Jacob Usher
Today started off cloudy which gave us a nice break from the heat and layers of sunscreen. Despite this, the previously muddy trail had dried. This made it a lot more comfortable to ride on with 28c tires. The only new downside was the dust.
Ushers‘s dusty legs after miles on the Erie Canalway Trail
We decided last night to stop at the next town to get coffee to fuel our day. We considered Tim Horton’s but decided to pick a local coffee shop instead. We ended up at Java Junction and watched the Tour de France Stage 3 recap. Obviously I got bagels now that we were in New York and they honestly lived up to the hype. Some say it’s the water.
Usher’s breakfast in Brockport, NY
Arriving in New York yesterday was pretty stressful. Customs was surprisingly chill, but our senses were immediately assaulted by lots of traffic and people. The weather also decided to rain on us. It really wasn’t bad, but it felt overwhelming at the time. Today felt more like how I expected this part of New York to be. Lots of old, pretty storefronts and steel.
The Erie Canalway Trail, in and around Rochester, NY
We spent lots of time with the Erie Canal today. I was pretty impressed by the thought and engineering that went into making it. I kept seeing these weird double gates over the canal and I wondered what their purpose was. Apparently they can be closed to control the flow of water if one of the locks fails. There are also weird looking draw bridges called lift bridges. They are over 100 years old and have decks that raise 15 feet up in the air. We camped by one of these last night. Luckily we didn’t wake up to any boats going by last night.
The crew approaches one of many lift bridges along the canal
It doesn’t seem like the canal sees much commercial use anymore. In fact, it seemed pretty much dead yesterday. Today we slowly started seeing more boats navigating it. We stopped for lunch followed up by gelato before saying goodbye to the canal and its flat grades.
The next chapter of the day took us over rolling hills and through apple orchards. Apples are not in season, but lots of berries are. Eventually we got to a giant lake. This confused me because I sort of thought we were done with the Great Lakes. It only took me a couple seconds to see that the lake was pretty great and realize it was definitely Lake Ontario.
A first look at Lake Ontario
We got to camp pretty soon after reaching the lake. It is a former Girl Scout camp and not my favorite place we have stayed. There is a lot of trash and no amenities. We also have some weird neighbors down a hill and through some woods with a dog that won’t stop barking. Our tents are set up close together on a wooden platform and we’ve been cracking jokes about the circumstances.
Bike Loud’s accommodations in Sodus Point, NY
Brian takes a dip in Lake Ontario