Day 51 - Brattleboro VT to Manchester NH - 77 miles

I approached this day with a little bit of trepidation because I'd heard this was the second hardest climbing day of the trip. I also told myself that if I'd survived 50 days of this tour - which I had! - I could surely survive this one. :) So off we went!

One mile from the motel we crossed into New Hampshire! There tends to be a bit of a pile up as everyone lines up for pictures.

Ohio Barry got sand in his cleats and couldn't disengage his shoe from his pedal. Correcting this involved chucking the shoe repeatedly at the road with great force and a fair amount of cursing. Worked though! :)

Nice shot of Patty, PC, and Ingun at the rest stop.

Nice row of bikes at the sag stop in Francestown

It doesn't get much better than this - a freshly paved road, no traffic, beautiful surroundings!

And then if you happen to be with a good friend and you find a little cafe right by the river - perfect.

And they bring her water in a wide mouth jar...

New Boston is a lovely little place!

This is the south branch of the Piscataquog River.

Look at that map! We are almost done! It seems crazy that I've pedaled my bike across all those states. San Francisco already seems a life time ago.

We got settled in at the motel and made our way down the street for our last Dairy Queen run of the trip, then went back to our room to work on our poem for the evening festivities. My parents arrived and it was fun to welcome them to New Hamphire. We had a closing banquet that night with a BBQ feast brought into the motel. After eating, the staff presented us each with finisher certificates and a mini-sag stop. That involved a water bottle, granola bar, and check-in sheet. They took turns giving them to different people and then we could say a few words if we felt so inclined. It was fun to listen to everyone and hear bits of how they felt about our journey.

Gene presented me with my parting gifts and shared a few thoughts. He started off by referring to me as one of the Milkshake Twins. :) He said we were the last to load, the last to leave, the last into the sag stop, the last into the motel but that I always had a big smile on my face and we were always having a great time. If they needed to go look for us, they started with the nearest ice cream shop! It wasn't strictly true as Andy was frequently loading and leaving after us, we weren't always last in either, and I can't truthfully say that I always had a smile on my face but I tried! It got a laugh though and was nice to hear.

I shared just a couple of thoughts and told everyone how much I enjoyed them and how fun it was to ride with them. I had been able to ride with everyone at some point and that was fun. I also commented on how just an ordinary person can accomplish extraordinary things if they are consistent and diligent. Then Fiona and I pulled out our papers and shared our poem. :)

(Kettie) When we set out from San Fran to cross the USA

We never dreamed of all the things we'd learn along the way.

(Fiona) Now we have reached New Hampshire, almost time to say goodbye.

So much has happened along the way - it's hard to condense but we'll try!

(Kettie) Shouts of gravel! (Fiona - gravel!) Slowing! (Fiona - slowing!) Stopping! (Fiona - stopping!) (Both) HOLE!

Are phrases that we quickly learned to save our life and soul.

(Fiona) How to find the nearest subway or your favourite kinda shake

How to read a cue sheet so the right turns we could make.

(Kettie) Collecting all our quarters so our clothes are nice and clean

Respecting Mother Nature and the merits of sunscreen

(Fiona) "Passing on your left!" we'd say but never on your right

(Kettie) Because it is not legal and you may just start a fight

(Fiona) This bike ain't gonna ride itself (Kettie) Holy Cow! (Fiona) Begone with you!

Are some of the phrases that we've heard just a time or two

(Kettie) It's a factor (Fiona) You've got two choices (Kettie) See you up the road!

Checking the whiteboard every night to see what time to load (Fiona - 6:45, really??)

(Fiona) We cycled through California, Utah and K-A

You didn't have to pedal far to find a scorching day

(Kettie) Nevada was a different state, I-80 all the way!

Colorado was so beautiful we were really keen to stay.

(Fiona) Missouri brought the rollers, always up or always down

Illinois we pedaled onwards but couldn't find a town (Kettie - with a loo! Fiona - or a cafe!)

(Kettie) Indiana brought more row crops: soy bean, corn and wheat

Ohio had the best of roads, they really were a treat! 

(Fiona - for the Americans in the audience that is sarcasm)

(Fiona) In Erie Pennsylvania we found the loveliest of places.

Hotel Avalon awaited us with all it's charming graces

(Kettie - more sarcasm here!)

(Kettie) The next day started stormy but we really didn't care

Coz anywhere we ended up we'd be better off than there!

(Fiona) The greenery was abundant as we cycled further east.

New York gave us a lot of rain and quite the visual feast.

(Kettie) The last 2 states came quickly: Vermont and New Hampshire

With all the natural wonders - there was so much to admire!

