Climbs Out Of Norwich I Beaver Meadow And Friends

A classic. Follows a nice stream up a valley (the stream has a couple swimming holes in it, by the way). The climb consists of a bunch of not-hard step-ups. After peaking, the climbing descends steeply (passing the turnoff for "Tigertown" on your left, and the turnoff for a sweet long dead-end road on your right) before turning turning to dirt and climbing a whiles more. After passing "Smoking Bones" meathouse and BBQ joint, you pass a nice lake, before eventually apexing, and doing a medium-long descent to T into 132.

* Notes

Google may draw this road like any other road, but don't be fooled -- the center section is an unmaintained road. The change from maintained to unmaintained is marked my a sign (soon after the parking area of the trail up Gile Mountain), but it's pretty clear what's going on. That said -- speaking from experience -- if you're foolish, you may be able to ride the thing on a road bike (the VMBA gives it a "superb" rating for mountain bikes). The first part is rocky but rideable. However, not long after the intersection with Chapel Hill Rd (which is also unmaintained at this point) I came to a clearing which was a gigantic mud pit -- it looked like some 4 wheel drive vehicles just went nuts and churned the place up. I dismounted, and walked though ankle deep mud to get across the clearing. After that, the road was no longer rocky, but also very muddy (the land was flatter so I guess it just didn't drain). I was able to ride it though. Eventually you hit the maintained section (coming from the other side, the road is not marked and is kind of obscured by branches). If you have a good dry spell during the summer, I think the road might be fairly nice. Otherwise, prepare for some epicness.

Splits off from Turnpike after a ways. It also has an unmaintained section, so be prepared. You can make a nice short loop out of the maintained sections of Turnpike and Upper Turnpike -- it's often used as a Monday recovery ride.

A right turn off of Turnpike. The first section is paved and goes through a nice little valley -- it kind of parallels Union Village road but is on the other side of the hill seperating them. Once you hit New Boston (not really anything there, but I suppose there once was -- it's marked on my map) the road goes left and turns to dirt. Goes generally up for a while, and then you descend in to South Strafford.

At the very bottom of Beaver Meadow Rd, there is a turnoff on your left for both Bragg Hill and Dutton Hill road. Note you will see a 'rustic' brick bread oven at the bottom of the road. Note that you can bake bread there if you want, it's communal. I recommend buying the bread from the women who farm on Goodrich Four Corners. Anyways, you're at the base of Bragg/Dutton Hill. If you choose to climb Bragg Hill, you're facing a consistent grade dirt climb, that opens up onto big fields (and big houses), with huge views of the upper valley. It's a great climb for scenery. Note that this climb essentially parrallels the direction of Beaver Meadow, but stays out of the bottom of the valley. The climb eventually T's back into Beaver Meadow, near the apex of the paved section of it.

If you choose to climb up via Dutton Hill, you'll climb a much steeper dirt road, that turns to steep-ish trail for 100 yards (though it was road-bikable in the summer), that turns to ridiculously steep 25% grade trail for 50 feet (that is not road-bikeable, at least for me), that turns back into dirt road (keep going straight), that turns back into steep trail for a short time (small gearing recommended), that turns back to dirt road, that T's into Bragg Hill. I like going up Dutton Hill, but I'm also an idiot. It does have nice views, and you do go through some beautiful pastures.