July 19--Day 37--NH, AT, and the Beginning of the Kanc

I crossed into New Hampshire (state number 10) first thing this morning by crossing the Connecticut River. There was no Welcome to New Hampshire sign. I made my own (I know, the 'S' is missing). It was foggy again, but it burned off pretty quickly. Soon enough, I was riding in increasingly warm temps. I'm not complaining--it's far better than rain.

Welcome to New Hampshire

 

 

Another covered bridge

I knew I had a couple of back to back climbs today. The first one wasn't too bad, except when I got to the part where I was supposed to go down, there was a sign that said "Road Closed". It did say "Local Traffic Only". Well, in this case, I consider myself local traffic. There was a detour, but I had no idea where, or how far out of my way it would take me. I proceeded through the closed road. I did all the downhill, and was almost to where my next turn was, when I reached the construction. Hmmmm.....this was going to be tricky. First I asked the guy operating the front loader if I could squeeze through. He said probably not. He said there were two excavators on each side of the road. I asked if I could try. He shrugged his shoulders, and said, "I guess." I moved on ahead. While there were two excavators, only one was working. There was plenty of room to get by. Another guy walked up to me. I asked if I could just squeeze by. He said the road was closed and gave me all kinds of grief for not taking the detour (I explained my reasons). Finally, he asked his boss. The boss said yes, and I was waved through. I have no doubt if I had been a guy, I would have had to turn around. I'm sure the guy thought I was totally stupid, but I didn't care so long as I didn't have to go back.

 

The next climb was longer, and entirely in the sun which, by now was really hot. It was about 3 or 4 miles to the top. At the top, called Kinsman Ridge, the Appalachian Trail (AT) crossed the highway. Unfortunately, I didn't meet any hikers. I stopped at the trailhead parking and had a snack before heading down down down.

The AT crosses here

 

 

The bottom of the descent brought me into North Woodstock, just a few miles north of the Woodstock of 60s music fest. I stopped at a gift shop place to get a postcard for Grayson. As I was leaving, a couple from Montreal stopped to talk to me. They must have been staying in the next town (a mile away) of Lincoln. I followed them to Lincoln, and at a stop light, caught up to them. They asked to take my picture. I said yes, then took theirs too.

Caroline and John

 

 

I realized as I came into Lincoln (a good sized touristy sort of town) that I hadn't checked off a New Hampshire Subway. I didn't get a Vermont one, as I didn't go through any sizeable towns. I didn't see one, so I stopped at a market/deli and got a sandwich. Of course, as soon as I got back on my bike, up in the distance I could see the Subway sign. So, I stopped and got cookies. New Hampshire Subway has now been checked off!

NH Subway, CHECK!

 

 

My goal for the day was to get partway up the Kancamagus Hwy to the Pass (the locals call it "The Kanc". There were two Forest Service campgrounds. The first was 3 miles from Lincoln, and the second was 6 miles. As you might guess, I stopped at the first one. It was 3:00, and I had done enough climbing in the sun. Ironically, this campground is called Hancock. Why is that ironic you ask? Because yesterday I went from the town of Hancock to East Thetford. Today I went from East Thetford to the campground of Hancock! 

 

 

I'll get an early start (or just my usual start, which is pretty early) tomorrow while it's cooler, and less traffic to finish the climb up the Kanc.

July 18--Day 36--The Big News For Today

It didn't rain! Besides that, it was an uneventful day. But, here's some photos from last night.

Kathleen feeding her chickens

Mama hen and her chicks

Fancy pants

 

 

I actually left pretty early this morning. Having slept on a loveseat couch that was pretty comfortable, if not a little short, I decided upon Mary's recommendation, that I would have breakfast at a place called Sandy's. It was in Hancock. She said they open pretty early. As I was saying goodbye to Kathleen at 6:30, I told her I was going to go to this cafe. She said they didn't open until 7:30. Okay, I guess I won't do that. Instead, I stopped at the gas station/minimart, and had the equivalent of my usual breakfast, minus the banana. I had hot chocolate, an oatmeal cookie, and a chocolate donut. Okay, it wasn't quite my usual breakfast, but it was enough calories to get going.