(Fiona) Tomorrow we leave Manchester (Kettie) As we head towards the coast

(Fiona) There we complete our journey (Kettie) And then we all can boast!

(Fiona) We hope you liked our little rhyme (Kettie) And now it's time to say

(Both) How much we've enjoyed your company for 52 LONNNNG days!

It was a fun performance and well received by the audience. It was a nice time together and it was fun to have my parents there to share in it.

Lots of frosting on those cupcakes!

They had us all sign the map and show where we were from. Following tradition, they selected one person from the group to receive the map. Marv was selected which was a great choice. Then off to bed to get rested for one last day of riding!

Day 50 - Latham NY to Brattleboro VT - 79 miles

Brekkie at 7:00, load at 7:45 - hurray! A later than average start to the day. Any time breakfast was later then six we were pretty happy.

Not far into our ride we encountered road construction. Seems to be pretty common in the summer. Luckily no one was working there and we could walk our bikes through without needing to detour off our route.

After many days with pretty negligible climbing, the Green Mountains gave us an opportunity to see if we still had any climbing legs. The answer would be yes although some were less thrilled than others. About 30 miles into the day we crossed into Vermont - woot woot!

It wasn't generally super steep but it was definitely UP! And not just the short rollers either. We had climbs of up to 8 miles which brought some sweet downhill stretches as well. :) We also noticed that the foliage was denser and closer to the road. Not as many cleared fields and open land as we'd seen through much of New York. Very pretty, very green, not as many long views. It was hot and humid and I was pretty drippy most of the day.

We stopped off in Wilmington at a gallery, perused the paintings, and asked for lunch recommendations. We stopped in at a little place just a mile or so down the road. Turned out to be quite tasty and although we started as a table for two, that expanded as Gene, Jane, Jed, and Vern all showed up as well.

Mile 62 brought us to the summit and the "100 Mile View". I don't know if it was 100 miles or not but you could see a long ways! 

Soaking up some rays!

This was an ice cream opportunity which I turned down because we'd heard about the great ice cream place by the motel. It was another 17 miles into and through Brattleboro to the motel. Some nice downhill but still a bit of climbing to keep us awake. After checking in and cleaning up we set out for ice cream and were devastated to see that the ice cream place was closed. :( We trekked quite a ways down the street looking for other options. We eventually hit some fast food places but nothing sounded appealing. We bought ice cream bars at a gas station and called it good. That was a bit disappointing as I was really trying to take advantage of my last few days of the trip for maximum ice cream consumption. Food for the evening was a pizza party at the motel which tasted pretty good. We went to bed anticipating entering our last state of the trip the next day!

Day 49 - Little Falls to Latham - 77 miles

The town of Little Falls just had kind of a rundown feel to it, as did the motel. My feelings might have been influenced by the fact that they didn't have an elevator and we were on the second floor. I really wasn't excited about lugging my bike and luggage up and down the stairs. I mean, yeah I'm tough and I'm riding my bike across the USA but still. Bikes up and down the stairs are just awkward, especially when you're built as close to the ground as I am. 

Given the wet weather and my tiredness of the previous day, I was not sad to be leaving Little Falls behind and moving on!

We saw more Amish signs although we didn't see any Amish buggies this day. It also started raining right about NOW! Fortunately it was fairly light and didn't last too long. 

We stopped off at Fort Klock for a look around, the first fortified homestead built in the area and still maintained by a descendant of the original settlers.

We stopped at a gas station in Fonda for a loo stop and a look at snacking options and spotted these premade shakes. We'd seen them before but not sampled them so it seemed like the perfect opportunity! First step - select your flavor! Nicely frozen, Fiona gives it the DQ Blizzard teset.

Select your desired thickness

The machine adds whatever, blends it up, and presents it back to you for your pleasure and enjoyment.

Find a straw

and sample it

Not too thick to get through the straw but not too thin

An easy way to get 600 calories of frozen tastiness. :) It doesn't match up to Braum's Dairy but it'll do!

This day we encountered a lot of riders who were doing an organized ride along the Erie Canal. It was fun to see so many people out but we were not used to sharing the roads and paths with packs of cyclists. We had some nice bike paths to navigate along the canal - paved this time - and we stopped off to see what was going on at Lock 8.

The Margot and her barge were being lifted. This was the first lock I saw in action.

Patty, Marv, Michael, and Konnie were here at the same time as we were.

Fiona developed a rash on her arm and was trying to blame it on my bike giving her poison ivy. It wasn't really. The Margot is up and ready to go!

Getting the barge moving.

After lunch at Jumpin' Jacks Drivein, which was also our second sag stop, we got onto another pretty bike path which had some fun downhill sections.

