69.5 miles, 16 mph, Odometer: 3340 – near Hannibal, NY to Osceola, NY
KEVIN – Today was uneventful, no flats and we stayed on the path. We met another cross-country cyclist in Osceola. He had started the Northern Tier in Anacortes in 2019. His ride was interrupted by a stroke in Michigan. He started at that point 10 days ago and is riding to the end.
SUZI – Shuttling the cyclists to and from campgrounds gave us glimpses of pretty, rocky streams and New York rural towns and farms. We’ve been driving past vineyards and orchards for a few days. I’ve stopped at a few farm stands to buy produce. Today was the first day I found Wenatchee cherries in a grocery store.
83.2 miles, 16.5 mph, Odometer: 3270 – Spencerport, NY to near Hannibal, NY
KEVIN – We rode the Erie Canal Trail for the first 40 miles. We managed to get on the wrong trail in Rochester that cost us ~30 minutes. Then Andy had a flat tire (the first flat of the trip.)
I drafted Andy all day. By the maps, I have ~663 miles left. I can see the end.
SUZI – On Maureen’s first day on the support crew, we drove the guys to their start, then went back to camp to close up and drive. We took a little time to see and photograph some bridges on the Erie Canal. Than managed to find a lovely, bargain salon in Rochester for essential pedicures. More driving to our picturesque RV park with a site overlooking Lake Ontario.
70.9 miles, 15.2 mph, Odometer: 3120 – Ripley, NY to Orchard Park, NY
KEVIN – Today’s ride was easier than expected. The northwest wind did not impede as much. I continued to ride along the south side of Lake Erie and was surprised when I could finally see the northern and eastern shores.
Today we had a fortunate turn of events. We had only a loose plan for where to stop tonight and, when we got there, it was not going to work. Suzi then found us a campground near Niagara Falls. We drove to the campground, then did what I said I was not going to do. We went sight seeing. It was great. Niagara Falls is as impressive as you would expect. I am glad we did not miss it.
SUZI – So far we are 0 for 3 trying to use Harvest Hosts. The brewery in Orchard Park could have worked out but I got no response to my request. We drove there and it wasn’t very appealing, so we made our Niagara Falls plan on the spur of the moment and were delighted with the result.
76.1 miles, 16.2 mph, Odometer: 3049 – Geneva, OH to Ripley, NY
KEVIN – I finished Ohio and rode through part of Pennsylvania. Riding through rural Pennsylvania, I passed multiple wholesale nursery farms. Then I smelled strawberries as I rode by a U-pick. I got caught in a thunderstorm in Erie, Pennsylvania. I waited it out at a convenience store. When it had passed, I followed it through standing water and bubbling streams in ditches.
SUZI – We met two young women in the campground in Geneva who were riding across the country, east to west. They were hauling their gear in panniers on their bikes. Had we known there would be a storm overnight, we would have encouraged them to sleep in the bunks in our trailer. They were looking forward to the next night in a “Warm Showers” home; that’s the home of a cyclist who offers, at minimum, a warm shower and place to pitch a tent. They said that these hosts often provide a bed in their house and dinner or a meal in a restaurant. The rules require that you host a cyclist in order to be eligible for hosting. They are riding a slightly more southern route from us, crossing the Rockies near Yellowstone and ending their ride at Astoria, Oregon.
We camped at Ripley, New York, still on the shore of Lake Erie. On the longest day of the year, this was our sunset.
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.
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.
KEVIN – I rode Highway 2 which included a long bridge over Sandusky Bay. I had a tailwind for most of the day but on the bridge it was blowing me sideways.
I met another bicycle trekker. He started in Astoria, Oregon, traveling alone and packing his gear. We talked for awhile, then I sped away on my light, unfettered road bike. I felt a little guilty but not much.
SUZI – We passed a nuclear power plant this morning. The concrete tower is unmistakable. Looks like there are three nuclear power plants on Lake Erie. Just FYI.
I met Kevin for lunch at the Sand Bar in Huron, Ohio. The woman collecting parking fees at the nearby beach told us that the Lake Erie perch was popular, so I had perch tacos for lunch. Delicious! Then Kevin got on his bike and I checked out the beach. I chatted with the woman for quite a while. She spent some years RV’ing alone and working in retail here and there. Her kids insisted that she settle near them during Covid, but she misses her RV life! Lots of swimmers were enjoying Nickel Plate Beach. The hot temperature made it tempting, but I skipped the swim this time and drove on to camp where Kevin was waiting.
81.3 miles, 14.3 mph, Odometer: 2808 – Milford, MI to Oregon, OH
KEVIN – I had planned to start my ride by 7 am, however, an early morning thunderstorm intervened. I had a choice; wait for the rain to stop and deal with the increased afternoon headwind, or ride wet all day. I chose to wait. I started by 10:00 The roads were wet but I was dry. The wind did pick up as predicted. I rode the back roads. Toledo is on the state line. Google had me ride 10 miles through Toledo’s neighborhoods (some of them rough) and cross the Maumee River. I finished at 5:00 pm. My body felt fine. I could have kept riding, physically, but mentally I was done. Tired of watching for the next turn, tired of the wind and ready to see Suzi.
SUZI – Madison, Leslynn and I dawdled through the morning with a quick shopping and coffee stop, then arrived at the Detroit airport about 1 pm. What a lovely gift to have these girls with us for 13 days! Here are some last photos –
57.5 miles, 14.9 mph, Odometer: 2727 – Frankenmuth, MI to Milford, MI
KEVIN – I rode through the eastern outskirts of Flint today for miles. It was remarkable for its poor condition in general but the roads in particular. Potholes and deep ruts required my attention. Riding further south on Hickory Ridge Road towards General Motors Road, I found vast, manicured lawns in the forest with large homes, quite a contrast.
We put the tandem away as Madison and Leslynn leave us tomorrow. I hope to make it to Toledo tomorrow.
SUZI – We drove by the General Motors Proving Ground just before we arrived at Camp Dearborn to spend the night. Camp Dearborn is a huge camp built in 1948 and now owned and run by the city of Dearborn, MI. We enjoyed the great swimming pool and cycling with Leslynn on the paved roads of the park. In the morning, a thunderstorm knocked out power in the park. One lightning strike felt and sounded like it was very close. Inexplicably, Leslynn loved the thunder.
After observing the location of the GM Proving Grounds, I passed a Chrysler manufacturing plant in Detroit the next day. As a college senior in 1983, I worked an internship at a General Motors assembly plant. My work was in the computer lab. The most memorable thing from that experience was the robotic paint shop in the plant.
60.2 miles Trek, 17 mph, Odometer: 2669 – Sterling, MI to Frankenmuth, MI
KEVIN – South along Saginaw Bay with a tailwind. I was too far inland to see the water. Beautiful day. I rode through Bay City and east of Saginaw.
SUZI – It turns out the the Hanna-Barbera company has a slew of Yogi Bear themed Jellystone RV parks. Who knew? One of them happened to be in just the right spot for us near Frankenmuth, Michigan. It was a large RV park with nice swimming pools, a great playground for Leslynn, and loads of families with kids riding bikes around the paved roads and adults walking dogs and enjoying the pleasant evening with a campfire.
Meanwhile, the city of Frankenmuth reminded us of Leavenworth, Washington, with a Bavarian theme and lots of shopping. A few days before, I googled “shopping” along our route and Google presumed that I was looking for a cheese shop. So that got us thinking about cheese and we ended up cheese shopping in Frankenmuth. Now we have a cheese drawer to go with our chocolate drawer. Just trying to keep Kevin from blowing away since he’s now lost 15 pounds!
Cycling with Kevin & Suzi 