Velowander: July 2006

Monday, July 31, 2006

Day 24 end: (Pontiac, IL to Lincoln, IL)

We end day 24 in Lincoln, IL at the Budget Inn ($40 incl. tax for 2 people), for some well deserted rest after 72 miles and 100 plus temps. We actually intended to stay in Atlanta, IL but we overshot it accidentally and ended up doing 7 more miles to Lincoln. We did over 70 miles today!

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 24 pit stop in Towanda, IL.

Frequent Gatorade, or in this case, ice cream sandwich breaks are critical to staying functional in the outrageous heat (which has been over 100F plus humidity mid-day). Sometimes we wait for somebody to come in one of the many Casey's General Stores and open the refrigerated compartment to get ice. We're standing next to the open door to get the free A/C burst.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 24 midday snooze in Bloomington, IL

Here I catch some zzzs (photo credit to Maggie) at Michael's restaurant in Bloomington where we took shelter from the midday heat until we continued to Lincoln, IL. We had 2 decent pasta dishes for $11.00 before tip, I think.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 24 Myers walkway rte 66

Most of the vehicle traffic takes I-55 to which we are adjacent. Nevertheless you can imagine we were delighted to find this bike path next to rte 66 about 20 miles past Pontiac.

Update: The bike path was only 2.2 miles long. I think Maggie felt teased. Still, it was a start and better than nothing.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 24 (Monday) - Get your kicks on Route 66

Okay, I've extracted about all the cool factor I can by riding my bike on route 66. The first part of it near Pontiac, IL felt like a historic road. We could even see a decaying second lane in the grass next to us. Now, near Springfield the road is in better condition though it seems like any other road. It is still a lot more direct to get to the Transam route than the northern tier/great rivers route Mag had planned originally, though.

We got up at 0530 and left the campground by just after 6 to beat the heat. We are riding on historic route 66 towards St Louis. We just pulled over to get a little breakfast on the road.

Labels: Bike Touring

Sunday, July 30, 2006

Day 23 hot time tonight (at 4H campground in Pontiac, IL)

Maggie and I are camping at the 4h campground in Pontiac, Il ($10 but we haven't paid yet). It is very hot tonight. I dozed off a bit but I got up for a cold shower. Maggie seemingly fell asleep, muttering something about wanting motel air conditioning before she did so.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 23 dinner in Pontiac IL

We survived the heat and made it to Pontiac IL. We swam at the public pool (if we were quicker we could have said we were family and paid $6 for 2 instead of $8). Now we are eating pasta at Bernardi's considering taking the more direct route 66 (yes, that one) to St Louis rather than the adv cycling great river route as we had planned. We will camp at the 4h campground tonight ($10 for 2).

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 23 nowhere to hide from the heat

We're on Illinois route 116 near Pontiac IL. Temperatures were in the 90s today. We were sweating like mad and there are few shady places other than gas stations every long while. We are toughing it out and fantasizing about swimming pools. Tomorrow temps will be over 100.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 23 food in the heartland

Ironically I find it tricky to stay fed it the heartland. Often we must scrounge amongst candies, beer and donuts in gas station convenience stores like this one in Ashkun, IL.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 23 Sunday Return to rumble

Since Dennis and Barbara picked us up due to the derailleur problem when we left their house in Donovan IL we were about 7 miles east of our previous position. Here I an at the rumble strip that caused my shirt to destroy my derailleur.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 22: Derailleur deja vu (you won't believe this)

Near Donovan, IL Maggie and I ran over a big rumble strip in the middle of the road (designed to alert motorists to the upcoming railroad tracks) and driving over it practically rattled our teeth loose. About 4 seconds after riding over the rumble strip, my bike came to an ubrupt halt.

I dismounted the bike and realized that my tank top had fallen from my seat, become tangled in my rear wheel, and mangled my new SRAM x.7 rear derailleur that I have had less than two weeks since the tree branch destroyed my previous derailleur. I took the wheel off but my shirt was really wrapped up in there and I couldn't get it out. Fortunately, two motorists, Dennis and Barbara saw us on the side of the road and stopped to aid us. We discussed our situation with them, realizing that we were effectively crippled. I could ride the bike as a single speed if I could get the shirt out and resize the chain, but I wasn't able to do that.

