Bicycling Coast to Coast

Stats:   Today's miles:  46  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,214 feet Total miles traveled:   3,501.7.7  miles Total feet climbed:   93,550 feet York, ME Lighthouse

Stats:   Today's miles:  31  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,722 feet Total miles traveled:   3,455.7  miles Total feet climbed:   91,336 feet Actual route consisted of  Bennington, VT to some gravel road in rural Shaftsbury, back to Bennington and up to Wilmington.

Stats:   Today's miles: 0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   3,424.7  miles Total feet climbed:   88,614 feet Rest Day. Rain in the forecast all day. Taking today as a rest day.

  Stats:   Today's miles: 73.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,621 feet Total miles traveled:   3,424.7  miles Total feet climbed:   88,614 feet Ok, at 6:30 PM I finished for the second time today. At 3:30 rain forced me to ride into Cambridge where I thought I would be spending the night. When I arrived none of the lodging options were operating or available (motel was closed and the two bed and breakfasts don't take same day visitors). I rode another hour and a half in a down poor (the kind of rain that stings your face) to get to Bennington VT. I checked into the Hampton to dry out and warm up before tomorrow's leg.  Since Bennington is off of my planned route, I am going to reroute tomorrow and shoot for Keene, VT (67 mi) A soggy view 15 mi from Cambridge NY

Stats:   Today's miles:  48.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,890 feet Total miles traveled:   3,351.7  miles Total feet climbed:   85,993 feet When I went to bed last night, my assumption based on the forecast was that I would be spending another day in Herkimer. The morning forecast update indicated the possibility of a weather window between 8:00-1:00 before the thunderstorms moved in. I took the chance that I could make it at least the 50 miles to Amsterdam and possibly even all the way to Schenectady . I made it on the first challenge, but radar indicated Schenectady was too much of a stretch. Today’s route was a big change from the relatively flat route of the last days/weeks, but probably representative of the upcoming days. The plan for the next couple days…I have approx 175mi to cover over the next 3 days (Tues-Thur). The plan is for Clare and Tim to meet up with me on Thursday. The plan is for Tim and I to ride approx 50 mi each d...

Stats:   Today's miles:  17.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   538 feet Total miles traveled:   3,303.7  miles Total feet climbed:   84,103 feet I only made it 17mi before the thunderstorms moved in. While the Red Roof Inn was decent I would rather have gotten to Schenectady (target location) but the on-off rain and 50+ temps made that a poor choice. The first wave of rain in Frankfort/Ilion/Herkimer

Stats:   Today's miles:  91.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,257 feet Total miles traveled:   3,286.7  miles Total feet climbed:   83,565 feet Today was a good ride. It started out cold..in the upper 40s but warmed to the mid 60s. The trail had started to dry out. The ride through Syracuse went pretty quick with few delays or traffic slow downs.

  Stats:   Today's miles:  68.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,142 feet Total miles traveled:   3,195.7  miles Total feet climbed:   82,308 feet I started the day with breakfast in the hotel at one of the larger tables. Soon I was eating with two couples from a Utah group tour. They had been seeing the sites and were heading to Niagara Falls for the day. When they asked my plan for the day, they were very interested in hearing the details of my trip. Later in the morning I passed the couple I met yesterday under the bridge. We joked about who was following whom. It became a standing joke when we kept leap frogging each other a couple times that afternoon. It was a challenging day of riding. It was cold with a strong cross wind all day. The trail was slow and in some sections slippery/muddy from the previous rain. At the end of the day I was glad I didn’t push on to the next location.

Stats:   Today's miles:  65.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   650 feet Total miles traveled:   3,127.7  miles Total feet climbed:   81,166 feet A strong cold front moved through today. The NW winds were 20+ mph all day (often at least a partial tailwind) and squally showers occurred throughout the day. The bike trail on the tow path of the Erie Canal is fine, crushed rock. It rides surprisingly well and is reasonably fast (unless it gets wet). There are several riders covering various segments of the whole route (Buffalo to Albany 350 mi). I met several either hanging out under bridges or in the pub waiting out rain squalls.

