Day 44 - Cazenovia to Canajoharie

First 10 miles were fantastic - cool, sunny, flat and downhill along the river to Chittenango. Deer picture is from that road.

Turn East onto Rte 5 / NY bicycle route for 80 miles - same road the whole way, E / SE winds at 15, gusting to 25. Not a lot of pictures - head down cursing the wind all day !!

Traffic quite heavy until Oneida ( they make flatware there? ), and then it thins out.

Utica is a bit of an issue for a bicyclist. The road signs had directions to at least 5 different highways, and at times I'm riding on an interchange route with 4 lanes of traffic and lots of entrance / exit ramps. Traffic light though so minimal horns blaring at me.

Utica is quite large - and empty. Seems that it has become a business / government center with little retail commerce and very few people in the city.

Lunch in Herkimer. This downtown is on the ropes. I think it has been abandoned! A few people outside the diner advise me to watch out for my bike. This is a first. Everyplace else I've been people on the street say "don't worry about it here".

As I approach St Johnsville there is a thunder storm in front of me. I push on it to get to the town to find shelter from the lightning. As it turns out, the storm is moving North; I'm heading East; and I could have saved some energy by just slowing down and letting it pass. Duh !!!

Into Canajoharie a little late. Very pretty town. Roots are in Beech-Nut ( now gone ); Richardson candy is here. All of the pictures except the deer and barn are from the town. Seems that the man who owned Beech-Nut in the mid-1900s was a large benefactor.

Downtown is clean; nicely kept buildings; lots of evidence of restoration. On the Mohawk River / Erie Tow Canal; there is a River Lock at the town, and public docks for boats traveling the Mohawk; I stop by at a Concert On The Green.

I'm glad I stopped here.

Day 43 - Seneca Falls to Cazenovia

The end justified the means !!

On the road at 7:00, and the first half - to Auburn - is rush-hour level traffic on Route 20. Lots of trucks. Traffic thins out in Auburn as Rtes 5 ( to Syracuse ) and 20 split. Route 20 is undulating, nothing very severe, and as I enter Skaneateles village I'm thinking I will be done very early today - nothing today like Saturday's killer hills.

I should have stayed in Skaneateles !

The next 31 miles are very much like Saturday's trek to Geneseo - probably 3 or 4 10% climbs and many of lesser grade; all over a mile long. The pic I included is a hill that is 1.5 miles long with no breaks.

The folks in Cazenovia say that today's ride is tougher than Saturday's - I'm not as tired though.

Skaneateles and Cazenovia are both great towns on the edge of beautiful lakes. Great donut shop in Skaneateles.

And I am relaxing at a fabulous inn on Cazenovia Lake - the Brewster Inn. Patty and Dick Hubbards son is completing a Southern route trip just a few days before I am scheduled to finish. And they know how to take care of a cyclist !!

Check out the picture of the Inn. A glass of wine and crossword puzzle on the lawn; great dinner; jacuzzi. I've clearly celebrated my birthday a day early. I could get used to this !!

In Cazenovia this afternoon a woman stops to chat; she has 10 kids; all home-schooled !! The upside is that they graduate from HS early, and thus go off to college early !

Heading North to Route 5 tomorrow. Terrain should be a lot less hilly since it
parallels I-90 and not far from the Erie Canal towpath. Four 80+ mile days in front of me.

Frank
frank@projmgr.com

Day 42 - Geneseo to Seneca Falls

Glorious morning; sun bright, skies clear, crisp, and empty back roads to Avon / Rte 20. Perfecto!!

Legs feeling sluggish after Saturday's hills. The cure - breakfast at hotel; re-fuel at Patty's Place in Canandaigua; re-re-fuel at Water Street Cafe in Geneva. After the third morning meal it was a very gradual up and down to Seneca Falls. Both cafes were great.

Really nice towns to ride thru - quaint; lots of nicely kept / restored old homes - Avon, Bloomfield, Lima, Canandaigua. Pavement good; wide shoulders

Another great area for an outdoor vacation - camping, boating, bike-riding and more.

After the Patty's Place stop the legs started to come back - bit still tired at end of day. Should be back on track tomorrow.

