8-7-2010
We arrived in Hampton, NH at about 11:30am. We were greeted by a large group of Don's family, who had signs, balloons, pizza, and champaign. Quite the nice reception. We then dipped out wheels into the Atlantic, and said our goodbyes.
I was met at the beach by Rachel Blum, one of my cousins who lives in Grafton, MA. We walked around the area for a little bit, stopping to pick up a souvenir shirt. Then we stopped at a bike shop to have them mail it back to Rock Springs for me. Then it was on to Boston, where we met my Great-Aunt Irene and Hanah (another cousin) for dinner.
We then drove down to Rachel's house, where she put me up for the night.
After coffee and waffles, Harry (Rachel's son) dropped me off at the train station in Grafton, and I proceeded into Boston. There I hopped onto the Silver Line to Logan Airport, hoping to catch an earlier flight than the 6pm flight I'd purchased. When I checked in, I found out I had to pay $50 extra for the opportunity to be on standby. That just didn't seem worth it, so I sat around the airport reading a book until my flight boarded at 5:30.
A 4 and 1/2 hour flight to Denver, and then a 3 hour flight to Portland, and I was back home! My folks met me at baggage claim (how nice!) and I was in bed shortly there after.
A couple of days with the folks here in Vancouver, a dinner with my Uncle Jerry and Aunt Ann, and I'll be on the road to Rock Springs by Wednesday.
I'll try to fill in the days that I've missed in the coming weeks. So if you're interested feel free to check back in. Also if you have any questions about the trip leave a comment or drop me an email.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Niagara Falls to Rochester 88 miles
Rochester - 88 miles
I awoke bright and refreshed after a very late night. Between struggling to find a hotel room, and a long day of riding the day before, I was still exhausted. But the ride must go on.
We were out of the motel by 6:45am, and stopped by Burger King on the way out of town for some breakfast. Then we headed for Lockport where we picked up the Erie Canal trail. I was pretty excited for this opportunity to ride along the canal, but the trail turned out to be gravel and to be too loose to ride on. So after 3 miles, we got back on the highway the runs parallel to the canal.
A lock on the Erie Canal in Lockport.
After lunch at a Walmart in Albion, we decided to give the trail another chance. We knew that we wanted to be on it as we rode through Rochester, so we were hoping that it was better now. It was a bit better, though still gravel.
Pretty but a poor path. After we were finished with the trail that evening, we and all our gear was white with dust.
As we rode into Brockport, we discovered that they were having a little celebration. They were preparing to have a "ducky" race, where people purchased little bath ducks for the charity, and then hundreds of ducks were dumped into the Erie Canal. Then the first 5 ducks to float through the ending would win a prize, as would the last 5. Fun stuff.
a Mama duck and her broad scope out the finish line. They weren't quite sure what to do with all of the people in their home.
Onward we rode, as we neared Rochester we started looking for a motel, but didn't find a reasonable rate until we were almost halfway around the town. Luckily the Holiday Inn was fantastic and allowed the 5 of us to cram into one room. They also gave us the key to a conference room to store our bikes in. All of that in addition to a nice restaurant and a pool/jacuzzi and you couldn't ask for much more.
Lockin' our bikes up in style.
I awoke bright and refreshed after a very late night. Between struggling to find a hotel room, and a long day of riding the day before, I was still exhausted. But the ride must go on.
We were out of the motel by 6:45am, and stopped by Burger King on the way out of town for some breakfast. Then we headed for Lockport where we picked up the Erie Canal trail. I was pretty excited for this opportunity to ride along the canal, but the trail turned out to be gravel and to be too loose to ride on. So after 3 miles, we got back on the highway the runs parallel to the canal.
A lock on the Erie Canal in Lockport.After lunch at a Walmart in Albion, we decided to give the trail another chance. We knew that we wanted to be on it as we rode through Rochester, so we were hoping that it was better now. It was a bit better, though still gravel.
Pretty but a poor path. After we were finished with the trail that evening, we and all our gear was white with dust.As we rode into Brockport, we discovered that they were having a little celebration. They were preparing to have a "ducky" race, where people purchased little bath ducks for the charity, and then hundreds of ducks were dumped into the Erie Canal. Then the first 5 ducks to float through the ending would win a prize, as would the last 5. Fun stuff.
a Mama duck and her broad scope out the finish line. They weren't quite sure what to do with all of the people in their home.Onward we rode, as we neared Rochester we started looking for a motel, but didn't find a reasonable rate until we were almost halfway around the town. Luckily the Holiday Inn was fantastic and allowed the 5 of us to cram into one room. They also gave us the key to a conference room to store our bikes in. All of that in addition to a nice restaurant and a pool/jacuzzi and you couldn't ask for much more.
