Astrovelo

We started out from Herkimer in the rain and it only got worse from there till about 11 am. We stopped in Canajoharie to get some food. It was so hard to start cycling from there. Didn’t want to put on the wet clothes on and start riding. Thankfully it got better after that. The rain stopped, the sun came out for a little bit. It was the longest day of the ride. We rode about 85 miles and it was the fastest. That is because we rode on paved trails/roads most of the time. We spent less than 5 miles on unpaved trails. After a stop at hungry chicken country store e ended the ride in Latham. Overall it was a nice ride that I’d do again.

Day 4 on Erie Canal bike trail started in Syracuse and ended in Herkimer, NY. This was the longest day so far with 79 miles cycled today. Getting out of Syracuse on a Sunday morning was quite chill. No traffic at all and we cruised out of town. The whole day was a mix of trail and road riding. We ate lunch at a taco place in Rome. It was simple and good food that kept us going for the rest of the day. Thankfully there were no incidents today and the ride went on quite smoothly. Made it to Herkimer just before 5:30 pm - sooner than we expected. The dinner at a pub in town was nice. Early bedtime today as we have the longest day of this trip planned for tomorrow.

Day 3 on Erie Canal bike trail took us from Palmyra to Syracuse. We started off the day by riding by the Mormon temple and Joseph Smith farm site etc in Palmyra - the birthplace of Mormon church. Came across a snapping turtle just as we got on the canal way. After riding about 25 miles or so we were off the trail and on the streets. This mix of trail and road continued for the rest of the day all the way to Syracuse. We had a couple of incidents on the way. A dog ran into my brother’s bike knocking him off. That caused some scrapes on his calf because of the crank wheel but thankfully nothing serious. No damage to the bike either. He could ride the rest of the way. Then he hit a bump in the trail causing his pannier rack to fall apart. Again it was fixable and not serious. As we got on the way I realized that I hit the same bump causing a flat tire. Fixing that took an extra 30 minutes. We made it to Syracuse safely after all these problems. Had Ethiopian food for dinner at a food market in downtown after a long time. It was very satisfying. Two more days of riding left before we make it to Albany. Only 160 more miles in the next 2 days.

Biked ~75 miles from Medina to Palmyra. It started out as a rainy day. The trail was muddy and had many puddles. It slowed us down for most of the first half of the day. We stopped at Java Junction in Brockport for coffee and snacks and to warm up for a little while. Going through Rochester was a little confusing with many trails intersecting. At the same time ended up getting a flat. Thankfully we were about half a mile from REI. Went there and got it fixed by a super friendly person. In the afternoon all the rain and mud went away. We were flying on paved and some gravel trail. Made it to Palmyra before 6 pm. After getting cleaned up we called an uber to get us to a restaurant called “The pig and hen” for dinner. The drinks and food were excellent. After dinner we walked for 30 minutes back to the hotel. Overall it was a great day with some ups and downs but we made it through.

Drove from Albany to Buffalo this morning and then biked 52 miles from Buffalo to Medina. Started out in industrial part in Buffalo along Niagara river. Then went through the town of Tonawanda where the riverfront area is nicely developed for tourism. Had 2 slices of pizza for lunch. They were so big. One would have been enough. Should remember this from tomorrow. Eating a little less for lunch is a good idea. Next town over was Lockport with the famous 100 ft drop in elevation that needed five consecutive locks on the canal to allow boats to pass. Modified canal now operates in the same spot with only 2 locks. We got to see a boat coming up the canal and operate one of the locks. It was amazing to it in action. I was surprised to see how quickly it happened. The last 20 miles were very scenic with the trail going right alongside the canal. The reflection of the surroundings in the canal was so beautiful. Ate dinner at a Mexican place near the hotel in Medina. Good food.