Stats:   Today's miles:  51.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   991 feet Total miles traveled:   3,062.7  miles Total feet climbed:   80,516 feet Riding through Buffalo and starting on the Erie Canal. Today I made my way through Buffalo on the bike trails along the lake-front, transitioned onto the Niagara river and eventually connected to the bike trail along the Erie canal. Between the road work detours, traffic and the late day rain & strong wind, I ended the day with a little less than typical mileage in Lockport. The count-down begins…At this point I have about 600 mi left in the trip. I’m shooting to be at the Portland shore on Oct 1…wish me luck

  Stats:   Today's miles:  99.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,812 feet Total miles traveled:   3,011.7  miles Total feet climbed:   79,525 feet ‘No hoof, no horse’ is an old cowboy saying... pretty self-explanatory. The analog for biking is all about wheels. I had only gone about 5 mi on Tues morning when the rear wheel got that squishy feeling. Sure enough, another flat!! (the last was two days earlier 10mi coming into Erie). This flat was bad, not just a simple puncture, the tire was cut with a half dozen cords cut. While I could change the tube, it would simply rub against the damaged area of the tire and quickly fail. I don’t carry a spare tire! I put a patch over the damaged area to hopefully buy some time/distance to get to a bike shop. Fifty miles later, just outside Dunkirk, the rear tire blew out completely. Oh sh##! I was out of options and planned on spending most of the afternoon walking to the nearest bike shop (7 mi). I ...

  Stats:   Today's miles:  0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   2,912.7  miles Total feet climbed:   76,713 feet The route through Erie PA was along the lake shore. In fact, the hotel was just across the street from the marina. The challenge was that everything along the lakeshore is somewhat isolated from “upper” Erie by a steep, tall cliff/ridge. This became a significant factor on Monday when I was locked down by the rain. All of the marina restaurants were closed on Monday and I needed change for laundry. I walked over 3 miles (large construction detour) to get some food and change at a Halal market about 5 blocks immediately above the hotel (kind of a sketchy walk). I was happy to pay the Dominos delivery charge when I got back to the hotel. The thunderstorms and rain were intense through the early afternoon. It was a good day to rest and catch up on some of the other tasks.

Stats:   Today's miles: 90.1  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,768 feet Total miles traveled:   2,912.7  miles Total feet climbed:   76,713 feet Good bye Ohio, hello Pennsylvania! Another state down. Riding through Cleveland was really cool and relatively easy. The route stayed along the lake shore for the most part. It was amazing to see (from outside the gates) of the multi-million mansions. These were really beautiful homes, some from the turn of the century (1900) and some ultra modern. It was like a tour around Lake Minnetonka, but went on for miles and miles. The city was very bike friendly…dedicated bike lanes (even in the city center), bike route around the lake. It was fun to ride by the FirstEnergy Stadium, Technology Center and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Stats:   Today's miles:  74.5  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,181 feet Total miles traveled:   2,822.6  miles Total feet climbed:   74,945 feet Miles and States quickly clicking off. One of the themes over the last week has been the focus on riding and with it the miles I’ve clicked off and the number of states that I’ve put in the rear view mirror. A combination of factors have contributed: relatively flat terrain, good weather (decent temps, limited head winds, good roads (low traffic, good surfaces). Another factor may be the building sense of reaching the end of the journey. On the ride from Monroeville to Bowling Green the remaining trip mileage dropped below 1000 miles!!! Up next. The goal tomorrow is Erie PA (84mi) and the following day to be in NY. I don’t want to jinx myself, but when I planned the route for the segments after Monroeville it is possible to reach Portland ME on Sept 29 assuming that riding conditions (hills, road/tra...

  Stats:   Today's miles:  68.3  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   614 feet Total miles traveled:   2,748.1  miles Total feet climbed:   73,764 feet

  Stats:   Today's miles:  88.4  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   837 feet Total miles traveled:   2,679.8  miles Total feet climbed:   73,150 feet Another State down - 4 days of riding to cross Indiana. On to Ohio!

  Stats:   Today's miles:  66.0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,102 feet Total miles traveled:   2,591.4  miles Total feet climbed:   72 ,313 feet A big thanks to the Monroeville community!! They have a great community building with restrooms, showers and laundry that they open up to cyclists at no charge. They’ve been doing this for 20+ years. Its interesting to read back though the guest logs of riders who have stayed there . Monroeville Community Center A creepy gathering at Salamonie Dam (zoom in)

  Stats:   Today's miles:  89.5  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:  1,417 feet Total miles traveled:   2,525.4  miles Total feet climbed:   71 ,211 feet Finally after two days of rain in Rensselaer, I was able to take off. Even the ride from Rensselaer to Wabash was in mist and drizzle most of the day.

