Bicycling: another way to see the world

Bicycling: another way to see the world
      WOR Radio's Joan Hamburg, a native of the Five Towns, regales her listeners with tales of her delight in reaching a travel destination, hopping on a bike and exploring the foreign town on her own. The tabloids carried many pictures of Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg and her husband cycling around East Hampton after John Jr.'s death. Therefore, I would say that a vacation geared to active bicycling is an ideal way to take in the sights as well as possibly improve your spirit and your fitness.
      I have learned from travel units that "mad cow and hoof and mouth" diseases has put quite a damper on European travel. But I have found some wonderful domestic bicycling trips that require a minimal amount of time in the crowded skies. It is a short hop to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket by plane from LaGuardia Airport and a delightful drive with convenient ferry from Hyannis, Mass. You can bring your own bike or bikes can be rented for $100 for a 6 day/5 night bike tour at a total cost of $1,595 from Bike Tours. This price includes all breakfasts, dinners and picnic lunches as well as lodgings at elegant inns furnished with period antiques.
      The first three days of the bike tour are spent pedaling through fishing villages, sprawling beaches and the gingerbread houses in Oak Bluffs. Chappaquiddick Island and Cape Poque are very reachable via the "On-Time Ferry" as is sea kayaking around Edgartown Harbor. The Cliffs of Aquinnah just require a rolling ride and then on to dinner at one of the Vineyard's best restaurants before the evening stroll to Mad Martha's for their famous ice cream. The next two days are spent at my favorite island, scenic Nantucket. Meandering through the two village streets filled with charming restaurants, antique stores filled with vintage copper pots and lovely clothing boutiques was a real treat for me. Of course, I did not leave Nantucket, the cranberry capital of the world, without buying cranberry honey, dried cranberries and cranberry muffins.
      Nantucket is aptly described as the Grey Lady because at least 95 percent of the house is made of unpainted cedar shingles which weather to a soft gray color. The million dollar ocean front mansions are bland and unpretentious and conform to a strict building code set by the Nantucket Historic District Commission which decrees that all building fronts look the way they did in the 19th century when the island was a whaling capital. In fact, Herman Melville got his inspiration for his book, "Moby Dick" from Nantucket. The bicycle path of Wauwinet is lined with striped lighthouses, wind-swept dunes and cranberry bogs. The tiny saltbox cottages in 'Sconset by the Sea add to the serenity of the sea. After biking out to the surf at Madaket and seeing hordes of herons diving into the sea for the plentiful fish, it is suggested that a taste of Nantucket Sleighride wine at the island's only winery can only add to your enjoyment. Then, back to the village of Nantucket to visit the fabulous Whaling Museum and wonderful art galleries on Main Street. You can end this wonderful tour by resting your weary legs after biking anywhere from 15 to 35 miles a day on from flat to rolling terrain, aboard a restored lobster boat and feasting on chowder, Nantucket Bay steamers and fresh Atlantic lobster.
      However, I don't think you should leave the island before spending some time at the Wauwinet Inn, rated as one of the world's most luxurious small hotels as well as one of the "Historic Hotels of America." The name "Wauwinet" derives from an Indian chief who was the ruler of this part of Nantucket. The original property was opened about 150 years ago as a restaurant serving "shore dinners" to visitors and sailors who came by boat. It added lodgings and became a favorite festive spot for many years. In 1986 it underwent an extensive renovation with millions of dollars of improvements. The inn is now a many splendid thing with high-ceilinged boudoirs in the 30 guest rooms. It has every conceivable modern amenity and marvelous antiques, chintz and period pieces collected from New England and abroad. We had a wonderful meal at their upscale Topper's Restaurant, then supervised by innkeeper Debbie Cleveland. Her mate, Russ Cleveland, a naturalist and eco-tourism devotee, took me with some of the other guests on a tour of the island's botanical sectors and marine resources. He made sure that I got an education on the need for protecting salt marshes with special instructions on the use of push rakes to harvest scallops off shore into a basket for part of our evening meal.
      The New England Tours are available from June 17 through Oct. 5. You can obtain more information on Bike Tours at 1-800-473-7040.
Copyright by Marcia Abramson
E-mail: mascribe@aol.com