Bicycle Tours

Rochester, NY
Lockport, NY
66 miles

Two brief downpours (I did get wet! Mary stayed dry), and the rest of the day in the high 80's, sunny with a headwind. Just another beautiful day on the Erie Canal.

From Fairport NY (on yesterday's travels) until Greece NY, the canal trail is paved and SeeMore just hummed along. The only caution you need to take is staying on the Canal trail when it intersects with the Genesee trail....that and a few road crossings (but not many!). We said it before, but it needs repeating, Rochester NY has quite a gem in their trail system.

The also have two more gems, Dustin and Lauren....thank you so much for letting us crash at your townhouse!!!!.

Today was basically a one gear day, with no cars. The headwinds and the trail surface made a low MPH day...but that's the way the Erie Canal trail should be travelled! I knew I was going to stretch the Rear Admirals strength, but she gave full power, right to the end! Today we past through the canal towns of Spencerport, Brockport, Holley, and had lunch at Albion. The down town area of Albion seems a little in the depressed arena....but someone would make a lot of money by putting up a convenience store/ deli next to the trail (in one of the many empty storefronts). After lunch, we continued through Medina, Middleport, and Gasport. We stopped at Gasport for a soda break.... and again....someone would make a lot of money by putting up a convenience store / deli here cause they could really use one!.....

We are living large at the Holiday Inn, downtown Lockport. We only have one small little concern.....we lost the bicycle map with directions for the way across the Rainbow Bridge...into Canada! We did cycle back for a couple of miles...but . . . Oh well, SeeMore will have to be our guide.

Weedsport, NY
Rochester, NY
64 miles

A beautiful day ..... 50 percent of gently rolling countryside touring through farmland, with the other half on the Erie Canal . Temperatures stayed in the low 90s, with puffy clouds.

We had breakfast at the Best Western motel, which tied us over until Newport. We met up with the Pedaling Pastors from Canton Ohio. 22 Methodist pastors are cycling, supported by two sag wagons, from Ohio to Jordan NY, and back. They are spending the night in churches along the route. We played leap frog with them all day, and really enjoyed their company. The only side note is that they really don't know what town they stayed in , what town they started in, or what town they will be finishing up in for the night. We asked these questions to different pastors, at different times of the day...and got many different answers. Now that's what I call touring. The Rear Admiral and I loose the day of the week, and the correct date when we are on tour....but we always know where we been, and where we are going.

Tonight we are at Dustin and Lauren's townhouse in Rochester. So we are in very good hands.

Pulaski, NY
Weedsport, NY
58 miles

A beautiful day of countryside touring through large and small farms. Skies were a bit overcast, but the temperatures stayed in the low 80s.

We planned to use Adventure Cycling's Northern Tier map, but the lure of riding more of the Erie canal trail sent us in a zigzag south west direction. We rode through the towns of Mexico, Palermo, Penneville, Phoenix, and Baldwinsville on quiet county roads. We stopped in a sub shop for lunched in Baldwinsville. During lunch we remembered the diner and places we stopped at in Baldwinsville the last couple of times on tour in New York.

After lunch we headed south on route 31 (NY bicycle rte 5) until Jordan, where we picked up the Erie Canal Trail.

We are living large at the Best Western motel in Weedsport and have already enjoyed playing in the pool and walking the town. Weedsport was named after a family named Weeds.....and all this time I thought it was named after a port on the Erie canal that was known to have lots of lilly pads!.

Watertown, NY
Pulaski, NY
34 miles

We left the Subaru off at Discount Auto Glass in Watertown NY and headed south on NY bicycle route 11 (also NY rte 11). The Subaru needs a new front window, and the friendly people at Discount are allowing us to leave the car with them while we take our tour around Lake Ontario.

We planned a short day today, getting the first day touring legs back in shape. Route 11 is basically flat, with a nice shoulder (until the last 5 miles into Pulaski)...vehicle traffic was minor. Just a pleasant ride with overcast skies and temperatures in the mid 80s. Tomorrow, the forecast calls for rain.

By staying on route 11, the Rear Admiral had no map to read, and we pedaled our way until lunch at a little dinner, located in the back of a small grocery store in Sandy Creek

We are living large at a Super 8 motel, there is a new grocery store next door, so it looks like we will be searching the isles for supper.

The Summer of 2010 finds us cycling around Lake Ontario. We will be starting in Watertown, New York, and touring clockwise around this Great Lake. We will be following the Adventure Cycling's "Northern Tier" route, which includes traveling on the Erie Canal (SeeMore can't get enough of the Erie Canal!). After entering Canada, we will be following the Waterfront trail.

So apply your suntan lotion, put on your sunglasses, bring your swim suits...and follow SeeMore on another adventure!

SeeMore Completes the Tour de Cure

Most importantly:
SeeMore, the Rear Admiral, and I would like to thank everyone who donated to American Diabetes Association's TourdeCure. Our team, Boettchers at Heart raised over $10,000 dollars which will be used in the fight to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes.

The 100K ride
SeeMore headed out in the Maine fog, with about 90 riders (our guess) from Kennebunk High School at 8:00 am Sunday morning. Through out the ride we remained at the end of the pack, happily deferring to sleek road bikes and fit spandexed riders. SeeMore is built for touring NOT SPEED and we soon found ourselves happily settled in at the end of the line.

What a beautiful ride, fog or no fog!!! We headed through West Kennebunk on a large circle towards Wells, mostly on very quiet back roads. After the first check in (about 15 miles) we followed route 109 as it merged with route 1. Route 1, as expected, was very busy but the cars were kind. It was really a very short ride (2 miles?) and then we turned towards the ocean. We then took the road along Kennebunk Beach towards the second check in. Ocean views, quaint cottages (well some were huge), downtown Kennbunk Port, birds and flowers were the sights and smells that kept our minds occupied. We successfully passed the Bush compound without George and Barbara asking for a ride on SeeMore then headed inland.

We refueled at check point number three (40 miles down!). Back along the coast again. Mary and I both filled up with oranges, pretzels, and cliff bars but did not take the short ride down to the point. There is supposed to be great views but the TourdeCure volunteer recommended that we visit another day as the view was non existent through the fog today. We think the weather was a blessing in disguise, no sun burn or heat exhaustion to worry about today. Temperatures were perfect for riding, in the low 70s.

The rest of the ride took us through through quiet back roads, returning once again to Kennebunk High School and a fantastic BBQ supper.

A special thank you to Linda Lambert (team captain) of Boettchers At Heart for inviting us on their team. This is the 15th year that Boettchers At Heart has ridden the Tour de Cure. Finally, another thank you to our daughter Kate for her support and help.

Sincerely,
SeeMore, Mary and Noel

SeeMore will be cycling in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure fundraising event. Along with the Rear Admiral (Mary) and myself, we will be cycling the Kennebunk, Maine Tour de Cure on June 13th. I'm ready to do the 100 kilometers, I wonder if the Rear Admiral and Captain are up to it!

Please visit Mary's site:

http://main.diabetes.org/goto/rear_admiral

Or visit Noel's site:

http://main.diabetes.org/goto/noel1

If you can make a donation.


On that page, please select the "Click Here to Sponsor Me" button. Our efforts will help set the pace in the fight against diabetes. So let's get in gear and ride to Stop Diabetes!




Thank you,
SeeMore
Mary
and Noel