Lockin' our bikes up in style.Port Burwell, Ontario to Niagara Falls, NY (2 days - 150 miles)
I'll update this section when I get the chance later.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
St. Clair, MI to Port Burwell, Ontario (2 days-144 miles)
7-28-2010
We awoke to the overpowering sound of the interstate. I quickly packed up my gear and set out to cross the Interstate to a Marathon gas station, for a cup of coffee. When the rest of the guys joined me, we set off down the road to Marine City. There we hopped onto an awesome little ferry to cross the St. Clair river and get into Canada.
This was a great way to make the crossing, there was only 1 car on the ferry and 2 guys with 5 cases of beer each. I guess that's the limit for what they can bring into the states duty free, and the beer is half as expensive in the states as compared to Canada.
The ride down the river was beautiful, unfortunately we were fighting the wind a bit. After a brief turn east, with the wind helping us, we pulled into Wallaceburg for a little breakfast. After some mediocre potatoes and eggs, we put our legs back to work. By this time the temperature had really started to climb, and to make matters worse, so was the humidity. I've found that I can deal with some heat, but the humidity takes all the energy out of me.
After a couple of discouraging encounters with towns that had closed up shop, we rolled into Morpeth. While the store that we were expecting had closed last year, there was an antique shop open. The store owner allowed us to fill up our water bottles, and enjoy his air-conditioning. Then with sights of thunderstorms in our eyes, we changed our plans and made for a hotel about 7 miles north of us.
Less than a mile in, the sky was getting really dark. We were all riding as fast as we could, but were pretty worried about this approaching storm. Don and Jeff were scoping out an abandoned barn when a man drove up next to us in his pick-up truck. He asked if we would like to wait out the storm in his garage, needless to say we jumped at the opportunity.
Ken, and later his partner Patty, offered us sodas as we waited out the storm. As the weather report announced that the storms should stick around until 8pm, he said that he had a couple of spare beds if we wanted to stay at his house.
As the night wore on, we ordered pizza (and gorged ourselves on it) and then slept soundly in their air-conditioned home. They really saved the day, we would have been seriously miserable trying to ride into town that evening, if we weren't stuck in a hay barn avoiding the mice.
Our saviors and their dog, Duke.
The morning came too soon, only to find that Ken had already been to town and brought back Tim Horton's coffee for everyone. (to my delight since only Joe and I drink coffee) After some toast, muffins, coffee, and great farewells we got back on the road.
7-29-2010
The ride today went great. The temperature was nice all morning, and even in the late afternoon it never got oppressive. We stopped in Port Stanley for some beach time (it's a hotspot for beach-goers) and lunch, and then headed on towards Port Burwell. We're staying in a gigantic Provincial park right next to town. Now I'm headed back to camp to make some dinner.
Unfortunately the connection I'm using isn't showing pictures, so can't tell what pictures I'm uploading. So I'll try to add more pictures in a couple of days. Ciao!
We awoke to the overpowering sound of the interstate. I quickly packed up my gear and set out to cross the Interstate to a Marathon gas station, for a cup of coffee. When the rest of the guys joined me, we set off down the road to Marine City. There we hopped onto an awesome little ferry to cross the St. Clair river and get into Canada.
This was a great way to make the crossing, there was only 1 car on the ferry and 2 guys with 5 cases of beer each. I guess that's the limit for what they can bring into the states duty free, and the beer is half as expensive in the states as compared to Canada.
The ride down the river was beautiful, unfortunately we were fighting the wind a bit. After a brief turn east, with the wind helping us, we pulled into Wallaceburg for a little breakfast. After some mediocre potatoes and eggs, we put our legs back to work. By this time the temperature had really started to climb, and to make matters worse, so was the humidity. I've found that I can deal with some heat, but the humidity takes all the energy out of me.