Weather Delay Stats:   Today's miles:  0 . 0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   2,435.9  miles Total feet climbed:   69,794 feet Goodbye Illinois! Another state off the list! I’m sitting in Rensselaer waiting-out a widespread weather system. I’ve been lucky to only have had 3 weather days so far in the trip. So, its a chance to summarize my ride from western Iowa through Illinois. When I was collecting some thoughts to describe this section of the ride, my first inclination was just to limit the description to ‘nearly endless corn and bean fields’, which would be accurate. But in thinking about it, there are aspects of the heartland that deserve greater appreciation. True, its not the scenic mountain vista, the clear blue lake, or the ocean dunes. But after riding through hundreds of thousand acres of cropland I’ve come to appreciate the millions of bushels of grain produced and the bounty of the heartland. It’s a l...

  Stats:   Today's miles: 92 . 0  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   922 feet Total miles traveled:   2,435.9  miles Total feet climbed:   69,794 feet Another state down! Good bye Illinois hello Indiana

Stats:   Today's miles:  99 . 0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,060 feet Total miles traveled:   2,343.9  miles Total feet climbed:   68,872 feet Typical Illinois rural road

  Stats:   Today's miles:  0.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   2,244.9  miles Total feet climbed:   63,124 feet

  Stats:   Today's miles:  81.6  miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,824 feet Total miles traveled:   2,244.9  miles Total feet climbed:   66,812 feet Crossing the Mississippi

Stats:   Today's miles: 7 4 .0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,864  feet Total miles traveled:   2,163.3  miles Total feet climbed:   64,988 feet Wooded path leaving Cedar Rapids Hilly Iowa countryside

Stats:   Today's miles:  54 .0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,302 feet Total miles traveled:   2,089.3  miles Total feet climbed:   63,124 feet I was optimistic that with another strong day I could make it to the Iowa border at Muscatine and be back on track to the plan I had set earlier in the week. The mileage wild card when riding through a city is all about how the bike trails are routed, construction/detours and how much traffic interaction there is. Unfortunately by 2:00 it was clear that I wouldn’t be able to make the remaining 60 mi to Muscatine in reasonable time. The cycling community in CR is incredible. I ran into lots of cyclists throughout the day. Early in the day there was a steady stream of bikers (old, young, fit, not, road bikers and ebikers) on the trails. There were a couple of ‘events’ during the day, but there were a number of people out just enjoying a great weekend. I also have to compliment the biking community and state...

  Stats:   Today's miles: 93 .0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,572 feet Total miles traveled:   2,035.3  miles Total feet climbed:   61,822 feet Note: Today I crossed 2000mi mark A thunderstorm late in the evening tested the water resistance of my tent (only moderate leaks) but after a quick tear down/pack up I rode the back roads to Cresco and picked up the Prairie Farmer trail to Calmar. It was a great, flat, rail trail through stands of old black walnut and cherry. The afternoon ride through the rolling Iowa farmland (corn, cows, beans, hogs, repeat) was in stark contrast. A little tailwind helped roll up the miles and partially made up for the weather delay.

Stats:   Today's miles:  0.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   1,942.3  miles Total feet climbed:   59,250 feet Strong winds from the south blew up over night. My general rule is that if winds (headwinds) are over 20mph its not worth the effort required to ride. The winds early were above that level, however I thought if I could even grind out 25 miles, I’d be a little further along the route and in a better location (food, cell coverage,…). I rode out about 3 miles just to test the wind and with a lot of effort to hold about 7mph, I turned back, re-setup my campsite and spent the afternoon ‘relaxing’.

  Stats:   Today's miles:  67.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,811 feet Total miles traveled:   1,942.3  miles Total feet climbed:   59,250 feet I crossed the border into Iowa today! Lime Springs is pretty small but it was the most accessible location with a campground without going another 20+ miles. With one small bar & grill, a Casey’s a mile out of town and limited cell service it was OK for a night.