Welcome to Susan's Bay Circuit Diary! This blog follows my adventures with my dog Sulu hiking the Bay Circuit Trail. To get new posts in your inbox, please subscribe (see the little "subscribe" oval above). The rest of the past posts can be found using the little menu on the left. If you are curious how this all started, go here.
One of the charms of the BCT is its ubiquity. If you enter or leave the Boston area by any route, you are crossing the BCT. Sulu and I were attending a class in New Hampshire and the promised rain held off, so we made a stop in Andover to hike a new part of trail.
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| OK, not an AVIS reservation, but abutting one |
We parked at one AVIS reservation and walked to another, Deer Jump Reservation.
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| Park here for the trail - the above was BCT busywork |
Unfortunately I forgot the bug spray. I was motivated to let Sulu off leash so I’d have two hands to wave away the bugs. I knew I’d be walking along the Merrimack River but I was expecting a sort of sidewalk.
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| Sulu meets the mighty Merrimack |
Instead I found a lovely sylvan trail with mature trees shading the route virtually the whole time. I also expected we’d be high above the river, but most of the time the river was only about 4 to 6 feet below the trail level, so much safer for Sulu, who wants to make a beeline for water when he’s hot. It was also surprisingly clean and fresh-smelling, with little baby fish.
The trail was beautifully maintained, with new bridges and embankments.
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This bridge has some engineering to it!
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| One of several nice stairs |
We did have some trail encounters (no masks of course!). A couple of burly guys with burly dogs; I waited off the trail at a bench for them to pass, but one of the guys wanted to engage (poodle remarks) and insisted on showing me a video of his dog doing a trick! I had to insist on social distancing. Eye roll. And two (unrelated) kids on high end mountain bikes.
The trail progressed through various habitats, including a hemlock Forest Primeval, some azaleas, stands of birch, and more.
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Thalictrum (meadow rue)
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| Clethra (sweet pepper bush) |
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| No habitation in sight nearby |
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Meadow view
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The sound of Route 110 across the river where is surprisingly loud. I had to check my map to see if there was an interstate there. It was louder than when I walked next to Route 3.
It was a longer leg of the trail that I expected, so I turned around, feeling time pressure. I made an attempt to jog back as the trail allowed. After a couple of close encounters with bunnies in our yard, Sulu’s prey drive has been switched on. He was frantically chasing squirrels and chipmunks making these high pitched “yip”s. My increased speed got him more excited. Meanwhile sweat was sheeting down my face, and I was constantly wiping spider silk from my mouth and nose. Sulu was also looking for water break, but much of the time the bank was too steep for his comfort.
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| Water break |
Despite the sweaty factor, it was a five star experience, and I am looking forward to more of the Merrimack.
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Somebody's swimming hole
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We have hiked most of the BCT, this section twice. The section along the Merrimack river is my favorite.
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