Day 1
Rented a minivan and drove from home in NJ to Albany Intl and rode 57 miles on the Erie Canal Trail through Schenectady, Amsterdam, Canajoharie and to our Campsite at Lock 15 outside Fort Plain. Fort Plain and areas west were devastated by flooding two days before we arrived and we received a lot of conflicting advice regarding the passability of the local roads and the Trail. Bridges out, mudslides, train derailments, the area was a mess. We decided to continue on the trail and we made it to lock 15 without too much trouble but Fort Plain looked like a Tsunami hit it. What a mess.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634548784590/
Day 2
Broke camp and had breakfast in St Johnsville. Just outside of St Johnsville on the trail we ran into a quagmire of ankle deep sticky mud that stuck to the wheels and got into the brakes and fenders and everywhere. We had to stop and clean the bikes every 100 yards to move them and it was hot and humid and mosquitoes were swarming like crazy. Two exhausting hours later we left the mud behind and were able to clean the bikes off somewhat next to a stream. We made it the rest of the way to our destination just off Lake Oneida. A total of 70 exhausting miles. Little Falls looked nice but we had to pass on through due to the mud delays. Tough day.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634542338717/
Day 3
65 miles through Syracuse to Weedsport. Overcast all morning it started raining around 11am. The rain got steadily harder until by midafternoon it was a douwnpour. The canal trail is interesting in this area, lots of aqueducts. Didnt see alot of Syracuse due to the heavy rain. We planned to camp outside of Weedsport but took a room at the Best Western instead because the campground was underwater and the rain was showing no signs of abating. Good move. They are extremely bike friendly and the room was huge and comfortable. Two straight days of adversity. We are hoping things get a little easier.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634548834938/
Day 4
65 miles from Weedsport through Seneca Falls and Geneva and down the west side of Seneca Lake into Watkins Glen. Nice cool overcast morning we made great time into Geneva. Met Richard in Seneca Falls. A Tran-Am veteran, he was riding his motorcycle from New Hampshire to Oregon. Nice guy. We talked with him about biking and life for a while. The sun came out around 11am and the ride down Seneca lake was gorgeous. You are on a ridge with beautiful views of the lake valley the whole way and the ride ends with a great descent into Watkins Glen. We camped at Watkins Glen State Park. Beautiful, quiet campground and the hike through the glen and canyons was amazing. Best day of the trip so far. Things are looking up!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634548881578/
Day 5
57 miles from Watkins Glen to Owego through Elmira and Waverly with good weather all day. The Catherine Valley Trail is a nice way to climb out of Watkins Glen on a 2% grade through quiet woods.
The ride today wasn't too interesting overall but Qwego is a nice destination. Quaint old town with a Taqueria that has one of the best Burritos I have had east of San Diego.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634548902364/
Day 6
45 miles from Owego to Windsor through Endicott, Binghamton and Waverly. The ride today picked up literally with some climbing once we left Binghamton. Another nice descent into Windsor and a beautiful 5 mile ride through a valley along the Susquehanna river south of Windsor to our campground. The Pinecrest campground is right on the Susquehanna river and is one of the best looked after cleanest private campgrounds I have stayed at.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634548936686/
Day 7
48 miles from Windsor to Hancock. Back through the beautiful valley on a gorgeous morning to Windsor. Nice climb out of Windsor to Deposit, a quaint little town on the delaware river where we had an awesome early lunch at a little place called Butterfields run by a couple of guys who fled New York City a while back. Climbed out of Deposit around the Cannonville reservoir and up a few more hills and down a long descent into Hancock NY. Stayed at Smith's Colonial Inn just south of Hancock. Nice clean big rooms we enjoyed our stay there very much. Great weather another beautiful day nice ride.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634542482003/
Day 8
68 miles Hancock to Port Jervis NY. Hot hilly day. A biggish climb out of Hancock and one giant roller after another down the Delaware River all the way to Port Jervis. Lots of long fast descents, this was a fun fun ride if you like hills up and down. Stopped at the Long Eddy Hotel just off rte 97 in Long Eddy . A real find. If you are going that way it's the best place to stop for a bite to eat and a rest in an area without a lot of services. Friendly locals and great food. Ran into Stuart who was ultralighting around New York State and we rode into Port Jervis with him and caught a New Jersey Transit train to our home town in New Jersey.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7870108...7634542499009/