Dennis and Barbara left to get their other car while I continued to try to extract the shirt without success. We called the Tern of the Wheel bike shop (404 W Broadway St Bradley IL 815-933-9152) and they said they didn't have a 9 speed rear derailleur. But we had no choice we needed their help to get the shirt out. So, Dennis drove me in 1 car about 30 miles all the way to the shop, while Barbara took Maggie to their home in Donovan, IL.

Fortunately, the folks and Tern of the Wheel were able to find a derailleur (another SRAM x.7) and I installed it more quickly than last time, perhaps due to the practice. Then Dennis drove me and my bike to their house where they generously fed us and Maggie and I spent the night in comfort.

Labels: Bike Mechanical, Bike Touring

Day 22 cyclist encounter

Maggie and I encountered an eastbound female cyclist in Brock, IN. She was travelling from Montana to Connecticut, I believe. She was well equipped with blue ortlieb panniers; I didn't get a photo or even her name. She was the only female tourist cyclist we have seen thus far.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 22: Welcome to Illinois!

We went off the route a bit again today, this time to take what we thought would be a more direct route on highway 52. It was more direct, and saved us time however we had to ride on a gravel road for about 6 miles which was slow going. Maggie was bummed that there was no sign when we crossed the border from Indiana to Illinois (we knew the border was there thanks to a photocopied map a local provided with the alternate route). I took this picture to honor the occasion of our border crossing. The black fringe at the bottom is due to my mobile phone case.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 22: Free A/C in Brook, IN

We have been fortunate that for most of our ride the temperatures have been hot, but not excessive considering it is July. Now things are heating up and the sun is beating down on us without mercy and will be for perhaps a week. When we arrived at Brook we were more interested in the air conditioning than any supplies. We went into this corner store at the start of town. It hadn't even opened yet but they let us come in and cool down before proceeding.

Labels: Bike Touring

Saturday, July 29, 2006

Day 21 hot sun (delayed post)

Around 2 pm the clouds cleared and slowly the sun became burning hot. Man it is crazy hot now it isn't cooling down even in the evening. We are going to Manon IN.

Labels: Bike Touring

Friday, July 28, 2006

Day 21 evening (Manon, In)

We have settled in at the Thrashers campground in Manon, IN. We paid $10 for 2 incl showers and use of the pool so we were happy. We dug into our food reserve for dinner.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 21 Dinner in camp lodge

Although it looks like a home improvement warehouse, Thrasher's campground in Manon, IN had a nice lodge where we were able to prepare food we were carrying with us. We were relatively prepared because we had looked at the map and noticed that supplies were scarce along the route. We had Rice a Roni express rice, spinach salad, and filled tortellini pasta.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 21 angry skies over corn

It showered yesterday twice on our ride from Monroeville to our warm showers hosts David and lavina in Wabash. Today the skies look threatening but the air is cool though humid so we are making good progress to buffalo in.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 21 leaving Wabash IN

Convoying with our hosts (Lavina and david) in Wabash, IN to the grocery store on the morning of day 21.

Labels: Bike Touring

Thursday, July 27, 2006

Day 20: Scraped elbow (Monroeville, IN to Walbash, IN)

While getting on her bike and starting next to Highway 1 (near Poe, IN), a gust of wind or other force blew her sideways and she couldn't clip out so she fell over, cutting her elbow and leg in the process. Her bike sustained minor cosmetic damage to the right shifter and handlebar, and her camera may have been affected slightly.

I helped Maggie administer first aid to herself, while several motorists stopped and asked if she was OK. After about 15 minutes we were underway. To our surprise, within a minute of crossing the highway 2 ambulances and a police cruiser arrived, believing that Maggie had been involved in a collision with a motor vehicle. Maggie explained that she simply fell over while at a standstill and they departed a few minutes later. For a full photo exclusive, see Maggie's website.

While we were having lunch, we could tell from the adventure cycling maps that services would be pretty sparse for the next day out of Monroeville, IN. Fortunately, Maggie's friend found a warm shower's host in Wabash which was off route but not by far. We decided to take highway 24 which cut a fair amount of detours on the backroads and made it here. David, our host, was kind enough to meet us on the road and took our pictures while riding in the rain (oh yeah, it rained off and on today).