Seneca Falls has the Cayuga - Seneca Canal running thru town - seems they could exploit it for tourism a lot more than they do.

Rode most of the day on Rte 20; all day tomorrow on Rte 20; some the next day. Good road conditions; pretty views. But it gets a little monotonous being on one road all day.

Pics:
- boardwalk is at Seneca Lake
- Cayuga - Seneca Canal
- 5 arch limestone bridge near Avon
- farm equipment - I'm not in Iowa anymore !!

Frank
frank@projmgr.com

Day 41 - Fredonia to Geneseo

End of week 7.

Planned to start early today - 90 + miles and anticipating hills.

Opened the curtains to see black clouds, and to hear weather warnings on the TV. They are asking all boaters to get off the lake due to anticipated waves. As soon as the storm passes I put on my rain jacket and follow it. I assumed I would not catch the storm, but would be fast enough to miss the next one.

It rained for 35 miles. I turned off Hwy 20 to Hwy 20A - riding due East now toward New England. After seeking advice from a number of people, I chose this route - not sure how hilly. And all the feedback I got was lacking consistency.

Thru Orchard Park and eat / rest break in East Aurora at 11:00. Both towns are really pretty with vibrant down towns; street fair in Aurora.

The next 30 miles were the hardest continuous 30 miles of the trip. Up 1 1/2 miles; down 1 1/2 miles - continuous and very steep. Culminates in Warsaw where trucks and buses are not allowed to enter the town thru the hills due to all the accidents. 3 miles at 10% grade to get out of town.

I was hoping that Orchard Park to NH would be all downhill !!!

As I topped out of Warsaw, there was a beautiful rolling ride to Geneseo.

Thunder, lightning, rain, hills - no appetite for stopping to take pictures. There are a few looking toward Geneseo after leaving Warsaw, and one of the Round Tree Inn where I rewarded myself with a glass of wine and a meal as soon as I hit town.

Geneseo is nice; small, quiet because school is out of session; SUNY campus is really pretty.

Some locals have suggested getting back on Hwy 20 for the next few days. They seem to know what they are talking about !

Day 40 - Conneaut, OH to Fredonia, NY

Milestones:
- Over 3000 miles
- OH to PA
- PA to NY

Again, 3 segments:

1. Conneaut to PA on Rte 20. Rte 20 in PA pre-Erie is a great ride. Pavement is perfect; shoulders are wide. It seems that as soon as I enter PA the terrain becomes rolling and hilly. First 30 miles are wonderful.

2. Thru Erie, PA
See the pic below about Aggressive Drivers - it appeared just as the shoulder became covered with debris and then disappeared as the traffic-congested mall sprawl area started. Have the Erie police thrown in the towel to the aggressive drivers?? The ride thru Erie seems to go on forever and there is no discernible shoulder until after getting thru the mall area on the East side of town. Harrowing!

2. North East to Fredonia
Stop in the town of North East for 10:30 break. Really great downtown; park in center of town; Maryhurst College; apparently the economic center of this wine growing region. I jump on Rte 5 / NY Bikeway 512.

Unbelievable ride along Lake Erie. Reminds me a lot of Rte 2 - beautiful year-round homes alongside small cottages. Instead of hayfields around the camps there are vineyards. Gorgeous ride.

Except for the wind - again. Checked the weather on Thu night - winds out of the SW for Fri and Sat. YES!! Check once more on Fri morning. Winds out of the NE at 10 - 15. Oh No !! Rode into the wind all day and have 92 miles into the wind on Saturday to Geneseo.

Great lakeside views in Westfield and Dunkirk (milk shake time!). Couldn't help observing the significant break-waters - imagine Lake Erie gets wild during storms.

Pics of corn and soybeans in PA (of course), but now also acres and acres of vineyards - many wineries and a Welch's grape juice processing facility.

The last 38 miles of the day are to be remembered.

Folks at Fredonia library are really helpful.

Day 39 - Brecksville to Conneaut

Out of Dennis' house at 6:30. With 90+ miles ahead of me, and the first 35 or so amid the Cleveland work traffic, I wanted an early start. As it turns out, a good decision.