 

As I said, it wasn't raining, but the fog was hanging in the trees.

Foggy Vermont

For the first time, I wore my arm warmers. I rode through Rochester, Stockbridge, Gaysville, to Bethel. That was a little over 20 miles of my 50 mile day. In Bethel, I stopped at a cafe for second, but kind of really first breakfast. My table overlooked a waterfall. Here's a photo of the waterfall from outside.

Bethel waterfall

 

 

Having filled up on French toast with real Vermont maple syrup, I got back on the route. By now, all the fog had burned off, and it was turning into a pretty warm day.

 

I stopped in Royalton to get a Vermont postcard for Grayson at a gift shop, then mailed it in South Royalton. 

 

In Sharon, I was at the beginning of a long climb, similar to the Middlebury Gap. I fortified with a bottle of Gatorade, then started up. Just like yesterday, the first part was killer steep. I was a huffin' and a puffin'. As it was now quite warm and humid, the sweat was dripping off my bare arms. Now I know how much sweat my sunsleeves absorb when I'm wearing them (usually I do). Again, there was no sign that I'd reached the top, other than the road going down. 

 

I came to South Strafford, but cruised on through. On the way to Thetford Center, there was a little road called Tucker Hill Rd. I was hoping I would be at the top and just get to cruise down. Nope, that was not the case. It was another leg buster, just not as long.

 

After Thetford Center, came another big climb to the second of the Thetford collection of towns, Thetford Hill. It was an appropriate name for a town, as it sat at the top of the hill. I descended to the turn to the campground which is just before the third town of the Thetford collection, East Thetford (the fourth Thetford town is North Thetford, but I will not go through it).

Look! A covered bridge!

 

 

I'm camped at a campground called "Rest n' Nest". You'd maybe think there would be a bird theme, but there is not. At $27, it's rather expensive, but I didn't have to pay anything for last night, so it's not too bad. Interestingly, just like yesterday, it had rained really hard just before I got here. I did not get any rain. Lucky me!

Campsite

 

 

 

Tomorrow I will finish my brief time in Vermont, and cross into New Hampshire for, likely, an equally brief time.

July 17--Day 35--An Awesome Stroke of Good Luck

The weather is back to its less than greatness. Thundershowers in the forecast for where I was headed. My hope was to get over the Middlebury Gap, and to a campsite before they let loose. 

 

I caught the ferry across Lake Champlain this morning. When I got to the dock, the boat wasn't there. There was a sign that said, "Pull to call ferry". I pulled it, but I don't know if it really did anything. All it did was flip up a faded rectangle. However, not long after I pulled it, the boat started coming across. I think it was just coincidence.

Here comes the boat!

Ticonderoga Ferry

Tilmann on the boat

 

 

There were two vehicles, and myself on the ferry. It cost me $2.00. Once I disembarked from the ferry, I was in state number 9, Vermont! I took the obligatory photo. 

Vermont!

 

 

On my map it showed an alternate called Covered Bridge Alternate. It avoided Middlebury.  Although Middlebury is said to be a classic New England town, I'm sure I will go through other classic New England towns, but I might not see any covered bridges. I took the alternate. Another very good reason to do the alternate was the traffic. The main route had quite a bit of traffic--the alternate had virtually none.

 

There was only one problem with the Covered Bridge Alternate. There was no covered bridge. There was this one lane bridge that may or may not have been a covered bridge at one time, but there is no covered bridge. At least it was shorter, and maybe less hilly.

Uncovered bridge

Passed this place called Shard Villa. It's a home for the elderly. Looks like, in the right light, it could be a home for the Adams Family!

 

Besides the no traffic, there was one other really good reason to do the alternate. Middlebury Sweets, the largest candy shop in Vermont, just happened to be right on the alternate route! Of course I had to stop. I probably got way too much sugar!

CANDY!!!