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 19 cyclist encounter

Tim stayed last night at the cyclist hostel with us in Monroeville, IN. He had biked 108 miles to our 65. He is heading west from Vermont to san francisco at a faster pace than us.

Labels: Bike Touring

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Day 19 (Napoleon OH to Monroeville, IN) 60 miles

(Sorry I can't post pictures because of network availability but I will soon hopefully tomorrow.)

We made it to Indiana! So long Ohio!

Monroeville, IN is just a few miles across the border. It was about a 60 mile ride here, Maggie was hurting the last 10 miles but she hung in there and she's doing a great job.

Fortunately Monroeville has complementary cyclist accomodation with shower and laundry facility (we will leave a donation) so we will soon take a warm shower and do laundry.

The park board caretaker Warren said that there is another west bound cyclist who may be staying tonight. Maggie and I have been eating dinner and at the library though we haven't seen him yet. He may be there when we get back.

Tonight I plan to yield the shower to Maggie (sometimes she lets me shower first because I shower pretty quickly) then take a shower and wash clothes in the laundry machine. I think that we should try to get to sleep as close to 10 PM as possible so we can stick to our 6 AM wake time and get on the road.

The roads in Ohio have been fairly rough (even in some very affluent lake communities like Lakewood west of Cleveland, surprisingly) and the terrain is pretty flat but as a result the winds really kick up. Maggie and I are both hoping the roads in Indiana will be a bit better. I'm expecting to have to fight more winds in Indiana.

We noticed that the winds tend to be pretty quiet in the morning, which is why the 6 AM wakeup and 6:30-6:45 departure with just a snack rather than full breakfast will help us consistently maintain our mileage above 50.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 19 scenes from the road

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 18 epilogue napoleon OH

(Note the pink band on my right wrist which is not a gay pride band as perhaps you guessed but actually my Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame museum proof of payment band that I am still wearing)

We arrived in Napoleon which was our longest distance so far 66 miles. Maggie was exhausted especially for the last 10 miles but she made it.

While at a local church, a minister drove up in his car and we explained that we are cross country bicyclists and we were looking for a place to camp, preferably with a shower. We went to the main local downtown restaurant to eat while the minister was calling some of his contacts to find us lodging. He called my mobile to give us a few numbers though I wasn't able to reach any of them.

At dinner, I struck a conversation with a family at a table in hopes of finding a host family. The man directed us to the fire station suggesting that we could use the shower there (didn't pan out). Later the man approached us again, introduced himself as a sheriff's deputy, and said he paid for our dinner! The minister suggested we go to the truck stop which we tried but it was getting dark so we gave up and went to the motel Rodeway Inn which was quite nice, the nicest or our motel stays.

Labels: Bike Touring

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

Day 18 touring cyclist encounter

Pat was riding a Rivendell Atlantis. He was travelling east bound. He left Anacortes on 22 May the same day as Terry & Mike. He was riding alone but planned to catch up with Terry and Mike (mobile devices make this easy).

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 18 afternoon (Bowling Green, OH)

(Picture: Maggie reviewing the Adventure Cycling map in Bowling Green, Oh.)

This morning, Maggie set her alarm for 6 AM and we got up shortly afterwards, packed up and we were on the road leaving the Heritage Church (322 Justice Street Fremont, OH 43420 419-332-6878) by 7 AM saying goodbye to our generous hosts pastor T. Stacey and his wife. We decided to have just a snack so we could push some miles before having our typical stuff our face breakfast in a supermarket or a 2 meal per person breakfast in a greasy spoon.

The morning air was cool and the winds had not yet started for the day so we quickly had 10 miles under our belts for the day. We agreed to try to get up early more consistently and get on the road more quickly so we can cycle more in the morning and increase our daily mileage a bit from our approximately 50 miles per day average (slower than the other cyclists we encountered, on the other hand we were often staying with families).

Around 8 AM just short of Gibsonburg, Maggie got a front tire flat. I swapped the tube in the weeds by the side of the road. Maggie was dismayed that there was a large gash in her front tire; she put a Clif bar wrapped on the inside to reinforce it. After her wheel was back on her back, about 40 minutes had passed.

