Local loop
Sun Aug 8, 2019
(~117 miles)

Char was feeling up for a ride on her Bonny that would be a bit longer than our usual 1-2 hour loops, so I pieced together a ride based around NER’s BONE “Drift Rd/ Horseneck Beach/ Dartmouth Loop”, including a meal stop for an early dinner, and ice cream to finish off the ride. After completing chores and exercising the dog in the morning, we headed out just past noon. It was beautiful riding weather, sunny and in the high 70s.

We took familiar back roads through Rehoboth, Dighton, and Freetown before crossing I-195. Char fueled up on US-6 in Dartmouth before we picked up the beginning of the BONE loop just over the line in Westport. Drift Road led us south, paralleling the Westport River’s east branch to our left. It’s a quiet residential street with a few curves and some nice views. Picking up MA 88 briefly, we crossed the river and enjoyed the recently paved highway surface past Horseneck Beach State Reservation, remembering the awful frost heaves and potholes that covered this stretch last year.

Sometimes, we bang a right at the end of 88 to cross the causeway to Gooseberry Island, where there is a small sketchy gravel parking lot, to take in some great ocean views and smells. We turned left this time, as the ocean was surprisingly fogged in and visibility was limited. It had cooled off noticeably, however, since we began the ride and it felt refreshing as we cruised along Beach Road, where most of the summer residents still remained in their campers, mobile homes and the odd stilted building, soaking up the last week or two of reliable warm summer weather. This road is basically deserted in the off-season and winter storms often play havoc with it.

We passed the busy Bayside Restaurant, a family favorite, and re-entered Dartmouth, taking a right on Division Road to cross the peninsula toward Slocums River. I love the scenery on Horseneck Road, with robust stone walls outlining spacious farm fields and vineyards, with views of the river off in the distance.

We crossed the river in Russells Mills village, a picturesque place where the freshwater Paskamansett River becomes the tidal Slocums River. Next up were some curvier wooded roads that led us down to cross Little River in southern Dartmouth. There was a bit more traffic heading north out of this area, probably due to the beaches, but we weren’t really tearing up the roads today anyway. This route can definitely be run at a brisker pace off-season. We followed a slowpoke through the two twists that dumped us out next to Apponagansett Bay with nice water views, before turning left past the town park with the bucket-shaped ice cream stand that was a bonus in the Minuteman 1000 rally a few years ago. I’ve still not stopped in to try it yet.

The BONE portion of the route concluded back up at US-6 in North Dartmouth, then we picked our way through the northern outskirts of New Bedford. We turned north to zigzag through the town of Acushnet, arriving at our dinner spot, the Country Whip, just before 3pm. This is a BONE list restaurant and I’d always seen it hopping with people while turning the nearby corner on MA route 105.

They are known for their ice cream and have a busy counter window serving customers outside. As it was getting a bit muggy out, we opted to sit inside, where they have a decent sized and clean dining area. Service was friendly and a bit slow at first, but ended up being fine once we put in our order.

I ordered fish and chips along with three clam cakes. The clam cakes were good with some malt vinegar, not too greasy and better than Iggy’s, in my opinion. The fish was tasty and the sweet potato fries that I’d substituted were some of the best I’ve had. Char enjoyed her grilled cheese as well. We were too full to partake in the Whip’s ice cream selections at the moment, but will definitely return here on future rides.

My route was supposed to lead us north on 105 by the lakes, but Garmin led us astray (surprise) onto MA 140, which is a divided highway in this part of the state. Char got to test her new Street EX windshield at highway speeds for nine miles or so (she says it worked great), until we exited past the Star Drive-in (another usual stop) and returned to the local roads. We paralleled I-495 for several miles on quieter streets before crossing it on 140 to get to the Flannel Cow Creamery, right off MA 106 near downtown Mansfield.

I’d stopped in here once before and found their homemade small-batch ice cream to be quite delicious. I opted for Black Raspberry Chip this time, while Char picked Almond Joy. Each cone/dish comes with a little cow cookie plunked into the top.

It’s not the cheapest place, but it was REALLY good, thick ice cream, and we enjoyed it sitting outside around back, where they have a grassy fenced in area with picnic tables to separate customers from the busy parking lot next door. I predict this will become a regular stop to end many future day-rides.

Char was happy getting another 100 mile day under her belt, and feels ready to tackle something even longer. I’m certain I can come up with something.