 

 

The Alternate rejoined the main route in East Middlebury. I found the Post Office, and mailed a flat rate box to Minneapolis of the souvenirs I've been carrying, and the maps I no longer need. As I left the Post Office, a gal rode up on her bike. Her name was Heather, and she's a massage therapist in Middlebury. She was really nice, and offered me food, water, a place to stay, anything I needed. If I had gone further for the day, I definitely would have taken her up on her offer. As it was, I really wanted to get over the gap before the storm. 

 

The climb out of East Middlebury to Ripton was really something! The first bit had me wheezing like a donkey, and having to stop to catch my breath. I stopped in Ripton for another Gatorade (I'd gotten one in East Middlebury). I was sweating out as much as I was taking in.

Ripton Country Store

 

 

The climbing continued toward the Middlebury Gap. Most of it wasn't as hard as the first section, but there were a few spots. I went through Breadloaf (named after the mountain, I'm sure). The whole place appears to be the Breadloaf Campus of Middlebury College. It's a number of buildings. I took this photo, not so much for the building, but to show the nasty black cloud. 

That does not look good!

 

 

As I continued my way up, I could hear thunder in the distance. It still wasn't raining, but I had put my rain gear under the bungy on the rack just in case.

 

I finally reached the top. There was no sign except this one to indicate I was at the Gap. I suppose it's a pretty good indicator.

12% grade!

 

 

I rode down, keeping my eyes open for "Little Emma's Cabins" where I was going to camp for the night. I never saw a sign. What I did notice was that, although it was just barely raining, it had recently rained quite a bit. I certainly just missed that one!

 

Next thing I knew I was in Hancock. I thought, well, fine. There is supposed to be a hotel here. Sure enough, there is the Hancock Hotel. But, she had no rooms available. She suggested I go to The Gathering Inn just across the street. I did, and found Kathleen. She too is full, but I asked if I could pitch my tent. She said go for it, but then said I could sleep in the porch if I wanted. She showed me the kitchen, dining room, living room, and bathroom. She gave me a towel, and said have at it! I asked her what I could pay her. She said, "Sheesh, you are sleeping on the porch, you don't need to pay me anything!" 

The Gathering Inn

Tilmann safely inside

 

 

 

It's awesome here! The chickens wander around (one hen has chicks), and there are two cats. Lucy is keeping me company on the porch. Another couple, Mary and David, are staying here while they look for a place to live in the area. They are from Pennsylvania. Nice people. Kathleen keeps asking if I need anything. I have everything I could possibly want, especially since it looks like another storm is going to roll through.

July 16--Day 34--What About the Pencils?

For my first day off, I rode 13.5 miles, quite a bit of it uphill. Oh well, it's still a day off in my book.

 

I took the bags off Tilmann, and rode to Fort Ticonderoga this morning.

Tilmann Fort Ticonderoga photo op

It was called Fort Carillon when the French first built it in 1755. It was part of the French and Indian War, and the Revolutionary War. It was the site of 5 major battles. When the British seized the Fort from the French, they renamed the Fort Ticonderoga. In 1783, General George Washington decommissioned the Fort. In 1820, William Ferris Pell purchased the Fort property for $11,000. He built a summer house that later became a hotel and a desirable vacation destination. In 1909, Pell's grandson took interest in the property and initiated one of America's earliest restoration projects. For a place with such an important history, you would think it would be a part of the National Park System. It is not. It continues to be run as a non-profit educational organization. It receives no state or federal money. It costs $23 for an adult, but the hotel had a coupon for 10% off.

Cannon overlooking Lake Champlain

 

 

I got to the Fort in time for the first tour. The young man, dressed as a French soldier (each year the Fort chooses a particular year in the Fort's history to focus on--this year it is 1757, when the Fort was occupied by the French), gave a brief history lesson on the Fort.

Our French Soldier tour guide

He led us into the Fort Parade Grounds, finished his talk, then let us explore the various exhibits.

The craftsmen building

Small weapons exhibits

More exhibits--this building was recently built. The original powder building was burned and blown up twice.

