Day 1: Cambridge to Dover (about 75 miles)

Kennebunk is about 90 miles away from my Boston. While it is possible to ride that far in a day, I was wary to do so because of how my body reacted to the 104 mile day down to the Cape. So, I thought I'd split the ride into two to make the mileage manageable and to have a go at stealth camping, knowing that the next night I would have a guaranteed place to stay. I left my house about 10am - both to avoid morning commuters and because I wasn't planning on going all that far.

The ride to Revere Beach, where I picked up 1A (which I followed most of the day), went smoothly. Although, like I did so many times this summer, I still managed to get myself lost. Once on 1A, the ride was pretty easy-going. The road went through numerous residential, park and business areas so traffic wasn't a major issue, and scenery was typical Massachusetts suburbia.

I took the day easy, taking time to stop at the numerous parks (Hamilton above, Newburyport below). 

And by the time I crossed into New Hampshire, I was making pretty good time.

I had put on my desired mileage for the day and a little bit more, so I was starting to keep an eye out for potential places to camp out for the night. However, this part of New Hampshire is very developed and very touristy. But, there were a few state parks not too far ahead that I had mapped out, so I wasn't too concerned.

By the time I got to Rye Harbor State Park, I was around 60 miles and it was starting to get late. Rye Harbor State Park is very tiny. Probably smaller than a football field. It has a small peninsula of rocks that juts out into the sea and helps shelter a nearby harbor, and is otherwise a small field with picnic tables. Nowhere do I see "No Camping" signs posted, but nowhere do I really see anywhere one could camp unnoticed, either. There's another state park about 10 miles up the road, but if I decide to go there and it's worse, I won't have enough light to come back here, and I'll be approaching Portsmouth going further North. So, as best I can I try to start hiding my gear.

Pretending that I just want my photo taken by the water, I get my bike to a more secluded part of the park where I can later hide it in the rocks behind some tall grass. I figure I'll wait until the park clears out (although as it's getting dark more people - probably from the resorts and hotels a little down the road - are showing up) and then camp in the open by the sea and, hopefully, out of view.

However, as I hover near my partially hidden bicycle, a group of cyclists arrive by the park entrance. I go over to chat with them, and ask if they know of any good camping spots nearby. They state what I've figured out - there's nothing in the area very conducive for camping. Additionally, they say the police are pretty vigilant about checking areas due to drunks. One of the cyclists however, probably sensing my predicament, offers to put me up for the night. So, I go to retrieve my gear from behind the bushes and join up with the group. We ride to Portsmouth (at a 23mph pace, for a good chunk of the way) and have beer and tacos at a Mexican restaurant. Afterward I toss my bike in the back of Bicycle Bob's truck, and we drive to his home in Dover.