2009 Erie Canal - Day 4
07/08/2009 10:00:00 by Administrator
West Syracuse, NY
Newark, NY
60 miles
As you can tell from the photo above, today weather was mostly overcast and cool (in the 70s...which is not the usual July temperature). In the morning, I made another boo boo; I programed the GPS to go to Bennett Avenue instead of Bennett Road, so after our continental breakfast at the Comfort Inn, we had a 6 mile "detour" until we found the beginning of the Erie Canal trail located outside of West Syracuse.
This part of the canal trail was beautiful, but the trail was soft crushed stone...so if you riding this part of the trail, just be warned the trail sometimes fees like velcro. We rode through the towns of Jordan and Weedsport, and at Port Byron we stopped to have lunch at the Port Byron Diner. What a great break, we all were quite stuffed and needing naps after lunch.
From Port Byron, until Newark you follow route 31 (bicycle route 5) through Montezuma, Savanna, Clyde and Lyons (farms and fields). Route 31 is very nice and quite from Port Byron to Clyde...with a wide shoulder. We then spent a lazy afternoon in Clyde's town park, eating treats from the local gas station. From Clyde to Newark rte 31 is a little more busy, but still very ridable.
We are living large in Newark at the Quality Inn. The hotel is right on the canal towpath, which will take us all the way into Rochester. Tonight we had dinner at Parkers in downtown Newark, not a bad little eatery.