Day 48. Latham to Brattleboro

There was a great deal of concern about today's ride as we were back to some serious climbing after many weeks of flattish rides, (if 3000 feet on 14th July can be called flattish). I managed to arrange an early load and set off on a beautiful morning.  I had been informed by Jersey mark that the short (1 mile) climb out of Troy was the hardest/steepest and that proved to be pretty accurate.  I got to the SAG at 28 miles to discover that Rod's family were in attendance and had supplied cookies, muffins etc.  Excellent SAG stop and it was a wrench to leave but I thought I had better leave some goodies for the others.  We hit our umpteenth State at 33 miles

We cycled through the very interesting town of Bennington.  

I found an interesting furniture maker who obviously caters for the larger US citizens and makes McFurniture!!!

For some reason,Bennington celebrates the Moose???

And then the 9 mile ascent began with gradients from 4-8%.  I definitely did not find it as hard as several weeks ago.  At one point, I got off the road as an armada of motorbikes went past.  Dan reckons he counted 196 and I think that sounds about right.  Here is what the second half looked like.

 

I had hoped for a big downhill run but the summit undulated a bit before I got that.  There was then another climb to the top of Hogback Mountain and at some point during all of that, I managed 44 mph, a new personal best. 

There was then some lovely scenery.

A nice old truck for sale.

Some wooden ducks on a roof.

And a painted bear????

Now I know two people here are under age but the word the rest of you are searching for is BEER!!

Today was an interesting reintroduction to climbing hills but we again ahd perfect weather conditions and nice scenery to help us.  The roads in Vermont are as bad as anything I have experienced however and hopefully will be better tomorrow.

Today's Stats.

Mileage - 79

Climbing - 5000 feet

Time in saddle - 7 Hrs 37mins

Average Speed - 10.4 mph

Day 47. Little Falls to Latham

Today was a bonus as what was an expected 84 mile journey, turned into 74 miles, helping to make up for the extra 15 we did previously.  The forecast was sunshine, reasonable temperatures, low humidity and a West wind.  Against all the odds, the forecast was correct!

We started with several biggish climbs early on but the corresponding descents more than made up for the slow stuff and I was delighted to get to the first SAG having averaged over 13 mph over the 34 miles.  I celebrated with a delicious ice cream from the nearby store.  I saw some real American history when I passed this church built in 1769.

I then came upon some Amish people who were driving their horse and carriage and saw several others in the area.

I was even fast enough to overtake them!!!

I figured this must be a pretty quiet part of New York State judging by the size of the local police station.

We then spent some time on a superb tarmac cycle path which took us along the side of the Mowhawk River.

And then past the baseball field where Babe Ruth began his career.

I then took my 900th picture of the trip when I met this cyclist on his rather unusual bicycle coming the other way.

I can't believe that can be stable in windy conditions!!

Today's Stats.

Mileage - 74.4

Climbing - 2100 feet

Time in Saddle - 5hrs 35 mins

Average Speed - 13.2 mph

Day 46. Liverpool to Little Falls

This morning we were told that there was 30% chance of rain.  There were no Scousers about early in the morning to pinch my bike but within about 10 minutes of leaving the hotel,  I discovered that the weather forecast in this area was as accurate as the UK and there was in fact 100% chance of rain, heavy rain at that!  It then persisted down for about 2 hours and 30 mins, at one point being so heavy that several of us took shelter under a large tree. Fortunately, the precipitation let up and off we went again.  Due to the damp, I had a shower cap over my cycle helmet , a shower cap covering my camera and a small ziplock bag over my cycle computer.  Unfortunately, I forgot to put my travelling dollars into anything waterproof but that is another story!  Fortunately, nobody else had their camera out to take a photograph of me as I must have looked a right t**. Nothing new there!
Eventually things got drier and I began to get concerned that the weather conditions might get worse after seeing a vehicle with a snow plough on one driveway and this on another!(For any USA citizens reading this, it is plough, not plow, OK?).

I can't begin to imagine how severe weather conditions must be in winter to need a Ski-doo to get about!

As we got closer to our destination, there were opportunities to engage in some directorial practice!

Live models eh? Unfortunately, I was going downhill at the time so there was no chance of me stopping!!!

I began to think that I had gone too far when I saw this sign from a distance but then remembered that there was a bit of an ocean to cross and the spelling was a tad inaccurate!

I was still going downhill when I saw this emporium.

Self Serve eh?

I was feeling a bit peckish as I passed here but really couldn't decide between the Hamburg and the Mexicans. I really don't think I could manage a whole one!

Just how does one choose??????

Today's Stats.

