Chasing the Last of the Fall Color

 Oct 19, 2026

Our vibrant foliage season here in Central Vermont is winding down, but there are still some incredible pockets of color hanging on. Today was absolute perfection—not a cloud in the sky, temperatures sitting comfortably in the 60s, and just another wonderful day to be out on a bike in Vermont.

With the weather looking too good to pass up, I asked my housemate, Bruce, if he wanted to roll down to Wallingford for lunch. He had already eaten, but he was instantly game once I offered to buy the beer—something I never mind doing since his budget is a bit limited. For my own lunch, I packed a bowl of delicious leftover fried rice that Ann had made the night before.

I planned a variation of my usual Wallingford Roubaix route, but kept it to a shorter loop in my head. The last time Bruce and I rode down that way, I pushed him a bit farther than he was used to, and he definitely let me hear about how sore he was afterward. Today was all about keeping things fun and manageable, especially since I was out on the e-bike.

Lately, I’ve set a rule for myself when riding the e-bike: use just enough power to offset the heavy weight of the bike, ensuring I still get a legitimate workout. To stick to that, I kept the assist strictly in ECO mode.

We spun up Killington Avenue and made the turn onto Stratton Road. I realized too late that I had forgotten to put a fresh battery in my cadence sensor, so I was flying blind without my RPM data. It didn't stop me from hammering the pace the entire time, though. In fact, Bruce later confessed that he had to crank his own bike into its highest assist mode just to keep contact with my wheel!

We followed Stratton Road as it transitioned into East Clarendon Road, tackling the rolling hills out toward the airport. On the backside of the airfield, we crossed through the historic Kingsley Covered Bridge before hitting the dirt on East Road. Bruce did awesome keeping up, especially on the big, punchy climb right after the bridge.

I had hoped to cut over to Old Davenport Road—the fun trail/double-track section I like to use to bypass VT 140—but I couldn't quite find the trailhead today. Instead, we just bombed down the main road straight into town.

Our destination was the Wallingford Market, where I picked up a four-pack of 14th Star Oktoberfest. We drank a couple of pints, and I dug into my fried rice. There’s nothing quite like a cold local brew on a warm autumn afternoon.

After refueling, we turned back toward Rutland via Creek Road. The return trip was pure scenic bliss—the views of the Green Mountains were spectacular, the afternoon sun was hitting the remaining autumn leaves just right, and the local cows were out enjoying the pastures. It was the perfect way to wrap up another classic Vermont day in the saddle.