John Aylward Photography

Today’s Highlights:
Our luck with the weather continued. After a rainstorm last night, we were left with dry roads, low clouds rising off the hillsides, and small breaks in the cloudy sky giving way to sunbeams streaking through. The morning light was soft and beautiful on the landscape. Although the humidity left me quite sweaty, the temperature was comfortable and we had plenty of cloud cover and shade to keep the sun off us most of the day. We even had a little tailwind today.

Our route traveled mostly along US Route 5 and on bike paths that paralleled the Erie Canal and Mohawk River. We were able to see the waterway for most of the ride, including several locks. A railroad also runs along it for freight and Amtrak. There was a lot of train traffic and I also saw several boats in the canal. As you would expect, the roads and paths along the waterway are flat. Hills rise up on both the north and south banks of the Mohawk River, carved out long ago by the glacial drainage from the Great Lakes to the Hudson River. The hillsides are heavily wooded or cleared for farms, and are very lust and green, and a nice backdrop to the Mohawk River. The bike paths were tree-lined or right along the river edge. I especially enjoyed those paths.

We passed through some small quaint towns, like St Johnsville and Fonda. The only large town we cycled through was Amsterdam. There were several historical sites along the way and many markers about events and site from the 1700’s. I could not take the time to see all of them, but it would be interesting to be able to do so. Along the way were Fort Klock from 1750 and Fort Johnson from 1749.

The best part of the day was meeting Sue at the hotel at the end of the ride. She came up from Poughkeepsie to see me. Eight weeks is a long time to be away from home. There are only three riding days left.

Day 49

Statistics: Zoom and pan the map to explore the route.

Time: 7/20/2013, 4:06:4

Duration: 05:51:49

Ascent/Descent: 3222 ft 3315 ft

Distance: 80.03 M

Today’s Highlights:
We rode seventy eight miles today from Liverpool to Little Falls. It was another very good day of cycling. The terrain was relatively flat and the roads were smooth. Best of all, we had a strong tailwind for the entire ride. Everyone was able to make good time. I averaged 17.3 mph and finished at 11:45 AM, with a 6:30 AM start. It was another hot and humid day, but not as bad as the previous two. It reached 90 degrees by 10:00 and close to 100 by 11:00. However, the nice tailwind provided some cooling and drying, in addition to the nice push.

We cycled through several suburban and rural areas with houses along the road. There were few scenic photo ops, but I also did not try too hard to find them because it was fun just to ride fast today. The most interesting sites today were parts of the Old Erie Canal and the current Erie Canal. The old parts were narrow and stagnant, and did not look too inviting, but certainly have historical interest. The parts currently in use were much larger and clear for travel, and lined with trees, forest and fields. It must be pleasant to travel along in a boat.

The highlight of the day came after the ride and after lunch in Little Falls. Ken, Emma and I cycle around town and toured parts of the canal. We saw lock-17, which is the deepest of the locks on the Erie Canal. Luckily, a sailboat was coming up the river (the Mohawk River makes up some of the canal way) and entered the lock shortly after we arrived. We got to see it in operation and learn more about it from the attendant. The lock is 103 years old! It’s amazing to see things that were made so well so long ago. There are also some renovated mills along the river that are now shops and businesses or residences. It’s a small town, but worth a visit. Lunch at Ann Street Deli was very good, and there is a deli & creamery across the way that some of our riders enjoyed. I skipped the ice creme today.

Day 48

Statistics: Zoom and pan the map to explore the route.