Mileage - 78.2

Climbing - 1610 feet

Time in Saddle - 6 hrs 1 min

Average Speed - 13 mph

Day 45 Henrietta to Liverpool

Today was the longest day in terms of mileage left. We were able to load from 6am and I was close to the front of the queue.   I had a very quick breakfast in the hotel, declining the option of going to McDonalds and instead relying on my chewy bars to get me to the first SAG stop at 37 miles.  At 6 miles, we entered the Erie Canalway Trail and stayed on that until 26 miles.  It was a pretty busy area with other cyclists, joggers and even two 8 scull boats having a race.

There was some cute wildlife there and they were obviously well used to humans feeding them judging by how close they got.

I enjoyed this welding firm's efforts to advertise their capabilities!

I wondered if anyone would be interested in this truck?  Not quite as attractive as yesterday's!

I had just cycled through Weedstown and wondered how it had got it's name.  Perhaps the mystery has been solved!

And I particularly enjoyed their sense of humour.

Night Snoopy!!!

The afternoon became very very humid and while I didn't find it affected me too much, mainly because of a cool breeze, some cyclists were badly leaking water.  There was broadly the same amount of climbing as yesterday and I still felt strong, continuing to stand on the pedals like yesterday which hopefully bodes well for the two big climbing days still to come.

Today's Stats.

Mileage - 94

Climbing - 1600 feet

Time in Saddle - 7 hrs 23 mins

Average Speed - 12.7 mph

Day 44 Niagara to Henrietta

We loaded at 06:30, had breakfast and began to head East. The temperature was reasonable and we had a SouthWesterly breeze to help us along.  The initial terrain was pretty flat and I was happy to get to the first SAG at 33 miles having averaged 13 mph. Things began to get quite humid after that. We passed through international territory with names such as Riga and Bergen appearing.
I enjoyed the humour of this house owner.

And this was my house of the day.

I don't know whether I was just well rested after a day off but I felt much stronger today and spent more time going up small inclines while standing on the pedals rather than sitting down.  All will be revealed tomorrow!

After getting to Henrietta, I went for a wander and found these amazing trucks!

Americans do this kind of thing so well.  Move over Eddie Stobart!

Today's Stats

Mileage - 82

Climbing - 1550 feet

Time in saddle - 6 hrs 13 mins

Average Speed - 13.1 mph

Day 43. Rest Day. Niagara Falls

Last nights visit to the fireworks display was worthwhile so I thought it would be nice to let you share some of it.  Thanks to Dave for the guided tour

I had a nice lie in till 8.45 then Don and I did the 4 mile return jorney to the launderette on foot.  Fortunately, there was an excellent Italian deli next door and we shared a superb sub which must have weighed the best part of 2lbs!
After that, we walked back into Canada to get the best view of the Falls.

As we crossed the Rainbow bridge, I caught sight of these two marvellously restored old cars.

The first is apparently an 1940 Ford and the second a very rare 1941 Willys

Here is me completely ruining an image of the American Falls!

And here is Niagara's version of Seattle's Space Needle.

If you haven't seen Niagara's Horseshoe Falls in the flesh, the next video clip and photographs will give you some idea of what it is like.

No, the Maid of the Mist is not being swamped, it is just the camera angle!

I was very impressed by the size of these hostas

And I have absolutely no idea what is going on here???

Anyway, a good day off and clean laundry to boot.

Today's Stats.

Mileage - Estimate 10

Time Spent Walking - 6 hours

Average Speed - 1.66 mph.

Average Speed -

Day 42. Brantford to Niagara.

I gave the official breakfast a wide berth this morning after picking up some food at a local store last night.  I wanted to get to Niagara as quickly as I could to make the most of having a proper day off.
Here is yesterday's 'house of the day'

The Live bait dispenser!

And some amusing garden art from Brantford.

I was out onto the road by 06:50 and soon realised that I was closer to home than I had first thought.

I liked this sign outside someone's home.

And I wondered what these would taste like?

We had the SAG at about the half way point but after that, the wind picked up and most of the rest of the journey was spent battling a head wind. Once we arrived in Niagara it was all worth it however.

We then had to cross the bridge to get back into the USA and after a few simple questions, I was allowed in. Phew.

The hotel was just around the corner so I went and had a shower and got changed before eventually discovering that the hotel had a good bar.  One or two others hadn't waited as long by the looks of things!!!

I had a bit of a wander around later and discovered that Niagara has a rather large casino.

Fireworks display tonight so I am looking forward to that as well as a day off the saddle tomorrow!!

Today's stats.

Mileage - 72

Climbing - 1400 feet

Time in saddle - 6 hrs 20 mins

Average Speed - 11.4 mph