We had lost a bit of our morning momentum but pressed on quickly to Pemberville where we stuffed our faces with food (I stuffed my face more than Maggie stuffed hers, granted, but both of us were stuffing). By 11 AM we were on the road again to Bowling Green, OH another 11 miles past.

Maggie and I went to the bike shop in Bowling Green (Cycle Werks 248 S Main St Bowling Green, OH 43402 419-352-9375). The owner dismounted her tire and installed a tire boot to, we hope, allow her to continue using the tire without blowouts. My own front 20" x 1.5" 100psi Primo Comet tire was bald and had a few gashes, so I replaced it with a new 20" x 1.35" 100 psi generic tire ($12.78 with tax), keeping my spare 20" tire in reserve. The new tire is quite a bit narrower than my Primo Comet; so far the ride is a bit harsher than before.

After the bike shop, Maggie went to the post office and we both met at the library.

I'm relieved that Maggie has apparently recovered from her back problem.

Labels: Bike Touring

Monday, July 24, 2006

Day 17 evening (Vermilion, OH to Fremont, OH)

The winds were kicking up fiercely today now that we are moving from the hillier east into the plains. Frequently the winds were across our path, sometimes in our face slowing our pace considerably.

We rode the wooded bicycle path from Clyde, OH to Fremont, OH. It was a nice amenity, the first we had seen anywhere on our adventure. The barrier of trees to either side hid the vast corn field plantations that were typical in Ohio west of Cleveland.

Arriving in Fremont, OH around 7 PM we wondered about accomodation for the night. After speaking to an older couple walking their dogs near the end of the bike pathwe stopped at the Heritage Church (322 Justice Street 419-332-6878) . A woman we later learned was the pastor's wife opened the door, and we were pleased that the pastor was at home (the pastor's residence is connected to the church). After brief introductions and negotiations he agreed to let us camp in the backyard, which he later amended to an offer to sleep on his sofas inside. Both the pastor and his wife were enthusiastic Christians and engaged us in a bible study for an hour (book of John, mostly) or so until Maggie's hunger had reached the point that she interrupted. They were impressed with the King James new testament bible that I have in my mobile device.

Two ladies from the pastor's congregation offered us money, but I refused. The pastor drove us to the nearby Ryan restaurant where we ate very heartily although I could have eaten even more had Maggie not been tired. Maggie was no slouch downing about 4 plates of food.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 17 Maggie on CR 175 near Clyde, OH

Maggie near Clyde OH

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 17 scenes from the road near huron

Near Huron OH

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 16 epilogue 2 met cyclist David

We met David in Cleveland. I'm sorry that I don't have a picture but I wanted to mention him anyway. He's the only homeless guy I ever met riding a Trek OCR-3 with carbon fork and seat post, though his bike luggage was more consistent with those of limited means. He was quite knowledgeable about bikes and gave us directions out of the city. Good luck on your travels, David.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 17 setting out from Vermilion OH

Maggie seemed to sleep well last night, combined with icing her back her condition seems improved. The pic is of the beach and lighthouse down the street from our motel in Vermilion, Mag is holding the camera.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 17 east bound touring cyclists

Terry (left) and Bike cycling east on the Adventure Cycling northern tier route from Anacortes, WA starting on 22 May. They started separately but teamed up in Washington State.

Tom from Fairbanks, AK. Travelling east left 12 Jun Anacortes. He was travelling alone because no one could keep up with his 100 mile a day pace.

Labels: Bike Touring

Sunday, July 23, 2006

Day 16 epilogue (Vermilion, Oh)

If possible, call Maggie and congratulate her at your earliest convenience. Despite her back trouble and our late departure she cycled 50 miles to Vermilion, OH where we checked in to a decent room at the Motel Plaza ($59 for 2) listed on the adventure cycling map. Deprived of internet, she slept for a few hours in the early evening which we hope will result in vigorous health tomorrow.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 16 Maggie recovers in public square

As of about 10 am Maggie still has some port of muscle problem so she is recovering in the park in Cleveland. Not many restaurants were open but i found a take out breakfast place and got lots of food for us. Now we eat with the homeless people in the park.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 16 Maggie hurt muscle

We didn't get up right at 600 but by 630 we were up and moving. Maggie has a hurt muscle (pulled?) so we took the train in to the city. She is in the bathroom now applying an ice pack. We hope to ride soon but i'm unsure of her condition.

