Boston is a compact old city with an unusually long memory. It was founded in 1630 by Puritan settlers on a small peninsula, and by the 1770s it was the centre of the colonial protest against British rule, with the Tea Party, the Massacre and the first battles of the Revolutionary War all taking place within a few days' ride. The Freedom Trail, a red line painted on the pavement, links sixteen historic sites, from the Old State House to the Old North Church, and it is a simple way to see the old core on foot.
The city has a patchwork of neighbourhoods, with the narrow, hilly streets of Beacon Hill, the Italian restaurants of the North End, the harbour and the leafy Back Bay with its brownstones. Across the river, Cambridge holds Harvard and MIT, and the whole area has a lively student atmosphere. Food ranges from clam chowder and lobster rolls to cannoli, and the local accent, dropping its r's, is easy to recognise.
The ride from Boston is a very different pleasure. To the west, the road to Concord follows the route taken by British troops in April 1775, past Lexington Green and the North Bridge, where the first shots of the war are said to have been fired, through stone walls, farms and old villages. To the south, the Blue Hills Reservation rises as a forested ridge above the suburbs, and the coast road leads down to Cohasset, a prosperous harbour town with a green and a lighthouse. Surfaces in New England are patched and bumpy, especially after winter frost, and potholes can be deep in March and April, so ride carefully. Autumn colour in October is famous, and the roads fill with leaf-peepers.
Getting out is the hard part. Boston traffic is aggressive, drivers are quick to change lanes, and the roads are a tangle, with tunnels and bridges that carry tolls. The Big Dig, a huge project that buried the central highway, has made things better but the commute hours remain bad. Leave at dawn on a weekend, and you will be in the countryside quickly. Fuel is available throughout the city, though stations are fewer in the dense core, and you may find cheaper prices outside.
Parking a motorcycle is simpler than for a car, though thefts happen, so lock it. Spring and autumn are the best times.