After a couple of discouraging encounters with towns that had closed up shop, we rolled into Morpeth. While the store that we were expecting had closed last year, there was an antique shop open. The store owner allowed us to fill up our water bottles, and enjoy his air-conditioning. Then with sights of thunderstorms in our eyes, we changed our plans and made for a hotel about 7 miles north of us.
Less than a mile in, the sky was getting really dark. We were all riding as fast as we could, but were pretty worried about this approaching storm. Don and Jeff were scoping out an abandoned barn when a man drove up next to us in his pick-up truck. He asked if we would like to wait out the storm in his garage, needless to say we jumped at the opportunity.
Ken, and later his partner Patty, offered us sodas as we waited out the storm. As the weather report announced that the storms should stick around until 8pm, he said that he had a couple of spare beds if we wanted to stay at his house.
As the night wore on, we ordered pizza (and gorged ourselves on it) and then slept soundly in their air-conditioned home. They really saved the day, we would have been seriously miserable trying to ride into town that evening, if we weren't stuck in a hay barn avoiding the mice.
Our saviors and their dog, Duke.The morning came too soon, only to find that Ken had already been to town and brought back Tim Horton's coffee for everyone. (to my delight since only Joe and I drink coffee) After some toast, muffins, coffee, and great farewells we got back on the road.
7-29-2010
The ride today went great. The temperature was nice all morning, and even in the late afternoon it never got oppressive. We stopped in Port Stanley for some beach time (it's a hotspot for beach-goers) and lunch, and then headed on towards Port Burwell. We're staying in a gigantic Provincial park right next to town. Now I'm headed back to camp to make some dinner.
Unfortunately the connection I'm using isn't showing pictures, so can't tell what pictures I'm uploading. So I'll try to add more pictures in a couple of days. Ciao!
St. Clair, MI to Port Burwell, Ontario (2 days-144 miles)
7-28-2010
We awoke to the overpowering sound of the interstate. I quickly packed up my gear and set out to cross the Interstate to a Marathon gas station, for a cup of coffee. When the rest of the guys joined me, we set off down the road to Marine City. There we hopped onto an awesome little ferry to cross the St. Clair river and get into Canada.
This was a great way to make the crossing, there was only 1 car on the ferry and 2 guys with 5 cases of beer each. I guess that's the limit for what they can bring into the states duty free, and the beer is half as expensive in the states as compared to Canada.
The ride down the river was beautiful, unfortunately we were fighting the wind a bit. After a brief turn east, with the wind helping us, we pulled into Wallaceburg for a little breakfast. After some mediocre potatoes and eggs, we put our legs back to work. By this time the temperature had really started to climb, and to make matters worse, so was the humidity. I've found that I can deal with some heat, but the humidity takes all the energy out of me.
After a couple of discouraging encounters with towns that had closed up shop, we rolled into Morpeth. While the store that we were expecting had closed last year, there was an antique shop open. The store owner allowed us to fill up our water bottles, and enjoy his air-conditioning. Then with sights of thunderstorms in our eyes, we changed our plans and made for a hotel about 7 miles north of us.
Less than a mile in, the sky was getting really dark. We were all riding as fast as we could, but were pretty worried about this approaching storm. Don and Jeff were scoping out an abandoned barn when a man drove up next to us in his pick-up truck. He asked if we would like to wait out the storm in his garage, needless to say we jumped at the opportunity.
Ken, and later his partner Patty, offered us sodas as we waited out the storm. As the weather report announced that the storms should stick around until 8pm, he said that he had a couple of spare beds if we wanted to stay at his house.
As the night wore on, we ordered pizza (and gorged ourselves on it) and then slept soundly in their air-conditioned home. They really saved the day, we would have been seriously miserable trying to ride into town that evening, if we weren't stuck in a hay barn avoiding the mice.
Our saviors and their dog, Duke.
The morning came too soon, only to find that Ken had already been to town and brought back Tim Horton's coffee for everyone. (to my delight since only Joe and I drink coffee) After some toast, muffins, coffee, and great farewells we got back on the road.
7-29-2010
The ride today went great. The temperature was nice all morning, and even in the late afternoon it never got oppressive. We stopped in Port Stanley for some beach time (it's a hotspot for beach-goers) and lunch, and then headed on towards Port Burwell. We're staying in a gigantic Provincial park right next to town. Now I'm headed back to camp to make some dinner.
Unfortunately the connection I'm using isn't showing pictures, so can't tell what pictures I'm uploading. So I'll try to add more pictures in a couple of days. Ciao!
