Day 49: Little Falls to Latham, NY, 83 Miles, W: 0-5 SW, Temp: 68-82 Rain, Sun,Humid

Morning rain, mist and low flying clouds.

Boat in Lock 8 on the Mohawk River

On Bridge crossing the Mohawk

Roommates: John and Larry, best buddies.

Bike Path along the river, Pam, Judy and Phil. Phil is actually in back of the girls!
A great view and down hill on the Mohawk/Hudson bike path.

Day 49: Leaving Little Falls this morning it was not raining but that didn’t last long. We rode the first 35 miles along the Mohawk river in a light to moderate rain. It was very scenic with low hanging clouds and mist hanging over the river and the hills. This is a hilly area, a prelude to our climbing the next two days. More interesting photography subjects today. We rode almost 17 miles on the Mohawk/Hudson bike path. It was a nice break from riding on the roads and always having to be aware of what is going on around you. It was an opportunity to just cruise and enjoy the landscape. There was no hurry to get off the path except for Jumpin Jack’s Drive In about a third of the way into it. We stopped for lunch which included another rootbeer float and a chicken sandwich. Then it was back on the bike path for more cruising. After arriving at the hotel I decide to visit a nearby Starbuck’s, how I have missed the simple pleasures of my routine life. Not long now. Tomorrow we head of New York and into Vermont and the start of 2 pretty big days of climbing.

July 24, 2010

Miles: 83

Elevation 1,600

Day 48: Liverpool to Little Falls, NY 78.5 Miles, W; 10-20 SE, Temp: 60-65, RAIN:

Getting ready for a rainy day on the bike, Gloria is asking "do we really have to ride in this"?

Rain at the end too!

Great mural.

Look no spandex, Erie Canal.

One of the tallest lock lifts in the world.

The actual lock
Don and Rob after the rain stopped.

Day 48: Mother Nature showed us a thing or two about rain today. It POURED from the second we left the hotel in Liverpool all the way to the hotel in Little Falls, NY. There was no escaping water, it was everywhere and the temperature never rose above 65 so it was a bit brisk. No photo opportunities although the terrain we rode through was beautiful. The roads were good and I never felt outside of my comfort zone riding today. It was the kind of day you sucked up the determination and push forward. We road along the Erie Canal for awhile. Our stop for the night, the town of Little Falls has Lock #17 which is one of the tallest water locks in the world. It also has historical area close to the Mohawk River and the canal. When I got to my hotel I ordered a 12” sausage grinder sub with a quart of chocolate milk, The deli delivered it to my room. Once I got warm and dry I was not about to go back out. The rained stopped after dinner so I was able to venture out and get some pictures of the canal and some local flavor. 4 days left in this adventure, I am looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and being with my family.

July 23, 2010

Miles today: 78.5

Total miles:3,659

Climbing today: 771

Day 47: Canangaigue to Liverpool, NY 73.5 Miles, W 5-15 W, Temp, 65-80, Clear

The shores of Lake Seneca.

Love the hat on this guy!

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Erie Canal Park.

NY countryside.

Sunflower farm

Sunflower from a sunflower farm.

Day 47: Today was a leisure ride through the finger lakes area of NY. There were so many photo opportunities that I rode alone and took advantage of the great weather and a biker friendly tail wind. After a couple of pedal pounding days it was nice to cruise at a slower speed and enjoy the smells, the sights and the countryside. The scenery started early with Seneca Lake one of the largest of the finger lakes. Then we rode into Waterloo, NY, the birth place of Memorial Day, then into Seneca Falls, home of the Women’s Rights Hall of Fame. I had a quick glance at the Erie Canal, not what I thought but still historic. As we came into Liverpool, a suburb, of Syracuse, I rode through a park along Onondaga Lake where the Syracuse crew team practices. Lunch at a local favorite hot dog and milk shake house, Hied’s. They boast of their continuous line out the door. A great way to end a fantastic day of touring on the bike. Tomorrow we ride to Little Falls, NY. 5 days left!

July 22, 2010

Miles today: 72.46

Total Miles: 3,580.5

Elevation climbed: 2,498

Day 46: Hamburg to Canandaigua, NY, 100.5 miles, W: 5-15 SW, Temp: 65 to 85 Rain and Sun

It's about to start pouring as we leave Hamburg, NY


After the rain.


End of ride overlooking Lake Canandaigua.

Pam & Joy after a long ride. The water was very inviting

Storm blowing in over lake Canandaigue.