I looked at everything, but really enjoyed watching the cobblers (shoemakers--they make all the shoes the employees wear--very authentic), and the tailors (they make all the clothing the employees wear). Emma, one of three tailors/seamstresses, said the hardest part is obtaining the fabrics. She said if she could go back to the time period of the Fort, she would go shopping for fabric. The undergarments are made of linen, but linen is processed differently now. The breeches and coats are, of course, made of a slightly felted wool. Emma was sewing, by hand, an officers coat for a reenactment coming up this next weekend. She had a lot of work to do.

 

I wandered a bit more around the Fort building itself, then returned to the front gate just in time for the Fife and Drum Corps to lead a group down to the King's Garden for the tour there. A bunch of us followed, in step, down to the gardens. 

Fife, Drum, and Flag

Following the Corps to the gardens

Single file now

 

 

Our tour guide for the gardens told us about the various plots. Because they are depicting the year 1757, there was a soldiers garden with the veggies that would have been grown in that time--cabbage and greens. The plot is smaller now, but in 1757 it would have been 6 acres of cabbage and greens. That's a lot of cabbage!

Garden tour guide

 

 

There was a children's garden, including an alphabet garden. I took photos of the plant letters of Grayson and Harper. 

 

The walled King's Garden was built by Sarah Pell (the wife of William Pell's grandson). This being July, it was in full bloom.

The Pell Pavillion

Inside the walled garden

Day Lilly

Poppies

More flower pretties

 

 

After the gardens, it was about 12:30, so I took myself back up to the Welcome Center at the Fort, and the Fort Cafe for some lunch. As much as possible, the veggies for the cafe come from the gardens, but they also make food that the soldiers would have eaten. In this case, split pea soup. I fully intended to have the soldiers' special of split pea soup and grilled cheese sandwich (made with bread baked in the brick ovens of the Fort), except I don't really like split pea soup. I had the tuna melt and apple pie.

The view from my table at lunch

 

 

Having completed my tour, I returned to Tilmann and headed out. Along the road to the exit, I passed the Carillon Battlefield. Now it is a pleasant grove of trees and grass. 

Carillon Battlefield

 

 

Next I wanted to go up to the top of Mount Defiance. I rode into the old part of Ticonderoga, then followed the road to the gate of the road up to Mount Defiance. There was supposed to be a hiking trail to the top, but I didn't see it. I thought maybe it was through the gate (my admission to the Fort included Mount Defiance). I started riding up the road. There was no parking area or signage for a trail. I kept riding up the hill. The hill was steep...very steep. It was a leg and lung buster for sure! I would have been walking if I'd had any gear on my bike!

 

I finally reached the top in a good sweat. The view was, admittedly, worth the climb. I could see the Fort, and much of Lake Champlain. The ride down was not as fun as would think. In addition to the steepness, the road surface was not the greatest. It was still better than going up!

The Fort and Lake Champlain

 

 

I continued through town to work my way back to the hotel. The route goes through the town to get to the ferry across the lake, but tomorrow I'll take the shorter route since I've seen the town now. 

 

I'm really glad I took the day off to see Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Defiance. I would not have been able to do it justice if I still had to ride.

 

 

As for the pencils, it turns out Ticonderoga pencils were not invented in Ticonderoga, but the graphite used in the pencil lead was mined near Ticonderoga. I did see these examples of Ticonderoga pencils in the gift shop.

Ticonderoga pencils!

Heres a parting shot...

Flat Will, can't you read? It says stay off the cannons!

 

 

July 15--Day 33--Keeping My Eyes on the Destination, Even Though I Can Barely See

Ah yes, my good weather karma hath abandoned me! I managed to get packed up this morning in a break from the rain, but as I was leaving the campground, I had to stop and put my rain jacket on. I was hopeful when, just a few miles later, I was able to take my jacket off. Sadly, it didn't last long. And, aiyiyi, did the rain ever come down!

