Q-MoB Easy Bike Tour: Historic Trees (Northampton, MA)

The Q-MoB August Bike Ride invites you to explore the majestic, living history of Northampton on the Great Tree Bike Tour.Pedal through vibrant neighborhoods, historic downtown streets, and scenic rail trails to discover the city’s most extraordinary leafy giants. This leisurely, social ride highlights ancient canopy heroes—from towering American elms that survived centuries of change to massive, exotic ginkgos and historic copper beeches planted by generations past. It is the perfect blend of easy cycling, local history, and queer community connection under the cool shade of Northampton's most celebrated arboreal landmarks.

Ride details:

• Distance: Approximately 8 to 10 miles of flat, gentle terrain combining paved bike paths and quiet public roads.
• Pace: Casual and social, with frequent stops to admire the trees, snap photos, and chat.
• Starting point: Old South Street Lot (44 Old South Street, Northampton, MA).
• What to bring: A tuned-up bicycle, a helmet (mandatory), a water bottle, sunscreen, and your favorite snacks for a mid-ride group break.

CO-LEADERS: Ride co-led by Mike McGuill, Brad Brockman, & Stephen Taranto.

WHAT TO BRING

• snacks & water,
• Glasses, Sunglasses, or Goggles to protect your eyes from dust, debris, & sunlight
• sunscreen &/or long-sleeves
• rain-gear (rain coat & rain pants, ideally high visibility color with reflective strips)
• high visibility vest/jacket and helmet (we strongly recommend you wear a helmet)
• waterproof gloves & balaklava, depending on the weather forecast
• flashing bike lights on the front & back of your bike (red in the back & white in front)
• $10-$20 Donation , as cash, or check made out to Q-MoB Inc (Q-MoB is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Charitable Organization registered with the IRS & State of Mass), unless: 1) this is your 1st time ever at a Q-MoB activity; 2) you are low-income and request scholarship or work-exchange; 3) you are a Q-MoB Monthly Donor.
• whatever equipment your bike may need to ride safely (e.g., air pump, spare bike tube, bike tube changing tool, lube for your chain, basic bike tools)

WEATHER & & COMMUNICATION: Please check the weather along our route the morning before the ride so you can make sure you have the right clothing & equipment if conditions change, which they often do in June in the Valley. We will only cancel the ride if there is more than 60% chance of thunderstorms or heavy rain predicted the morning of the ride, and we will text you in the unlikely event we have to cancel or reschedule because of a weather emergency. Please provide us with your cell phone number.

ABOUT THIS

This hike is part of a series of Q-MoB LGBTQ outdoor recreation activities (hiking, biking, paddling, walking, swimming) funded by the Massachusetts Office of Outdoor Recreation (MOOR) Inclusive & Accessible Events Grant Program and the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, and is designed to:

1) reduce isolation and build community connections between LGBTQ people in the Berkshires & Western Mass; click to learn about the many activities that have already been scheduled

2) build a diverse capacity in the LGBTQ community to regularly lead & offer outdoor recreation activities throughout the year; please if you'd like to learn how easy it is to help lead outdoor recreation activities for the LGBTQ community

3) educate the community about the natural & human history of important recreation sites, as well as how the native flora & fauna are responding to climate change & human use/restoration so the LGBTQ community will fall in love with those places and the organizations that maintain them and thereby participate in stewarding & enjoying those sites. Please call us at 413-344-8162 if you know LGBTQ or allied outdoor experts who know the ecology and/or history of any of the amazing Berkshire recreation sites and might want to get paid a small stipend to co-lead.

IMPORTANT: PLEASE if you would like to learn how you might volunteer or even get paid to help coordinate this series or co-lead a particular outdoor recreation activity, or just give us a call with your ideas and feedback: 413-344-8162.

OR : Besides making a donation to Mass Audubon at the beginning of your hike, please donate $10-$20 to help assure Q-MoB can continue to offer more than 20 activities & multiple resources & services to rural queer people all over the region. If you attend 2 or more Q-MoB events/month, please consider becoming a monthly sustaining donor member. By donating $25, $50, $75, or $100/month you can help to sustain the incredible variety of activities, services, and resources Q-MoB provides and assure all of these activities are accessible to men regardless of their age, income, or ability, and best of all you can avoid having to donate at each and every event you attend. Monthly Sustaining Members pay only once a month and then can attend all our activities with no further donation.

ACCESSIBILITY: We design our recreation activities so they are relatively easy & accessible to ambulatory adults with average strength, but if you have moblity challenges and want to know our capacity to support you, please or give us a call 413-344-8162. We are a very small non-profit with very limited access to outdoor recreation mobility devices and volunteers trained to provide accessibility assistance, but if we know about your needs, we will make our best effort to meet them, and we enjoy making our activities accessible to as broad a range of our community as possible.

REACHING US DAY OF EVENT: If you have trouble finding us, are running late, or decide not to come, please text or call Q-MoB's info line: 413-344-8162