ampr fyi: biking on nantucket, as told by janet reuter

January 21st, 2011

My first visit to Nantucket was in April of 2010.   It was after a long, cold New York City winter.  I was pumped as soon as I landed as there was no snow on the ground and lots of green grass! Another huge plus – NO ANGRY HONKING!

It was just after a lazy winter where I did little to no exercise, however under the suggestion of Tania Jones of the White Elephant Hotel Residences,  I agreed to test out my wobbly legs by going for a four mile bike ride around Nantucket.

My colleague Sarah Winters and I took off from our accommodations in the adorable Cottages & Lofts at the Boat Basin, located right on the wharves of Nantucket Harbor.  We were given a map of the island with a personalized four-mile biking path marked out for us by the lovely staff at The Cottages.   We took off in a flurry, screaming things like “Biking is fun!” and cycling off toward Sankaty Lighthouse on the lovely, leveled, and paved biking paths.  (Fun fact: Nantucket recently received 6.4 miles of newly paved bike and road paths as part of Obama’s stimulus plan).

The views from our ride were stunning; large fields of untouched land and huge stretches of blue ocean and white sandy beaches from cliffs near the lighthouse.  Toward the end of our journey, there was even a long stretch of field that resembles an African countryside (it’s known as Nantucket’s Sergengeti).

While the scenery was beautiful and the path extremely easy to navigate, I was having a bit of trouble kicking things into gear.  Sarah was nearly a mile ahead of me!  I waved her to down and motioned for her to stop, believing that maybe something was wrong with my bike that was causing me to go much slower than she was.  We switched bikes, but the problem remained the same.  There was no one to blame, not the bikes, not the paths, only my unfit body!

However, after stopping for some lovely water in Sconset, I was able to rev up and get some energy to finish our loop.   When I think of my trip to Nantucket, the best memory I have is that bike ride.   Biking is by far the best way to get around the island.  At around just $30 a day for a bike rental (and complimentary at many Nantucket Island Resorts properties!), it’s also a great option to save money from paying for car rentals, expensive car ferry tickets, and parking.

My one piece of advice?  When biking, stay away from the cobblestones on Main Street – it can be quite a painful experience!

Finally, I managed to capture a lovely video of a small leg of our biking trip which I am sharing with you now, below.  Enjoy!

 

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