Today’s ride was indeed a 50 miler, out and through the Quabbin and back. I love the Quabbin; it’s a place of great beauty and resource. The Quabbin supplies drinking water to the Greater Boston area, and if you live there, you’ll be happy to see how pristine this place is. Wildlife is abundant, and for cyclists, some of the roads inside of the park are newly paved! (an added bonus).
There were few cars, in fact few people at all–surprising for such a perfect day. When this reservoir was built in the 1920’s, they relocated 4 towns to do so, and flooded the valley with the Swift River. For the gritty details of that project, click here, and you’ll learn that the Quabbin is the largest man made reservoir in the world, among other things (like what did they do about the cemeteries????).
If you ride inside or on the roads around the Quabbin, you’ll have some hills to contend with. The big one inside the park is challenging–not for its incline but for its length, The road never ends! But the descent is worth it, and you can reach speeds of around 35-37 mph on the downhills. For a great link to a bicycle access map at the Quabbin (some roads are OK to ride, others are not–but this pertains mostly to off road and mountain bikes), click here.
A great place to ride!
–Karen
Sip, clip, and go! 
I own the Quabbin
Well then, do tell Brian!