Day 45 – Sunday, June 20

92.6 miles, 15.3 mph, Odometer: 2973 – Vermillion, OH to Geneva, OH

KEVIN – Andy jinxed me. He asked me last night if I had to stop frequently for stoplights. I told him no, with the exception of the 10 mile journey through Toledo. Today, however, I was traveling through miles of towns. It started west of Cleveland and continued for 30 miles. The route was full of turns. I prefer remote roads that go on for miles. Most of today’s route was along Lake Erie.

SUZI – Driving the lesser highways along the southern shore of Lake Erie, there are lakeside homes, grand or modest, occasionally separated by a public park. Some homes sit on treed lawns of many acres. Like other waterfront areas, old family cottages and compounds share the shoreline with new and under-construction dream houses. I’m told that the wealthy people in the Cleveland area are the professional athletes.

I stopped for a walk in one lakeside park at Avon. A power plant operates next to the park. I’ve passed several power plants like this one along the Lake Erie shoreline. This NRG power plant is coal-powered. News stories suggest that it is in transition to cleaner coal burning or natural gas, with shifts from time to time in the plans and timing of continued operation. It’s evident that power generation is a major industry for Lake Erie.

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It also occurred to me that these homeowners on the shoreline are essentially living on the border of the U.S. and Canada, since the border lies in the center of the lake.

We camped at Geneva State Park, just across the road from the lake shore. The beach and park with bike trails turned out to be the best swimming beach yet for us. Kevin thought it ironic that I wanted to bike over there to check it out after he arrived in camp. We watched a bi-plane doing acrobatics over the water. It was humid with temperature in the 80’s. The beach/park was so nice that we rode back after dinner for a swim in the clear, crisp water. Then, after a rainy night, I biked over one more time in the morning to swim before my drive. Wish you (all) were here! It would have been fun to share with others.

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