Out Hwy 82 and on to Hwy 91 with lots of traffic and quite a few stoplights. Hwy 91 has a little bit of everything - good and bad pavement; long flats and some steep hills; congested traffic and malls interspersed by quiet, up-scale neighborhoods. The kind of road where time flies by.

On to Route 20, and stop for breakfast at mile 55.

The waitress tells me she brought her plants in this morning because of the forecast for 50 MPH winds and severe thunderstorms.

No problem - probably come in late afternoon!!

I head down the road, and 15 miles out of Conneaut I observe very, very dark clouds over Lake Erie.

I really step on it, trying to beat the storm to Conneaut. Pull into a food mart to check map for motel location, and not 5 minutes after I'm off the bike the clouds open and some serious thunder and lightning arrive.

As I leave the store after the storm passes a woman yells to me that there is a tornado warning. I don't see any evidence of it, but later, at a pub, a guy sends me the pic below of the tornado that touched down 20 miles from here.

Except for the tornado pic, all others are from Conneaut. Finally, some wildlife down on the Lake Erie lakeshore.

Day 38 - Norwalk to Brecksville

Refreshingly cool this morning. On the road by 7:00. Out Rte 20 and turn off to local 303 about 10 miles out.

Almost stopped to put on my wind jacket.

Hwy 303 was great. Early on curvy, rolling hills, really rustic. Opens up to crop fields. Not much traffic; good pavement, and great riding.

I'm cruising along feeling safe and comfortable. A local truck-driver who I talk to to confirm routes tells me to be careful - "this road is a death-trap". It's all perspective !!

All too soon I have to turn off to Hwy 57 ( lots more traffic ), and then on to Hwy 82 to Strongvillle for an extended stop.

A guy at the Starbucks tells me about the great bike paths in the area, so I decide to take a bike path loop around 82 and back into Brecksville. First good hills in a while.

I'm at Dennis' (HS friend) and Rose's house by 3:00. Great conversation with Rose (first time I've met her), and Dennis is home about 5:00. Only 2nd or 3rd time we've connected in person since HS. Great catch-up; good laughs; good dinner in Brecksville.

Lots and lots of bike paths in the Cleveland - Akron area. Dennis and I stop off at the National Park where a tow path from Cleveland to Akron has been converted to bike path; and there's a commuter train also.

Pic below is their house.

Day 37 - Perrysburg to Norwalk

Raining as I left Sue's house this morning - but not hard enough for the rain jacket.

I decide to get back on Highway 20 to get to Elmore. Word is that there is a shoulder, good pavement, and hopefully minimal traffic at 7:00. And there are no good alternatives without lots of circumnavigation.

Highway 20 redeems herself. The ride to Elmore is great - a combination of rural and suburban sights. Great shoulder to ride on, and truck traffic not a problem.

22 miles to Elmore where I jump off to try a new concept - a rail trail.

Pics of Elmore below - yes, another nice town and the Red, White, and Brew coffee shop is great.

Jump on the bike path for some 25 miles thru Fremont and into Clyde. It's a nice alternative. Great pavement; no traffic; ride along farm fields and thru some small towns. See some very overweight and elderly people riding adult tricycles - seems like a good option for them to at least get some exercise.

Back on Hwy 20 at Clyde for a no-hassle finish into Norwalk.

A somewhat uneventful day with a nice ride. And I am re-thinking my road selection out of OH and into NY - Hwy 20 is back in the mix !

A couple of thoughts from the saddle:
1. I think it must be Illegal for dogs to ride in the cabs of trucks in OR, ID, WY, and NE. And the preferred dog safety restraint seems to be a spare tire for them to sit in for stability on sharp turns.

2. A non-scientific conclusion among a few of us who have shared 'secrets of the road' is that recent chafing is caused by a part of the anatomy getting smaller. No, not that part (but it's smaller too !!). Our butts. So our riding shorts are moving around more, thus requiring additional attention so as to stay healthy and comfortable. Love that Chamois Butt'r Cream.

3. How many times do you have to ask about directions to make sure you have the right answer? Minimum of 3!! And that's if all 3 people are locals with intimate knowledge of the vicinity.