Labels: Bike Touring

Saturday, July 22, 2006

Day 15 (Sat Jul 22) Rock and Roll museum

I was stoked on the rock and roll museum ($20 for adults). Note that photography was prohibited inside the museum so I could take a picture as a only in the lobby. Maggie and I spent several hours there. Surprisingly, despite my somewhat limited knowledge of pre-80s music I found most of the exhibits, videos and memorabilia to be of interest. I recommend the hall of fame presentation though it crams so much rock history in one hour you can't remember it all.

It is raining and Maggie doesn't want to ride in the rain; she spoke with Jerry and we're staying at his house for one more night. Jerry is letting us stay for 2 nights and his house is very comfortable and on the tram line for easy access to town. Plus, he has provisioned us well and, in the times I have seen him, is often in the company of a beautiful woman. Obviously this guy has his life together. Yay Jerry!

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 15 (Sat Jul 22) Cleveland rocks (even when it rains)

We were due for some rain, it has been clear skies (sunny and very hot) or partly cloudy/overcast (better than clear, because it protects from the sun and heat somewhat) for a while.

We're staying near Cleveland with Jerry, a friend of one of Maggie's cousins. We came to downtown from the 'burbs on the tram and now we are walking to the rock and roll museum. We hope to at least make a little progress today out of the city after the museum.

Labels: Bike Touring

Friday, July 21, 2006

Day 14: Geneva on the Lake, OH to Cleveland metro, OH

(I added a lot of new pictures for days 12-14. The blogspot site seems to be letting me submit pictures now and is accessible.)

Maggie couldn't suppress her shudders of revulsion at the decrepit state of Ralph's campground, so we set the alarm for 6 AM so we could rise and get out without having to endure its squalor anymore. It was a shame to leave the beautiful Lake Erie, though.

We broke camp without breakfast, briefly at least copying the habits of more disciplined touring cyclists that rise early and cycle before breakfast, putting in quite a few miles in before the midday heat.

By the time we reached the vicinity of Perry OH we were both hungry (we hadn't had breakfast and we didn't cook that much for dinner at the campsite the night before) and when we passed the Best Friends family restaurant we went in and ordered 2 complete breakfasts each (she ordered the sirloin steak and strawberry pancake platter, I ordered a 3 egg omelet and a toast/egg/ham/buttermilk pancake platter).

As usual, many of the restaurant patrons noticed my recumbent bike and one couple in particular engaged me in conversation about it, the usual questions about comfort, "it is easier?" and so on. Maggie was cleaning and lubricating her chain while waiting for breakfast to arrive, and I went out to do some things on my bike too. When I returned to the table, the waitress told me that the couple I had spoke with earlier had paid for our breakfast! We both ate all the food on our plates. As usual, I tried to steal some of the food from Maggie's plates while she defended her food vigorously.

We encountered a loaded touring cyclist heading the other direction, perhaps in his seventies. He said he was doing 75 or so miles a day, substantially more than our own effort. Maggie and I agreed to set our alarm for 6:00 AM consistently to try to raise our daily mileage from around 50 to 60.

Tonight I am staying with Jerry, a friend of one of Maggie's cousins. He has a beautiful home in Shaker Heights, a quiet neighborhood in Cleveland metro. Maggie and I have showered and soon we will take the train into town for some dinner and people watching.

Labels: Bike Touring, Hospitality

Thursday, July 20, 2006

(Photo) Day 13 fruit stand

Maggie buys fruit at a local stand on Day 13 past Erie Pa.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 13: Lake Erie, PA to Geneva on the Lake, OH

(sorry still can't post pictures, hope to remedy soon)

It was quite pleasant waking up in Sara's campground on Lake Erie. Maggie awakened some time around 7 AM and we left without a regular breakfast at the campsite. We did stop at a fruit stand and got berries and snacked along the way.