 

Before long, I was soaked. Even with my rainjacket (I didn't bother with the shorts), I could feel the rain dripping down my back. My feet were squishing in water. I was squeezing water out of my gloves. My face was bathed in rain. My glasses, covered with rain, fogged up when I would be climbing, but would clear when I would descend. 

 

While there were some good climbs today, the descents were equally as long. Except that the climbs slowed me down, making me spend more time in the rain, I kind of preferred them because, on the descents, the rain pelted me.

 

I passed the boundary of Adirondack Park, thus ending my time there. While I'm sure it is a beautiful place, I really didn't get a good look at the mountains. I will remember the great people I met there.

 

I passed through a couple of towns that had no services. At one point, the route directed me to a packed dirt road. I was a little worried it would be a mud bog, but it was fine. It was just a bit over a mile. By then the rain had stopped, and the sun even came out! I did stop at Paradox Lake just to take a picture of a lake with some blue sky!

A little dirt road

 

Paradox Lake and blue sky!

 

 

Eagle Lake

With 5 miles to go until Ticonderoga, I had the longest climb so far. It wasn't terribly steep, just kind of long. At the top, I had a nice view down to the valley.

Ready for 2 miles of downhill!

The descent was two miles (I'm pretty sure the climb wasn't nearly that long). As I came into Ticonderoga, I spied a Subway. Since I'd hadn't had much to eat, I stopped for some lunch. Just before I got there, a group of about 12 girls from Southwoods Camp (I'd passed it on my way) getting a break from "Camp" food. I talked to a couple of the staff while waiting in line. They had seen me riding. One gal said she wanted to do a bike ride like I was doing (she also said she needed to get a bike first--baby steps).

 

While I was eating my lunch, I called the Best Western and reserved a room for the night. I had decided last night I would stay in Ticonderoga tonight. After the last couple of days and nights of rain, I really needed to dry out, and do a whole mess of laundry. The Best Western was really close. This is my second hotel stay. I don't really count the hostel in Cleveland as it was cheaper than several of the campgrounds I've stayed in.

 

 

I've just returned from dinner in the restaurant here at the hotel. I asked the people at the table next to me if Fort Ticonderoga was worth a visit. They said it most definitely is. Now I have a bit of a conundrum. It doesn't open until 9:30. To just do even part of the Fort, it takes several hours. Do I stay another night here, and then spend the day at Fort Ticonderoga? The only downside is the cost of another night. Even if I was trying to stay on schedule, I'm a day ahead now. I think I'll do it! Vermont will have to wait another day.

July 14--Day 32--I Know They're There, I Just Can't See Them

I woke up at 6:00 to the patter of rain drops on my tent. Dang! Fortunately, I had set my tent up in such a way as to be able to take it down under the rainfly. My picnic table was under the trees enough that it wasn't getting very wet, so I was able to cook my breakfast.

 

It was still raining when I took off. This is the first time I've started out in the rain--the first time I've worn both my rain jacket and my rain shorts on this trip. 

 

It was just a handful of miles to Raquette Lake. It looked like an okay place, but I just rode through. The terrain was the same as yesterday. I kept wondering when the mountainous part was going to start.

 

I pulled into the town of Blue Mountain Lake. I thought I had better at least stop and take a photo of the lake.

Blue Mountain Lake, there should be some mountains there too

I was heading up out of town when I came to the Adirondack Museum. I pulled in to have a look. It was just after 9:30, and the museum didn't open until 10:00, but the gift shop was open. I wandered around, found an Adirondack magnet, and a book for Grayson called "My Grandma Can Do Anything in the Adirondacks!" It's pretty cute.

Big sailboat in the museum

 

 

I thought about doing the museum, but it was pretty extensive (several buildings), and cost $20. Instead I used the wifi to upload yesterday's post. When I returned to Tilmann, a couple were standing and looking at him. Turns out their daughter is riding eastbound on Northern Tier from Anacortes to Ithaca, but is taking the North Lakes and Erie Connector, which I will do on my way back. It will be funny if I meet her.

