After staying out late at the Esplanade fireworks, it was tough for Rebecca, Zack, and I to get up and check the weather reports at 7 AM. It looked like the showers were  going to hold off until the afternoon, so we met our friend Molly in Newton Centre and headed down to Bristol. Just as we crossed into Rhode Island, rain started to spatter the car's windshield..

The East Bay Bicycle Path actually starts at India Point Park, but you have to ride a mile across a bridge to pick up the paved rail trail, so we had decided it was better to start the ride at the Riverside parking lot after the bridge. Unfortunately, construction barriers caused us to miss the exit, so we took the next turn and wandered through some neighborhoods until we got back to the correct parking lot (if that lot is ever full, there's another one located a half mile up the road).

We were met there by four other cyclists; two decided to join us on the ride and the other pair went off in search of drier places. As we got Zack ready to go in the bike seat, we found that we had not packed his or Mom's rain gear! Zack got to wear dad's shell, and Rebecca got back in the car to drive as close as she could to the parade start to meet our group of 5 in Bristol.

The EBBP is a very well paved and well marked path. Though a bit narrower than the Minuteman Path in Arlington, it has mileage markers every half mile, a center yellow line, and signage indicating that cyclists should stay right and walkers stay left (i.e., facing toward oncoming bicycles). There are periodic stop signs, some indicating road crossing and others marking driveways or golf cart paths.

We rode along side the windy Narragansett Bay with many large freighters anchored off shore, but were happier when the path was under the sheltering canopy of the trees. About 4 miles in we noted the Crescent Ave turn-off to the Looff Carousel, which is worth visiting to see its 60 hand-carved figures.

It was a quick ride into Bristol, with the rain coming and going, and then finally settling into a steady drizzle.

While the path was mostly empty where we started, as we got within two miles of town, there were more walkers and cyclists present. We arrived shortly after the 10:30 parade start, where we quickly became separated from two of our group (they found some shelter and watched the parade for a bit before  returning home on their own).

Rebecca joined up with Molly, Zack, and I to watch the marching bands and floats go by; even in the rain,

the marchers were either thrilled to be there or exhibited straight-faced dignity. One of the more  interesting floats was a 30-foot long replica of the U.S.S. Boone which is a missile frigate that was in port to attend the parade. Another high-point was a musket regiment that periodically discharged their cannons and black powder rifles, startling Zack who covered his ears and yelled "Boom-Boom" and pointed to the sky to remind us of the previous night's fireworks. As the rain became heavier, Rebecca suggested that we ride to where she had parked the car near Colt State Park; this was a good idea since we didn't want to get hypothermic, and also Zack got to see all the fire trucks and police cars that were blocking off access to the parade route. On the way home we got stuck in traffic due to accidents on the wet roads, but we were safely back home by early afternoon (though my bike shoes are still wet 2 days after our 15 mile ride!)

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David, Rebecca, and Zack