While on the road, a large branch caught in my rear spokes, swinging it like a club against my rear derailleur, smashing it into pieces. I took the chain apart to remove the pieces of the derailleur but effectively I had no gearing adjustment until the next bike shop. Fortunately, we were only a few miles away from BJ Bakers Bicycle (966 West Prospect Road Ashtabula OH 44004 440-997-3486). Unfortunately, I could barely ride my bicycle due to the huge amount of slack in the chain. I could have "broken" the chain to remove links and increase the tension but I decided to limp to the bike shop. The owner, Mr. Baker, didn't have a derailleur in stock but I was willing to remove one from his stock bikes and sell it to me. It was a Sram X.7, expensive at $70 + tax but high quality and more importantly it would get me on the road. Maggie got some good pictures of the fiberglass Velocar bodies that Mr. Baker was building to fit Wizwheels trikes. They were completely weatherproof and have a mass of about 10 kg.

Ralph's campground in Geneva by the Lake, OH had a beautiful location right on lake Erie but unfortunately was in a state of disrepair so we can't really enjoy it. It wasn't terrible, but there is only an uneven dirt slope leading down to the beach (the beach and water, however, are fabulous) and there is just one bathroom for the whole place, which had only a few guests.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 13: Lake Erie, PA to Geneva on the Lake, OH

Here is our camp site at Sara's in Erie Pa. Maggie is sleeping inside the tent.

It was quite pleasant waking up in Sara's campground on Lake Erie. Maggie awakened some time around 7 AM and we left without a regular breakfast at the campsite. We did stop at a fruit stand and got berries and snacked along the way.

While on the road, a large branch caught in my rear spokes, swinging it like a club against my rear derailleur, smashing it into pieces. I took the chain apart to remove the pieces of the derailleur but effectively I had no gearing adjustment until the next bike shop. Fortunately, we were only a few miles away from BJ Bakers Bicycle (966 West Prospect Road Ashtabula OH 44004 440-997-3486). Unfortunately, I could barely ride my bicycle due to the huge amount of slack in the chain. I could have "broken" the chain to remove links and increase the tension but I decided to limp to the bike shop. The owner, Mr. Baker, didn't have a derailleur in stock but I was willing to remove one from his stock bikes and sell it to me. It was a Sram X.7, expensive at $70 + tax but high quality and more importantly it would get me on the road. Maggie got some good pictures of the fiberglass Velocar bodies that Mr. Baker was building to fit Wizwheels trikes. They were completely weatherproof and have a mass of about 10 kg.

Ralph's campground in Geneva by the Lake, OH had a beautiful location right on lake Erie but unfortunately was in a state of disrepair so we can't really enjoy it. It wasn't terrible, but there is only an uneven dirt slope leading down to the beach (the beach and water, however, are fabulous) and there is just one bathroom for the whole place, which had only a few guests.

Labels: Bike Touring

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

(photo) Day 12: NY-PA border

Here is an escaped mental patient we photographed attacking the ny pa border sign.

Labels: Bike Touring

(Photo) Day 12: Maggie Ny-Pa border

Here is Maggie at the Ny-Pa border.

Labels: Bike Touring

(Photo) Day 12 demolished bridge

Here is a demolished bridge that we encountered on day 12. We had to walk our bikes through a muddy creek bed, no big deal. The workmen were quite friendly and wanted to find out about our bicycle trip to San Francisco.

Labels: Bike Touring

Leaving New York State

We made it! We are getting out of New York state to the adventure cycling maps. We are at the beach in Barcelona ny on Lake Erie. Now we head east to Erie, PA.

Day 12 (Wed Jul 19): Port Bemus, NY to Lake Erie, PA

Last night we stayed in Carolyn and Jim's house in Bradford, PA.

We rode from Bemus Point to Mayfield to get some more food at Food Club for a late second breakfast. Maggie is making fun of me because I an dropping muffin crumbs all over.

Carolyn, our host from Salamanca, NY/Bradford, PA suggested the possibility that her cousin could host us in Erie, PA. However, it turned out that Angela (the cousin's name, I think) had to work late so we went to Sara's Campground listed on our Adventure Cycling map. We paid $20 for 2 people, a bit more than the previous night at Bemus Point, there wasn't a pool, and the bathrooms weren't as nice. However we camped right on the beach about 3 meters from the water and of course went swimming. It was very clear, fresh, water extending as far as we could see and surprisingly shallow at least close to shore.

Labels: Bike Touring

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Day 11: Salamanca, NY to Bemus Point, NY

It was a fairly cool (overcast) day today until around 2 pm but fortunately even after the clouds cleared the temperatures were moderate in comparison with the over 30-34 C we had been experiencing.