We tried stopping off at a gallery in Niskayuna but they closed just before we got there. Pretty spot though!

About a mile from the motel we took a left instead of a right and got a few bonus miles in. Nothing major but slightly frustrating. I was pretty hot and thirsty and ready to be done. We backtracked and found our way in. At the front desk, I was informed that I was not on the list. I didn't really care as long as Fiona was! But the clerk wanted to be clear on the matter. Whatever buddy. This was one motel where they were serious about their client privacy. They weren't giving out room numbers to anyone who wasn't on the list and they didn't even say the room numbers, just wrote them on the key holder. Kathi was kind enough to grab my bags to bring to the room so I wouldn't need to make two trips. We were on the second floor so took the elevator up but the numbers ran out before we got to our room. After asking one of the maids, we discovered that we were in the other building. This was seldom a problem because we were usually in small enough places that it was one building. This was a pretty big complex though. So back down the elevator, through a small maze, to another elevator and a ways down the hall and we finally reached our room! There was a t-shirt swap going on at 5:15. I'd brought a Colorado t-shirt to swap but we were late getting in and after the hassle of getting into the room I wasn't all that keen on trekking over for the swap. Fiona didn't have a t-shirt to swap so we just hung out and relaxed. Later that evening I was chatting with Dick who also had a t-shirt to swap but hadn't gone to the official swapping. I am now the proud owner of an Atlanta Braves shirt. Mens XL.

My cousin Kirsten lives in Albany! So she and her friend Solon came by and picked me up for dinner and a tour of Albany. I had a great time visiting with them and enjoyed being able to see more of the city than our motel. Lots to see when I come back for a visit! Albany is the capitol of New York so we drove past the capitol building and a lot of the downtown areas. Solon is a great tour guide and driver. 

After returning from dinner I was beyond tired and just wanted some sleep. I also wanted a clean chain for the next day as mine had been making some noise. Conflicts. Fortunately, I had the best roommate ever and she sent me to bed and cleaned both of our bikes. Don't know how I got so lucky!

Day 48 - Liverpool to Little Falls - 79 miles

The day started off like so many others before it - breakfast, load, ride!

When we came to Canastota we had another chance to ride alongside the Erie Canal.

Your overall speed drops but there's no car traffic and it's pretty!

We continued to pass through a number of small towns. Oneida had this lovely little chapel. 

Al paused a moment to do some reflecting.

What happens when you're just too tired to cross the road? You just sit down for a bit. I've felt like that frequently on this trip!

We were supposed to have our first sag stop not long after Oneida but it came sooner than we expected. The road ahead was closed due to bridge repairs. Some of the front runners had gotten through but we were not so fortunate. We had an impromptu sag at the Road Closed sign and waited for Michelle to scout out a detour for us. Didn't take too long before we were rerouted and on our way. It added a little mileage but nothing too significant.

Stopping for a loo break, I observed this shameful case of neglect. Poor Al! Forgotten, abandoned. 

Westmoreland has something against cyclists and solicitors.

We saw another town that actually posted the fines assessed. We thought about trying to coast all the way through town. Didn't work though. Luckily we either didn't get caught or we unknowingly operated within the ordinance.

As we passed through Whitesboro, we caught an amazing scent - meat roasted outside! - and noticed Gene, Jane, and Jed lined up at a roadside BBQ stand. The aroma won us over and we stopped to have lunch with them. Gene and Jane had stopped at the same place last year on the tour and were thrillled it was still going. 

Lock 19 with 21 feet of lift. 

The place was deserted when we were there.

Seemed like there should be some Keep Out signs posted but there weren't!

We stopped off at Wal-Mart in Herkimer to buy flash drives so we could get a copy of the photos taken by the staff. I was also looking for new pajamas.

After arriving in Little Falls, I was tired and hungry. Possibly even more so than usual. McDonald's was closest and I didn't feel up to exploring without some calories so I headed there and had an orange cream shake. Mistake. I cannot recommend McDonald's shakes. If you need ice cream at McDonald's, stick with a cone or a sundae. Yuck. It showered on and off that afternoon. I did a small town tour with Patty after the unfortunate shake experience. We hit the post office - which closed earlier than the sign said it would - and the pharmacy where I purchased a Snickers bar because I was still hungry. Food options for large groups were limited so the motel hosted us for a happy hour and dinner. After dinner almost everyone headed out for ice cream. My group was later starting off and we weren't sure where the others had gone so we asked at the front desk about ice cream and hiked up a hill for a few blocks to find the wrong ice cream place. We asked a local where else there might be and were directed back down the hill, under the canal, to a little business district. Nice little ice cream shop and other touristy businesses down there. A tasty end to the day!