Day 8: Hammonton, NJ to Dewey Beach, DE 80 miles

This picture is of the people who made the 1:00 ferry from Cape May, NJ to Rehoboth Delaware.

We had to ride 70 miles from Hammonton to get to the ferry. Jan, who is in front center and Stuart who is kneeling made it just as the boat was getting ready to raise the on ramp. It wasn't a big deal since there was another ferry at 2:30 that the rest of the group made but who wants to be on the last boat to Delaware?

I think I needed a rest. After breakfast this morning I went back to bed. I don't recall ever doing that. Maybe it will start a new trend. Or maybe I'll just ask Barbara to start serving me breakfast in bed. It will save a few steps.

Dewey Beach is closing up for the winter. Many of the restaurants and shops are closed and some are only open on the weekend. Today though is summer-like, temperature in the 70's and sunny

Tomorrow were off to Pokomoke, MD. If this cold front pushes through we should have a tail wind which would be really nice.

Day 7: Somerset, NJ to Hammonton, NJ, 79 miles

Saw this sign when we stopped to fix Michel's flat. Given that we're we riding bicycles in the rain in heavy traffic, it seemed like an appropriate name for this ride.

We're in what is called South Jersey. It's pretty rural with some dairy farms and around Hammonton big fields of blueberries.

Tomorrow we're taking the ferry across Delaware Bay. It's 70 miles to the ferry landing. There's an 11:00 which I won't make and a 1:00 which I plan to make. It's a 90 minute ride so I hope the weather is good. After the ferry we ride 10 more miles to someplace called Dewey Beach and a rest day.

Day 6 Suffern, NY to Somerset, NJ 64 miles

Today we rode through the New Jersey suburbs. Lots and lots of stop and go. Northern New Jersey is one big suburb. It's kind of like riding 64 miles down Union Ave in Salem. Lots of well-kept houses and green lawns. Many stops and many turns. The longest segment without a stop or turn was 3.5 miles. In Kansas you can ride 35 miles without a stop or turn.

We only got a little bit lost one time. Somehow we missed a turn and rode about 2 miles off route. A nice lady out walking her dog got us straightened out. Stuart, the retired doc from Florida, always gets lost and in true fashion he did today too.

Everyone seems to be holding up pretty well. We've had two minor crashes. Mike, from Connecticut, went down the first day in the rain. He may have cracked a rib and is riding with a taped up chest. Stuart hit a bad patch of pavement and got a few scrapes and bruises.

Not a lot of picture opportunities today. The one in this post is the only one I took today.

Tomorrow were off to Hammonton, NJ. I'm told they grow a lot of blueberries there.

(I tried to put in picture but for some reason it's not letting me.)

Day 5: Fishkill, NY t0 Suffern, NY, 53 miles

The picture below is looking north towards West Point from a bridge on the Hudson River. We arrived here about 10:00 this morning. The next bridge south is the Tappan Zee bridge so we're not that far from NYC.

.

After we crossed the Hudson we went through a state park.A very nice ride but we had to walk our bikes across the washed out section you see on the right. It must have been quite a rain storm.

No other problems other than lots of traffic. The drivers though have been pretty friendly which would seem to be out of character for New York. We do see a good number of other cyclists on the road so perhaps they're conditioned to seeing bikes on the road.

Tomorrow we're off to Somerset, NJ.

Day 4: Windsor Locks To Fishkill, NY 93 miles

I didn't write anything yesterday because I didn't have any energy left. They said this segment would be the toughest and they weren't kidding. Several of the group said the hell with it at various points and rode in the van.

What made it tough is that we had to cross through the Berkshire Mountains in western Connecticut. They're not much as mountains go but some of the climbs were steep and some were long. In total about 6000 feet of climbing. The Berkshires are a weekend retreat for NYC so there was a lot of traffic too.

A bit of trivia. Why is it called Fishkill? They may kill some fish here but "kill" is Dutch for "creek". So there you are. Remember that the next time someone asks you about Fishkill, NY.

Today should be easier - 53 miles to Suffern, NY.

Day3: Worcester, MA to Windsor Locks, CT 67 miles

Here's a picture of where a tornado cut through near Brimfield, CT back in June.

I don't remember seeing anything about in the news so it was a little shocking to come around a curve in the road and see this. In tornado fashion it wrecked some houses and left others intact.

Today went well. The forecast was for rain in the morning but they got that one wrong - just fog.

I rode the last 35 miles with a Jim, a retired chemistry professor from California. He probably goes 140lbs soaking wet but is a real animal on the bike. I couldn't keep up with him on the hills. He never stands on the pedals just pumps away sitting down. Next time I'll just let him go.

Tomorrow is going to be hard - 95 mile and lots of hills. Like Super Chicken used to say " You knew the job was dangerous when you took it"

Day2 Portsmouth, NH to Worcester, MA 93 miles

Here's a picture of Michel and I having lunch at a posh bistro outside of Worcester. This was taken just before it started raining again. We split a turkey sandwich ( the French word for sandwich is sandwich) and drank chocolate milk. I won't go into the details but I will never drank a quart of chocolate milk and then get on a bike.

Like Slaby (I hate to bitch) but today was tough. Rough roads, narrow roads, lots of hills, lots of traffic and a pretty hard rain shower. Tomorrow is shorter but the weather is calling for steady rain all morning. I'm starting to get used to it. You can only get so wet and at least it's not cold.

Tomorrow we're headed for Windsor Locks, CT.

Day 1: Portland, Me to Portsmouth, NH 70 miles

Seventy miles of fairly continuous light rain. It's stopped for now but the forecast is for more tomorrow and Saturday. So it goes.

This is a picture of the bridge to Portsmouth. It's being repaired and only open to foot traffic. I guess I look a little goofy with a shower cap on my helmet but it kept my head dry. Besides what else would you wear in a rain shower? At this point the only thing dry was my head.

Michel and I were riding along Route 1A in the rain coming into Portsmouth when we saw a lady up ahead waving her arms. It was my sister-in-law Sue and my brother Jim. They told me they were driving from Boston to Bar Harbor to spend a few days and might pass us on the way. You never know who you'll run into up here.

We rode by the Bush estate in Kennebunkport. It sits out on a point and looks like old money.

Tomorrow we're going to Worcester, MA. In this part of the country it's pronounced Wussta.