use the bike underpass on our return).

LUNCH: Market Landing Park on Newburyport's historic waterfront is amazing. We'll eat lunch either on the boardwalk or at one of the benches in the new park. If you need a sandwich, Port Sandwich is nearby and offers some great food.

[Port Sandwich](https://www.portcitysandwichco.com/)

40R Merrimac St #102E

Newburyport, MA

(978) 358-8628

After lunch, we'll bike along the Clipper City Rail Trail and meander through various marinas, past the Coast Guard station, and behind the Custom House Maritime Museum to Joppa Park. Eventually, we'll stop and regroup at the Parker/State Street intersection, which is the end point for this part of the trail. We'll travel past the Route 1 rotary to the start of the second section of the trail, across from the train station, and ride north to the Merrimack River and back to the Gillis Bridge. After that, we'll just double back the way we came.

The guest option is ON for this ride. Feel free to bring a friend!

Watch a [virtual ride](https://youtu.be/t-qMjUw3mIU) of these trails, courtesy of Steve, the virtual biking guy from YouTube and a member of our group.

[Coastal Trails Network Map](https://coastaltrails.org/the-trail-network/network-map/)

The nitty gritty for this ride:

•  Total distance: Approximately 27 miles.

•  Surfaces: The Ghost Trail is packed stone dust/dirt; all other trails are paved. You CAN bike the Ghost Trail with a road bike if you take it SLOW.

•  Location: Rabbit Road, Salisbury MA. Park in the dirt lot next to the solar farm.

•  Lunch: Bring a lunch or snack.

•  Rest rooms: McDonald's in Amesbury; the Tuscan Restaurant or the harbor master headqu