We awoke to the overpowering sound of the interstate. I quickly packed up my gear and set out to cross the Interstate to a Marathon gas station, for a cup of coffee. When the rest of the guys joined me, we set off down the road to Marine City. There we hopped onto an awesome little ferry to cross the St. Clair river and get into Canada.
This was a great way to make the crossing, there was only 1 car on the ferry and 2 guys with 5 cases of beer each. I guess that's the limit for what they can bring into the states duty free, and the beer is half as expensive in the states as compared to Canada.
The ride down the river was beautiful, unfortunately we were fighting the wind a bit. After a brief turn east, with the wind helping us, we pulled into Wallaceburg for a little breakfast. After some mediocre potatoes and eggs, we put our legs back to work. By this time the temperature had really started to climb, and to make matters worse, so was the humidity. I've found that I can deal with some heat, but the humidity takes all the energy out of me.
After a couple of discouraging encounters with towns that had closed up shop, we rolled into Morpeth. While the store that we were expecting had closed last year, there was an antique shop open. The store owner allowed us to fill up our water bottles, and enjoy his air-conditioning. Then with sights of thunderstorms in our eyes, we changed our plans and made for a hotel about 7 miles north of us.
Less than a mile in, the sky was getting really dark. We were all riding as fast as we could, but were pretty worried about this approaching storm. Don and Jeff were scoping out an abandoned barn when a man drove up next to us in his pick-up truck. He asked if we would like to wait out the storm in his garage, needless to say we jumped at the opportunity.
Ken, and later his partner Patty, offered us sodas as we waited out the storm. As the weather report announced that the storms should stick around until 8pm, he said that he had a couple of spare beds if we wanted to stay at his house.
As the night wore on, we ordered pizza (and gorged ourselves on it) and then slept soundly in their air-conditioned home. They really saved the day, we would have been seriously miserable trying to ride into town that evening, if we weren't stuck in a hay barn avoiding the mice.
Our saviors and their dog, Duke.The morning came too soon, only to find that Ken had already been to town and brought back Tim Horton's coffee for everyone. (to my delight since only Joe and I drink coffee) After some toast, muffins, coffee, and great farewells we got back on the road.
7-29-2010
The ride today went great. The temperature was nice all morning, and even in the late afternoon it never got oppressive. We stopped in Port Stanley for some beach time (it's a hotspot for beach-goers) and lunch, and then headed on towards Port Burwell. We're staying in a gigantic Provincial park right next to town. Now I'm headed back to camp to make some dinner.
Unfortunately the connection I'm using isn't showing pictures, so can't tell what pictures I'm uploading. So I'll try to add more pictures in a couple of days. Ciao!
Wisconsin and Michigan
I'll try to update this section later. Right now I don't have the time, so check back in a couple of days. Needless to say we made it through Wisconsin, and across the ferry into Michigan. Then a quick three days and we were on another ferry into Canada.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
It's been awhile - roughly 380 miles - 7 days
7-22-2010
Because of exhaustion, interesting happenings at night, and a lack of motivation for writing, I've cut down on my blogging quite a bit. I imagine that I will continue to post less frequently than at the beginning of the trip as our mileage continues to increase and the towns we're in become more interesting.
It was great riding with Bob and Jim, great guys. I'm hoping that we'll meet up on the ferry across Lake Michigan on Saturday, but that's not a sure thing.
After Fergus Falls we spent a day and a half on the Central Lakes Rail to Trail through central Minnesota. It was a fun, relaxing ride. After spending the night in Melrose, we said farewell to Bob and Jim who decided to rejoin the Adventure Cycling route that we had been following for most of our trip.
After Monticello we crossed the Mississippi river! pretty neat.
Then shortly after leaving the trail and braving heavy traffic in St. Cloud, we sought shelter in Monticello. That evening a major thunderstorm blew through the area, as Doug (our Minnesota guide said, "this is the worst storm I've seen in 25 years here.") there were 75mph winds, large hail, and it sprouted a couple of tornadoes though luckily not where we were sheltering in a motel.
Several trees blocked our passage through the suburbs of St. Paul. Signs of the strength of the storm the night before.
Then we had a short ride into Shoreview to stay for a day and a half with Doug and Therese. Therese was glad to be home, but Doug decided that he wanted to trade in his tandem for a single, and continue to Maine with us.
