The Magic of Riding Dugway / Wes White Dirt Roads

My husband knows how to get me out of a riding rut. Because I've never liked the complications of loading the car, determining the route, and well, driving in general, I tend to ride loops from home, which, of course, limits where I go. My husband (and A-1 riding partner) drove us 20 minutes from home but a world away from the busy city to enjoy riding on dirt roads. Much like our Groton State Forest adventure, it's worth exploring further afield.

Gillett Pond was iced over. We watched something dance across the ice and determined it must have been
 a leaf carried in the breeze.

I expected the scenery would be ugly -it is November after all - but the afternoon sunshine cast golden hues on barren hillsides; we discovered an iced-over pond, ancient mossy old stone walls deep into the woods above the road, and smooth, dirt roads.

An old stone dam contains the water in Gillett Pond.

My camera couldn't capture stunning snow-covered Mt. Mansfield on the horizon.

Wes White Road climbs to reveal open vistas and old pastures with new houses (commute distance to either the capital or busy Chittenden County). I am reminded that Vermont in the early 1900's was 90% sheep farming economy and one can imagine its historical past in late autumn. As I walked the English countryside recently, among stone walls, dodging sheep and cows, I remember reflecting then, that Vermont once had a similar landscape.

November riding can have a magic all  it's own. Leafless trees appear purple in the distance. Water trickles in brooks. A dusting of snow edges the road. Human sounds are there too: chainsaws or holiday revelers cutting Christmas trees, carrying them back to their cars. And we pedal by, smiling, because we've eeked out one more beautiful ride, in mid 40s temperatures, that feels like a gift.