Cycling and other musings
61 miles, 2690 feet climbed
We made it to the end. And finally, ten days later, I’m posting this report. Excuses below.
It was another day of good weather. Some climbing for the first half and mostly flat for the remainder.
Continue reading “Day 50 – Manchester to Portsmouth, New Hampshire”79 miles, 4885 feet climbed
Today’s climbing, while less in absolute terms than yesterday’s, felt like more. That was likely due to the slopes being steeper. The route is modified from 2004, skipping two steep climbs according to staff. I remember one of them–Joe English Road–which my friend Andrew and I raced up the 10% grade for nearly a mile only to find a little more 10% after a false flat near the top. The downhill into Manchester was more rewarding than today’s approach. But change is good, right?
Continue reading “Day 49 – Brattleboro, Vermont to Manchester, New Hampshire”79 miles, 5696 feet climbed
Today was perhaps our biggest day of climbing, comparable to Teton pass in total, but spread out over more, smaller climbs at lower elevations. While we haven’t climbed this much for weeks, we were still stronger for all the miles we’ve ridden and this did not feel as difficult.
There was no rain in the forecast but dark clouds were hovering over Hogback, our last climb before the descent into Brattleboro. A light rain started at the second SAG, and abated before I topped Hogback.
Continue reading “Day 48 – Latham, New York to Brattleboro, Vermont”75 miles, 2457 feet climbed
Today we dispensed with the rain of the last few days, though I left my jacket in my seat bag just in case. The day was spent near and sometimes along the Erie Canal, as well as the railroad line that made it obsolete, affecting the small towns along the canal in not so good ways. I could also hear the trains running fairly frequently last night; out hotel was just across the highway and my room faced in that direction.
Continue reading “Day 47 – Little Falls to Latham, New York”79 miles, 1726 feet climbed
Another cool day to start, warming to comfortable levels. Humid but tolerably so. Either rain or at least we roads, depending on where you were in the pack. Near Little Falls, I hit something metallic and hard with my front tire and noticed it going flat right as I rolled up to a group fixing another flat. Though I was expecting a pinch flat–two holes opposite each other as if a snake had bitten it– there was only one hole on the tire seam. Perhaps the hard hit had popped open a weak spot. With several hands to help pull the slippery wet tire back onto the rim, I was back on the road quickly.
Continue reading “Day 46 – Syracuse to Little Falls, New York”89 miles, 2717 feet climbed
Today a steady rain began as we left the hotel and continued for at least two hours. We rode only the first 5 or so miles of the Erie Canal trail and then diverted to Route 31 for 60 miles or so. With the rain and needing to keep moving, I took only a few photos.
At the second SAG stop, Karen showed me the future weather radar track of a heavier storm. That incentivized me to put my head down and make some speed for our hotel. I just about made it when light rains began to fall again, but was able to watch the heavier rains from the lobby.
Continue reading “Day 45 – Rochester to Syracuse, New York”104 miles, 1614 feet climbed
Unlike 2004, out route today took us north from Niagara Falls and along the southern shore of Lake Ontario, then eventually south east to the southern part of Rochester. Thunderstorms were a possibility later in the day. At the third SAG near Spencerport, the rain started. Kees and I took a break at a pizza place for paninies. The sun came out for a while but we got some more rain before we reached Rochester. We finished in sunshine.
Continue reading “Day 44 – Niagara Falls to Rochester, New York”It has taken me a while to get to the backlog of daily reports. Rain on two days and bad WiFi have conspired to prevent me from catching up. Consider this a down payment.
The weather was not that hot but felt hotter due to the humidity. Nothing a shower couldn’t wash away. I started mid-morning at Goat Island, a short walk from our hotel on the New York side of the falls. Eventually I walked back over to the Canadian side.
Continue reading “Day 43 – Niagara Falls, New York (Rest Day)”75 miles, 1588 feet climbed
Today was another day of pleasant weather. Headwinds and crosswinds again, but not too strong. We did get to climb a few relatively steep, but short, hills as we approached the Niagara area, the first after days of pretty flat terrain. We’ll have more, especially in Vermont and New Hampshire.
When we got to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls, I left my camera in my pocket, knowing that I will return on our rest day tomorrow with the big camera. Look for those in tomorrow’s report.
Continue reading “Day 42 – Brantford, Ontario, Canada to Niagara Falls, New York”69 miles, 1230 feet climbed
Agriculture, more of it, more variety. Corn and soybeans, of course. We also saw asparagus, tobacco, tomatoes, ginseng, and potatoes. We rode all the way across southern Idaho and my first sighting of potatoes is in eastern Canada?
The end of the route into Brantford was on the Waterford Heritage Trail. It began as packed gravel and sand but soon became a paved bike path. In the middle there was a diversion off the path in Mt. Pleasant to the Windmill Country Market. Most of us ordered sandwiches–I had pork belly and cheese with some tangy coleslaw.
Continue reading “Day 41 – London to Brantford, Ontario, Canada”