Time: 7/19/2013, 3:30:1

Duration: 05:16:13

Ascent/Descent: 3157 ft 2956 ft

Distance: 78.32 M

Today’s Highlights:
We had another beautiful ride today across the northern part of the Finger Lakes region. We were able to cycle close to the north shores of Seneca Lake and Onondaga Lake. We were too far north of Cayuga Lake to see it, but we had our first rest stop in the Montezuma National Wildlife Preserve, which is the large wetland north of that lake. At Seneca Lake, in the town of Geneva, there was a nice public park with trails and a small marina. I saw two Great Blue Herons there, and I made a quick side trip to ride through the park. From the viewing stand near the entrance of Montezuma, we saw acres of grassy wetlands. There were some bird houses for sparrows, I think. I did not have time to explore, and did not see any other birds. However, there would be a lot more activity during migration season. It was a very pretty and peaceful place. Toward the end of the route, we rode into Long Branch Park and onto a bike path along the shore of Onondaga Lake. This large lake was also very scenic. I wanted to jump into it, but a local person told me that it was still being revitalized and too polluted to swim in. Oh well.

We passed through some notable towns today also. Waterloo is designated as the official birthplace of Memorial Day, and the Memorial Day Museum is in the town. Seneca Falls played a prominent role in the Women’s Rights Movement. Both towns had nicely preserved buildings from the 1800’s. There is a lot of historical significant to the area, including the Erie Canal. We saw a small section of that today too, but expect to see more of it tomorrow.

In between the lakes and towns, we enjoyed more scenes of farm, fields, woodlands and streams. Everything is lush and green here.

It was another very humid day. We started at 6:30 AM to beat some of the heat. It was in the low seventies, which was not bad, but still very muggy. We had a little tailwind all day, and that helped me move along quickly. Also, Andy kindly gave me a pull again this morning, and I hung on his wheel until I reached Seneca Lake and stopped for pictures while he moved on. At that point, I was averaging 19.5 mph thanks to him. By 9:00, it was close to 90 degrees and quite hot with the humidity. I rode with Emma from the SAG stop, and we pushed along fairly quickly to shorten the time outside. I still stopped for pictures in places. We finished the seventy mile ride around 11:30 AM before the hottest part of the day. Since I couldn’t jump in the lake to cool off, I had to settle for a banana split at a nice ice creme stand near the hotel. Life is good.

Day 47

Time: 7/18/2013, 3:33:5

Duration: 05:03:03

Ascent/Descent: 2978 ft 3486 ft

Distance: 70.26 M

Today’s Highlights:
It was very hot and humid for our long ride today from Hamburg to Canadaigua. Starting at 7:00 AM it was only 70 degrees, but very humid. By 11:00 AM, my bike computer was registering 100 degrees on the road. I was a little more than half done at that point. The route was also hilly all the way – not big hills, but enough to make us work the entire distance. Normally, I don’t take much notice of the shaded parts of the road, but it was on my mind this afternoon and I sought out any shade I could get near the edge of the road. At 82 miles I stopped at the Shark Ice Creme stand and had a large cone and a good fifteen minute rest in their cool air-conditioned parlor. That helped a lot. At 92 miles, I made a side trip to Lake Canadaigua and found a place to wade in and lay in the water for a while. The full-body cool down was very refreshing. With soaked bike clothes, I cycled slowly along the lake a little to see the sights and get a few extra miles in for a full century ride. The leisurely side trip added thirty minutes to my day, but it was worth seeing the lake and getting cooled off.

The first third or half of our ride was mostly in suburban areas. It’s a very nice area to live in, but I did not stop for any pictures. The town of East Aurora was very nice and had a picturesque Main Street. Past Aurora, we cycled through farmland. There were many nice farms and fields. We saw the usual hay bales, corn fields, cows and horses. However, they were on a much smaller scale than the ones we experienced throughout the Mid West. Still, this Finger Lakes region is a very beautiful area to cycle across.

I did not take a lot of pictures today. That was partly due to the nature of the scenery. However, at some point surviving the heat became the main focus. In a normal situation (at home), I would have not attempted one hundred miles on a day like this, but this is what we do on the cross country challenge. I’m happy to be conditioned enough to make it through. Most of the riders conquered it today.

Day 46

Statistics: Zoom and pan the map to explore the route.

Time: 7/17/2013, 3:55:2

Duration: 07:34:58

Ascent/Descent: 6044 ft 6190 ft

Distance: 100.45 M