Bikers even eat in a pace line. Left to right: Phil, Rick, John, Rob, Pam, Joy

Day 46: T-minus 6 days and counting. Today turned into our 15 century ride of the tour. There was a 30% chance of rain and we got plenty of it. It started to rain about 20 miles into the ride and rained steady for the next 30 miles. There were plenty of rolling hills, a few more grape vineyards. I rode with a group that pushed it pretty hard and I just hung on. Big John Hurley was feeling strong and he pulled Joy Walker and myself for almost 10 miles. That earned him a rootbeer float at Tom Wahl’s rootbeer. There is no free ride in this line of entertainment and John earned every penny of it. We rode out of the rain and the sun came out. As we rode in to Canandaigua it was a beautiful day. We did some sight seeing around town and then headed to the lake front to have some lunch. We ended up at the Cove’s restaurant on the beach overlooking Canandaigua Lake. The lake is one of the finger lake in NY. It is a long and narrow lake that is very inviting. Another storm blew in while were eating but we were well protected and not in a hurry to leave. Tomorrow we have a shorter day to Liverpool, NY.

July 21, 2010

Miles today: 100.5

Elevation Gain to day: 4.104

Day 45: Erie, PA to Hamburg, NY, 85.6 Miles, W: N, 0-8, Temp 68-78, Cloudy.

Leaving Erie with the lake and some grape fields!


State number 11, 3 to go.

Light house on Lake Erie.

Not much wind for this sail boat, bikers love it though.

Dry dock ship.

Park for our sag stop.

Day 45: The summer excitement of a Cross Country Tour and the Tour de France are quickly coming to an end. The start of our final week in the saddle started today with a super 85.6 miles from Erie, PA to Hamburg, NY. We checked PA off the list and headed into New York today. Most of the day was along the shoreline of Lake Erie. It ‘s a peaceful, gentle shoreline surrounded by field after field of concord grape fields. I was told these are the grapes used to make grape juice. Several of the farms displayed the Welch’s brand label on their signs. It was a fairly flat day that helped up our speeds. Average speed today was 19.4, not bad for an 85 mile ride. Rode the day with 2 different groups, lost my first group when I had a flat and was picked up by the Boston group of Big John Hurley, Judy Clawson and Rob Alhquist. They were a superb team and helped me forget about being dumped by my original team. I felt like a ball player being picked up on the waiver wire for the last week of the season. It’s hard not to get nostalgic as we make this final trek into Portsmouth, NH. Tomorrow it’s onto Canandaigua, NY, pronounce that name!

July 20, 2010

Miles for today 85.6

Trip miles: 3,405.6

Elevation today: 1,450

Day 44: Rest day in Erie, PA

My sight seeing partners to Niagra Falls, Lester Bridges, Phil Young and Rick (Kiwi) Soars.

Maiden of the Mist boat that took us the horseshoe area of the Falls.

Great day, rented a car and drove to Niagra Falls, NY with a few other tourist/bikers. We had a nice day recovering and getting ready for the last leg of our journey. Tomorrow on to Hamburg, NY and state number 11. 635 miles to go.

Day 43: Youngstown, OH to Erie, PA, 102.5 Miles, W: 0-5 S, Temp: 68-88, Clear

Evening sunset in Youngstown!


Rob Ahlquist in front of a not to friendly winery.

Cool building though, the only picture the owner would let me take?

Best rootbeer float ever! Richardson's Rootbeer Stand in OH.

Is this a happy guy or what! Larry Johnson.

Richardson's Rootbeer Stand.

The 10th state!

Day 43: Departed Youngstown early morning, it was so quiet and peaceful. No traffic and the roads made a drastic improvement over yesterday. We must have traveled though the area of Ohio that elected public servants interested in improving the roads. The terrain through this part of Ohio was relatively flat and we started getting into the deciduous area of the state. We made a few stops that took my mind off my legs and how they were not working like they did 4 days ago. We stop at a winery that we were told had good sandwiches but a few of us arrived before they were open and they were not that friendly with us. I tried to take a few pictures of the restaurant and wine tasting area and the owner didn’t like that at all. Not all Buckeye’s are friendly So we left and went to the next stop which made the day. Richardson’s Rootbeer Stand. What a treat! I had the best rootbeer float I have ever had, it was a place right out of the 50’s. Then on to Erie and a rest day. Little did we know that the last 4 miles into our hotel would greet us with a few climbs that were 13%. Might not sound like much but after 415 miles in 4 days it was a big bummer. I won’t share the choice words that came out of some riders mouths, not mine. Tomorrow a few of us are going to make a trip up to Niagra Falls. Looking forward to a day off the bike then the home stretch, 8 days of riding and then this incredible trip is over. We have covered a lot of ground, it only looks impressive when you look at a map. I went by a sign for I80 west to Cleveland. Hard to believe that we were on that interstate in Nevada and Utah.

July 18, 2010

Miles today: 102.4

Total: 3.321

Elevation gain today: 2,487