Day 101 Rochester to Point Sodus 84km

The wiggly, squirmy, dance a quick jig, kind of joy I experienced this morning when looking out from my snug hotel room onto a frost covered carpark is one of the best kinds of self indulgent happiness. So it stands to reason that we dawdle through the morning, taking another hot shower accompanied by thick, soft, clean towels, drinking real coffee, being connected to genuinely fast wifi for once, we don't roll out the door until 11, and it is still chilly. But we have the pleasure of another 20 or so miles on the Erie Canal trail, and the rest of the morning passes quickly with lots of other cyclists keeping us company, out for a saturday spin.


We bid farewell to one of the loveliest trails of the past 4400 miles, and head north, wanting to reach the shores of Lake Ontario before it gets to cold and to dark. The terrain immediately changes, from the smooth flats along the canal to the rolling countryside, of orchards and, of course, corn fields! The hills are surprisingly steep, and we are pushing hard to maintain a pace that will take us where we want to go. We are fortunate to come upon many little roadside stalls, with the peak harvest season approaching we don't lack for fresh fruit and veggies, pumpkin anyone?


The owners must be used to cyclists, who can only carry small amounts, and happily retrieve just two potatoes, one tomato etc... from the huge bags they usually sell. We must look like we are struggling, people go out of their way to make sure we are ok, offering water or directions. With 10 miles to go we get to Pulneyville, where the entire town is having a garage sale, and neighbors are swapping their old junk for somebody else's! If we wanted some furniture, paintings, or toys we would have been sorted, but cyclists cannot live by veggies alone, carbs are the premium fuel of the cyclist, we needed bread. But enquiries revealed no grocery store was to be found in town, BUT there was a farm market about 8-9 miles away that sold bread, if we hurried, we could get there before they closed. So with my mind set on bread, we pedaled hard, finding the obstacles in our path getting more obstructive than usual, steep hill climbs and a headwind, making the battle a tough one. Kerstin, close to bonking pulls over when all she can see is stars, and we are forced to take a good, long look at how we got ourselves into this situation. After 100 days on the road we are still making mistakes, hopefully still learning too! We rest, eat, drink, relax and set off at a much slower rate. The market is still open, the bread is beautiful, the muffins prove irresistible and the campground is only a mile away. As is always the case when the campground is up a big hill, it is a great one. The hosts are friendly and welcoming, the price ($10) is a bargain, the showers are hot, and the view is spectacular.


Our neighbors, a group of student geologists, even have some left over sausage to share, Kerstin is in meat lovers heaven. - Posted using BlogPress from my iPad