I was a bit under powered today. Recall that Maggie made an excellent meal for Jim & Carolyn's family in Bradford, PA however with Jim, Carolyn, Abby, Maggie and me eating there was a good portion for regular appetites but not quite enough to replenish after a day of cycling. I must emphatically point out that this was not any fault of our very generous hosts Jim and Carolyn. Jim in fact offered me ice cream sandwiches, of which I ate 2 however that is about my limit.

We arrived in the touristy resort town of Bemus Point. Unsurprisingly, the regular inn/motel accomodation was expensive. Most were in the $150/night + tax range, though we found a Snow Ridge motel for $85 + tax. We decided to go to the Wildwood Acres campground (5006 Brown Rd, Bemus Point, NY 14712
716-386-7037) which charged us $15 for the two of us. It was quite nice, not mobbed with kids during the week, the bathroom were clean and they even had a warm water pool.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 11 (Tue Jul 18) eating upscale (Jamestown NY)

The previous picture was Maggie on hwy 430 near Port Bemus where we are camping tonight. This picture is from one of many upscale eating establishments we visited on our epic journey.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 10 end Salamanca Ny

Yesterday while we were planning to take a photo near the hamlet of Killbuck a lady (Carolyn) pulled her car over and offered us a place to stay and would drive us to and from her home in Bradford PA. Maggie made dinner for the husband Jim, Carolyn, daughter Abby, and me. We slept well in the huge comfy house in the country. Thanks to our generous hosts Jim and Carolyn.

Labels: Bike Touring, Hospitality

Monday, July 17, 2006

Day 10 (Mon Jul 17) Cool water in Olean

It was such a hot day we had to get in the pool to cool. We are in Olean.

Labels: Bike Touring

(Photo) Day 10 Scenes from the road

It is a hot one today. Here is a scene from the road on hwy 417 near Olean.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 10 (Mon Jul 17) Wellsville, NY - John & Diana

We stayed with John and Diana and their children sadie, raymond, James and Genevra last night and had breakfast this morning. It will be a hot one today.

Labels: Bike Touring, Hospitality

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Day 9: Bath, NY to Wellsville, NY

I spent several hours yesterday on Saturday going to several different shops trying to get my recumbent seat back sewn, and in the end I did it myself with a needle, thread & denim material from a sewing machine store while Maggie was in the Corning glassware museum.

My repair was holding but the tension wasn't as high in the seat as I would have liked. While we were at the grocery store in Alfred, NY, we encountered Peter the proprietor of the Bicycle Man recumbent bicycle shop in town. I decided to buy a replacement seat cover, hopefully to guarantee that the seat would remain durable for some time to come. I installed it during what was to be lunch time for Maggie & me. It was too hot to ride around 2-3 PM anyway. The new seat cover, while more durable, doesn't allow me to put all the same gear inside the seat that I did before so I will have to figure that out.

We had hoped to stay with a warmshowers.com host in Wellsville but I think he was out of town. We tried the police, fire, and ambulance stations as well as a few local churches but didn't have much luck. The firefighters said we could camp behind the station but didn't have a shower. Fortunately, next to a church we found a nice family (John and Diana) who offered us a shower and a place to camp. We ate an excellent meal at the Texas Hot restaurant (we usually order family style) consisting of a Texas hot dog, a hamburger, a chicken, biscuit & mashed potato dinner, and a Gyro.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 09 (Sun Jul 16) Maggie on hwy 21

Here is Maggie on hwy 21 near the town of Alfred.

Labels: Bike Touring

Day 8 (Sun Jul 16): Dinner and show (and sleep) at Nite lite gospel

We arrived at the edge of Bath and i suggested we try the Nite Lite Christian coffee house for a place to stay or camp. Soon we were talking to the pastor who offered us the all important shower, pork and potatoes for dinner, and a musical evening show. They let us camp outside the building for the night.

Labels: Bike Touring

Saturday, July 15, 2006

Day 8: on highway 415

Here is Maggie on highway 415 between Corning and Bath. We plan to finish in Bath today because Maggie spent much of the day at the museum while I fixed my seat back and them we went to the library.

Labels: Bike Touring