Week #2: Two Great Lakes and One Mighty Fine Canal

Total distance pedaled so far = 717 mi

This morning in the cold rain and wind I packed up my tent at the Erie, PA campground where I stayed the last two nights and rode 40 miles down the Lake Erie coast into Ashtabula, Ohio. As I checked into a cheap motel I thought about how funny it is that, after a few hours of riding in the rain, the most desirable thing in the world is a hot shower, i.e. more water on my body.

Anyway, I can't complain about the weather much because other than a little rain yesterday the entire week has been sunny and warm. Since my last post, I headed north through the Finger Lakes seeing a good amount of both Seneca and Cayuga before passing through some hilly farmland until I made the coast of Lake Ontario. My time on that lake was brief as I soon dipped back south to follow the Erie Canal west around Rochester and nearly to Buffalo. I passed through farmlands and marshes to skirt around that big city and landed at Lake Erie near Hamburg, NY. I have since been never more than 20 miles from the Erie coastline as I travel in a southwesterly direction toward Cleveland. The terrain is relatively flat, so I expect to be in Michigan by the end of this coming week.


Highlights:
- Finding $5 camping for cyclists on Lake Ontario.



- Meeting a new friend, Mike Long, who gave me a very interesting tour of Rochester and graciously allowed me to stay in his guest bedroom.



- Cruising part of the very long recreation trail which parallels the Erie Canal and meeting many friendly folks along the way.



- Desperately searching for a place to stay I stumbled upon Eick's Bicycle Barn in the rural town of Alabama, NY. The owner, Bob, let me pitch my tent in his backyard.


(In that field the next morning I watched a fox stalking two Canada geese. The fox went away hungry.)

- Lake Erie sunsets!



- Finding a little time to take a stroll on the beach. I discovered someone's driftwood recliner complete with drink holder.




Lowlights:
- Knees are still sore, but the flatter terrain is much easier on them.

- Not getting to explore more of Presque Isle State Park because of the rainy weather. My campground was right at the entrance however, and I saw and heard plenty of wildlife right from my tent including countless different birds, rabbits, a nosy groundhog, coyotes and many different frog songs.


Rules of the road:
- Second to dogs, Canada geese also do not care for cyclists.

- Exercise caution when sneezing while on your bicycle.

- At best, campground showers only leave you feeling 75% clean.


As always I'll be posting multiple updates and pictures via TrackMyTour and Twitter so keep following along. Here's hoping the rain clears soon so I can get to Michigan to see all my friends and family there.




By the way, anyone unfamiliar with Twitter may be confused by the hashtags in my updates (e.g. #acaNoTier). These are keywords which make searching on Twitter easier. The ones I am using are generally related to the Adventure Cycling Association's routes that I am following.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:N Ridge Rd W,Ashtabula,United States