Mood: cheeky
Topic: Cycling Trip
Back in the USA -- Mission New York State
Greetings from Albion, NY. Molly and I are well rested after *2* nights in a hotel this weekend in Niagara Falls, and ready to take on the mountains of NY and New England. We began our final two weeks today with a flat 75 mile ride along the coast of Lake Ontario. It was a beautiful, sunny, cool day on incredible country roads with almost no cars. A dream come true. The last road we took into town had been recently re-sealed and we all had an incredibly strange experience -- the surface was grabbing at our tires and pulling us in like quick-sand. We all instantly thought we had flat tires but then saw other tires marks weaving through the pavement ahead of us. It was like cycling through glue. What an experience!
Niagara Falls is definitely the kitchiest place we have ever been. It's like Vegas and the Wildwood boardwalk all wrapped up in one. But the falls themselves were beautiful. Molly and I walked from the Canadian side over to the US through the border to the far end of the US falls to go on the Wind of the Caves tour. The tour takes you down in an elevator and out on a wooden catwalk that takes you under and to the side of the falls where the spray completely soaks you (they gave us plastic bag-like smocks to wear). It was exhilarating to be so close to the roaring water.
Week 7 wrapped up with wonderful, rural roads through the farmland of Ontario. Fruit orchards, asparagus fields and sweet corn lined the roads. Oh yes, and blueberries, lots of berries.
We had a bunch of riders join us this week from all over the country. So we're now about 70 people. Today's lunch spot was right on Lake Ontario, so we sat for 2 hours just relaxing in the sun since we had reached our 50-mile mark by 10:30 AM -- a typical phenomenon these days -- and didn't want to arrive in Albion, NY too early in the day (there isn't much here...but Oliver North is coming to speak in a week and lots of people are holding signs on the corner of Main Street to let us know that Jesus saves.).
Well, my time limit is up here at the library, and I must turn over the computer to a fellow cycling-mate who has been waiting patiently.
Love to you all, and thanks for the comments, e-mails and well wishes -- keep them coming!
Marisa and Molly