 

After the museum, I found one of the few bigger climbs of the day. It wasn't that bad once my legs warmed back up. Also, it had finally stopped raining, so I was able to take off my rain gear. It was still overcast. I know there are mountains all around, but I couldn't see them. Blue Mountain is one of the bigger ones (according to my map), but I'll never know what it looked like. 

 

Now the climbs were a bit longer, but so were the downhills. It was about 10 miles to Long Lake, the next town (and lake, of course). According to my itinerary, I was to stay in Long Lake. I planned shorter days for the Adirondacks because I didn't know what the climbing would be like. Well, I got to Long Lake at 11:45. I stopped at a bakery and had a ham and cheese croissant, then a raspberry cream croissant for dessert. It was a double croissant meal!

 

I pushed on, now setting my sights on Harris Lake campground in Newcomb, 15 miles away. Just like leaving Blue Mountain, there was a climb out of Long Lake. It wasn't quite as steep, though.

 

As I was going up another hill, I could see a couple of cyclists stopped on the other side of the road near the top. When I reached them, I crossed over to talk to them. They were Andrew and...well, her name means Hope in Bulgarian (but I can't even begin to spell it), father and daughter from Maine, going to Oregon. I was kind of surprised. I didn't think I would see any more westbounders by now. They were doing a lot of stealth camping, but were staying in someone's camper in Blue Mountain. 

 

I continued on for another 10 miles. It looked like it was raining up ahead, so I proactively put my rain gear back on. A couple miles later I took it off again because it never started raining. There was a bit of a headwind though.

 

I just rode straight to the campground as there wasn't really anything in Newcomb (even though it's supposed to have all services). Unlike last night, I had to pay for my site tonight, another $25.75. Sheesh!

 

I had set up my tent and taken a shower when the guy camped behind me came walking through my site to go to the restroom. He hadn't noticed that I was there. He apologized for cutting through my site. I told him it was no problem. When he came back he stopped to talk. His name is Tom, and he is here with a hiking group. They have several sites. He's from Utica. Later, I was just sitting down to do my blog post, when Tom asked if I wanted to take his kayak out on the lake. He was going to go swimming, but I could go out in the kayak if I wanted. Of course I wanted to do that! I mean, here I am in the Adirondacks where kayaking and canoeing is the thing (and hiking, of course)! 

 

He got his suit on to go swimming, and we carried the kayak down to the water. He pushed me off from the shore, and told me I could paddle over to the Hudson River (yes, THAT Hudson River). I'd already crossed it twice today as I came into Newcomb, and on the way to the park. 

The Hudson River

Kayaking on Harris Lake

Me in a boat, on a lake, in the Adirondacks

 

 

I paddled where I could see the river, but it was quite a distance away. I paddled back to where Tom was doing his water jogging (he wears a float belt, and runs in the deep water). He told me not to run him over. I paddled back to shore while he jogged.

Water jogging Tom

We carried the boat back to his campsite. It was totally fun kayaking out on the lake! These parks rent canoes, pretty cheap I guess, but the kayak was fun.

 

I cooked my dinner and took it over to Tom's campsite. He cooked his dinner, and some of his hiking friends came over to chat. They were talking hiking like cyclists talk biking--all about the hikes they had planned (seems like all day hikes as opposed to overnight), who was leading, doing certain challenges, and all that. 

 

It started to rain, so I excused myself to go do my dishes and make sure everything was taken care of. I took my food panniers over to do my dishes then park them in the restroom for the night as it's too far to take them to the recycling building like I did last night. I met two gals, I think mother and daughter. We talked for awhile. 

 

I put my panniers in the restroom, then came back to get my toothbrush and brush my teeth. While I was brushing my teeth in the restroom, the rain really started coming down. Well, now I was trapped in the restroom! I stood in there for about 30 minutes (okay, it was probably only 15 or 20), then made a mad dash back to my campsite when it lessened just the slightest. I dove into my tent, and here I remain. It's still raining. I really hope it gets it out of its system by morning!

 

 

Tomorrow I may be in Vermont!