Miles Ridden: 94.8 Avg Speed: 16.8 mph
Avg Heart Rate: 112 bpm
Climbing: 1,532 ft
Calories Burned: 2,002 (so says my Garmin ... it's higher!)
Long and humid ... Erie Canal ... Margot and Nancy ... Katie's parents ... Dinosaur BBQ
Today' route and map -- To Be Posted
The early bird leaves early. We had a rolling load today from 6:00 to 6:45 with a very basic breakfast offering at the hotel. I got by with a few bowls of frosted flakes and a couple danish. At 6:15 the Geldings were ready to go, but I was still eating. A few minutes later they were off. I headed out with Margot and Gary (CT), NJ Mark, Ann (CT) and Nancy (CT). The weather was similar to yesterday with high humidity and a chance of showers (never came). After the first 5 miles on the road, we turned on to the Erie Canalway Trail. We spent an enjoyable 20 miles following the canal. The first few miles were paved, but it turned to hard packed cinder after that. There was no grade so the ride was much more pleasant than the bike path we did with the tunnels. The canal is much different than the C&O canal . For one, it is still operational. For two, it is very built up with numerous houses and towns right along the water.
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| Boats Were a Common Site on the Canal |
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| The Canal and Me Snapping A Picture |
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| Early Morning Scullers |
We passed through the village of Pittsford and had to dismount as the path went right through the small town. Neat boats and shops right along the water. From there we went through Fairport and got to see an operating lock for a small motor boat. It was really neat to see the water levels change to enable the boat to move up the canal. We left the path in Palmyra (where Joseph Smith received the Book of Mormon) and headed out on to Route 31 until a SAG stop at an ice cream stand (it was closed). Margot, Nancy, and I pushed out ahead of the others and paced up to the SAG.
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| Pittsford Along the Canal |
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| Margot, Gary, and Me ... Great Day with Team Serotta |
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| Neat Barge Like Boat in Town |
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| The Lock Closing |
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| The Lock Starting to Fill With Water |
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| Almost Full |
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| And Away She Goes |
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| Small Waterfall Near End of the Path |
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| Leave It To Kim To Find This Shot |
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| The Last Section of The Path |
We reconnected with the group at the SAG. We learned that Ann (Toronto) had a mishap with a pick up truck. It clipped her from behind and she went down. A nasty bruise (egg sized bump) on her elbow and her bike was a little banged up, but thankfully nothing more. She finished the day a little sore, but OK. NJ Mark joined Margot, Nancy, and I for the next 30 miles through several small NY towns including Lyons, Clyde, Tyre, Montezuma, and Port Byron. Route 31 is also known as Bike Route 5 out here. It was pretty smooth with a good shoulder and had a few rollers, but was mostly flat. Port Byron had a neat building mural depicting life on the Canal. The humidity was pretty high ... I poured a lot of water over my head and used Karen's ice bandanna trick as well. A few chocolate milks at mile 55 helped refuel me for the run into the 2nd SAG.
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| Snoopy Lives Here Too |
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| Neat Building Mural in Port Byron |
We reached the second SAG in Weedsport (another neat mural) and headed for a quick lunch with Gary and Ann. It was the first time I had eaten lunch during the ride this trip. I ate pretty lightly and was able to finish without any issues. Margot, Nancy and I got nice and efficient in taking short 1/2 - 1 mile pulls the last 25 miles. The route remained smooth with a few small hills for good measure. As we entered Liverpool, we got a glimpse of Onondaga Lake. We made the last run int to town with Tom and Beth. I have a habit of finishing with these two!
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Weedsport Mural
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| Onondaga Lake in Liverpool |
At the hotel, Katie had a surprise waiting for her. Her mom, dad, and brother had made the trip up form Asheville North Carolina. They knew most of us by sight from our blogs. Turns out they lived in Columbia about 3 miles from me for a year or so way back when. After wrap, Dave and I went to dinner with his old college friends Charlie & Carol. The destination was a local Syracuse institution ... Dinosaur BBQ. Dave and I both had full racks of ribs and dessert ... hey, we biked almost 100 miles today and have completed over 3,300 miles ... we earned it. The other Geldings also made the trip by cab. Great food and great company.
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| Katie's Big Surprise |
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| Dinosaur BBQ ... Rockin On A Wednesday Night |
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| The Menu |
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| The Company - Carol & Charlie |
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| The Joint |
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| The Walls |
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| The Bikes ... I Don't Think Spandex Would Have Gone Over Well |
Only 5 days left! Tomorrow we have about 80 miles to Little Falls just outside of Utica (Amy's old stomping grounds), then its off to Latham (my old stomping grounds) and my visit with the RPI alumni. Less than 400 miles left.
Good night moon ... good night canal ... good night Team Serotta (I had a fun day!) ... good night BBQ
Hi Mark,
ReplyDeleteAnother day for you, glad you had a nice dinner. The BBQ place looked fun. It's always good when you can browse the walls waiting on food ! Your pictures were beautiful, those Murals ! Canal was cool, if you ever get up to the Upper Peninsula in Michigan they have the Soo Locks between Ste. ST. Marie, MI and Ste. ST. Marie Canada, with huge ships hauling wood, iron, etc...Great family trip, well all of the U.P. is. Wow I can't believe it's almost over for you ! You have done a terrific job in every aspect of your trip. You are in my prayers, well good night moon to you and a good nights sleep. Looking forward to tomorrow's post !
Jill