Chapter 7: When the Going Gets Tough...

Day 4: Tuesday, June 27, 2017

It's only 40 miles from Brattleboro to Bennington, Vermont. Uphill.

We began climbing as soon as we got onto Route 9 in Brattleboro. I shifted my front gear to the smallest chainring, then gradually worked the rear shifter onto the climbing gears while focusing on staying as close to the side of the road as possible with only a narrow shoulder to work with. One semi after another blew past, rattling my balance and my nerves. It didn't take long before I realized that this was the major highway for trucks heading across the state. 

We climbed steadily for several miles. When it looked like I'd reached the top I stopped. When Rob caught up I said, "This is no fun." I showed him the map, which had a detail of the local roads. 'There's another road here," I said.

A car pulled in beside us and the driver, a slender older man, said, "I bicycle around here a lot. I was wondering if I could help you in any way."

"We're looking for Stark Road," I said.

"You passed Stark Road a while back. But you wouldn't want to take it anyway. It's steeper than this."

"Oh. Well, we've got a downhill coming," I said.

"Oh, you'll only be going down for a couple hundred yards. No, you're not done climbing yet."

He said we'd be climbing until about the last three miles into Bennington and there was no way to avoid the traffic. He wished he could tell us that there was another, better way to go. He apologized for not being able to help us out and drove off.

Rte. 9 is the major east/west route across southern Vermont. I'd driven this road before and remembered it as a scenic byway so I figured it would be a fun way to go. I was wrong.

I stopped to wait for Rob at this roadside memorial. We were both ready for a break and some food. We still had some of the hard-boiled eggs that John Whiting had given us the day before. It hadn't been too hot so they were still good and much appreciated.

"Truck Lane 1/4 Mile"

Translation: You're not at the top yet and the climbing is going to get worse. But at least the cars and trucks will have some more room to get around you.

After 17 miles we arrived at the top of Hogback Mountain. With its fine views and a deck and picnic tables it was the perfect place to stop to eat lunch and regain our positive attitudes. Studying maps can help. We tried to figure out an alternative plan but kept coming up empty. 

On a fine day you can see New Hampshire and Massachusetts. This wasn't a fine day, and we were very glad for the cloud cover. It reminded us that we could have been much worse off. It could have been very hot or it could have been raining. In many respects the weather was perfect for the day's ride.

Outside the gift shop were some signs describing Route 9 as The Molly Stark Trail. And we would see many more references to Molly Stark along the way. The woman was never anywhere near all these places that honor her. She was a nurse and had 11 children. Her husband rallied his troops during the Revolutionary War by telling them: "There are the Red Coats and the enemy are ours or this night Molly Stark sleeps a widow." And the farmer soldiers were so inspired that they won the Battle of Bennington. That's why Molly Stark is famous. I'm still trying to make sense of that.