It was very relaxing staying in Doug and Therese's house. Excellent meals and a very nice atmosphere. I loved their screened in deck off of their dinning room.
We left their home on Tuesday morning, and after a long hot ride, we made it to Colfax, Wisconsin. A nice park, but the drinking water wasn't very tasty and there weren't picnic tables nearby.
Yay we made it to another state. Don, Joe and I wanted a picture, Doug is taking it and Jeff is walking up the incredibly steep hill that met us right across the border.
Then we had a major 90 mile day to Cherokee, WI only to find out that their park isn't really a campground. However, while asking around for the police's phone number, we were invited to stay the night in someone's backyard. She even let us use her bathroom for showers! pretty fantastic and so generous.
Freshly remodeled. The kind of home I'd like to have one day. Very airy and on a large piece of property.
We woke up to rain in the morning, but started riding in good spirits. That didn't last long. The wind quickly picked up, blowing the rain right into our faces and down our jackets. Pretty quickly, the rain had completely soaked everyone. After a welcome break from the rain, and a hot breakfast in Mosinee, we decided that it wasn't worth the discomfort of riding on. This is supposed to be a fun ride after all.
Despite the rain the next day, we were all hotted out when we saw the sign for Watermelons. Needless to say, we all sat down and ate an entire melon, boy was it tasty!
Tomorrow we'll try for a big day to make up for only riding 30 miles today. We're supposed to have clearing skies and a strong west wind, which should help push us towards 100miles or so.
Because of exhaustion, interesting happenings at night, and a lack of motivation for writing, I've cut down on my blogging quite a bit. I imagine that I will continue to post less frequently than at the beginning of the trip as our mileage continues to increase and the towns we're in become more interesting.
It was great riding with Bob and Jim, great guys. I'm hoping that we'll meet up on the ferry across Lake Michigan on Saturday, but that's not a sure thing.After Fergus Falls we spent a day and a half on the Central Lakes Rail to Trail through central Minnesota. It was a fun, relaxing ride. After spending the night in Melrose, we said farewell to Bob and Jim who decided to rejoin the Adventure Cycling route that we had been following for most of our trip.
After Monticello we crossed the Mississippi river! pretty neat.Then shortly after leaving the trail and braving heavy traffic in St. Cloud, we sought shelter in Monticello. That evening a major thunderstorm blew through the area, as Doug (our Minnesota guide said, "this is the worst storm I've seen in 25 years here.") there were 75mph winds, large hail, and it sprouted a couple of tornadoes though luckily not where we were sheltering in a motel.
Several trees blocked our passage through the suburbs of St. Paul. Signs of the strength of the storm the night before.Then we had a short ride into Shoreview to stay for a day and a half with Doug and Therese. Therese was glad to be home, but Doug decided that he wanted to trade in his tandem for a single, and continue to Maine with us.
It was very relaxing staying in Doug and Therese's house. Excellent meals and a very nice atmosphere. I loved their screened in deck off of their dinning room.We left their home on Tuesday morning, and after a long hot ride, we made it to Colfax, Wisconsin. A nice park, but the drinking water wasn't very tasty and there weren't picnic tables nearby.
Yay we made it to another state. Don, Joe and I wanted a picture, Doug is taking it and Jeff is walking up the incredibly steep hill that met us right across the border.Then we had a major 90 mile day to Cherokee, WI only to find out that their park isn't really a campground. However, while asking around for the police's phone number, we were invited to stay the night in someone's backyard. She even let us use her bathroom for showers! pretty fantastic and so generous.
Freshly remodeled. The kind of home I'd like to have one day. Very airy and on a large piece of property.We woke up to rain in the morning, but started riding in good spirits. That didn't last long. The wind quickly picked up, blowing the rain right into our faces and down our jackets. Pretty quickly, the rain had completely soaked everyone. After a welcome break from the rain, and a hot breakfast in Mosinee, we decided that it wasn't worth the discomfort of riding on. This is supposed to be a fun ride after all.
Despite the rain the next day, we were all hotted out when we saw the sign for Watermelons. Needless to say, we all sat down and ate an entire melon, boy was it tasty!Tomorrow we'll try for a big day to make up for only riding 30 miles today. We're supposed to have clearing skies and a strong west wind, which should help push us towards 100miles or so.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
