Bike The Lake Day 6 - Walcott To Brockport

Day 6 started with the challenge of getting all our gear down two flights of narrow stairs at the Walcott Hotel! Once that was accomplished it was off to McDonald's for breakfast.

The morning was sunny but cool and the West head wind was pretty light early on. We started out on highway 104 which is a pretty main road but traffic was light and all the major roads have a really wide paved shoulder.  The roads have been really good here.

After a little while we turned off the main road and found Ridge Rd,  which basically runs parallel to 104 but is much less busy.  The first few hours were pretty uneventful, which was nice.   We saw lots of Apple orchards and encountered a few rolling hills, but nothing like yesterday.

We hit up another Subway in a small town and had half a sub to keep us going. Soon we were at the out skirts of Rochester and we headed south to avoid downtown and find the Erie Canal Trail.

After a short while we manage to find the Canal Trail and met a local cyclist who was interested in our travels. We chatted for a bit and rode with him on the trail for a while.  He was on his way to work, so he took off and we crusied on at a slower pace.  We came across one of the many locks on the Canal, so we stopped and had a little break to eat the rest of our Subway.

After a little rest we headed on to Brockport, which was pretty much right on the Canal trail. The canal trail was really nice,  the first 15+ km in Rochester were all paved and was really nice riding along the water.

West of Rochester the pavement ended but the trail was hard pack gravel that was just about as smooth as some of the roads we've been on.   So we continued on and followed the Canal trail right into Brockport. It was nice not dealing with any cars and just cruising along.

Once we hit Brockport we found our hotel and were happy it was much nicer than the Wolcott Hotel!

Today was a nice day, not too long and again we had nice roads and a wonderful trail to ride on. The drivers in New York state seem to be much better at sharing the roads with cyclists and always wait to pass and give you lots of room.  Seems much better than Ontario.

All said, it was a little over 120 km on the bike.

Looking forward to getting back to Canada tomorrow and seeing my wonderful wife Marissa and my little boy Jack!

Bike The Lake Day 5 - Watertown To Walcott

Day 5 brought on the turning point of our trip as we were past the half way point and starting to head in a Westerly direction!  Of course that also meant we would most likely be dealing with a West head wind and that is exactly what we got.

The morning started off sunny but cool,  at around 15 C,  and as soon as we got on the roads the head wind was pretty intense.  Our first 30 km was straight West into the wind,  which was probably blowing about 20 to 30+ km/hr.  We soon started trading pulling into the wind, with each of us taking a turn at front for 2 km and then switching it around to get the draft.  This helped a lot, and we knocked off the km's at a decent pace (for us).

Around 40 km I heard the tell tale "pop" from my rear wheel and knew I broke a spoke! We stopped and took the damage spoke out so it would let get stuck in anything.   I actually thought about bring spare spokes... but I didn't, oops.  So I get on the phone and look for a bike shop in the area (which was really in the middle of no where at this point).

Google said there was a shop called Cornell's Pedal and Paddle about 18 km away, close to Pulaski, so off we went.  There wasn't much to do but ride with it so I opened up my rear brake so the wheel wouldn't rub, it was pretty out of true after the spoke broke.  The bike worked pretty well and didn't seem to affected.

So we roll up to Cornell's and the sign says going out of business sale and the shop is all closed up! No one home!  Not very helpful.

It was close to lunch so we pulled out the Subway sandwiches we bought earlier  and had a little break.  After some food,  I took the rear wheel off and had a look at it, couldn't do much but I loosened a few spokes off beside the one that broke so they wouldn't be in so much tension. Got the phone out again and found a bike shop in Oswego, another 25 km away,  along out route. So off we went again. This one looked more promising.

We didn't get very far though before I had another problem with my rear tire, it was going flat! Not sure why or what caused the slow leak but had to take off the panniers again,  pull off the wheel and change the tube. Checked for cut or holes in the tire but didn't find any so I put  a new tube in and got it all back together and we took off for Oswego.

At this point I was a bit nervous about my bike situation, would I break another spoke of flat another tire! 

We rode so big hills getting to Oswego but my bike held together, now would the bike shop be able to help fix it? We found Murdock's Bicycles and Sports easily and went to talk to the mechanic. He said,  sure I can fix that and I wheeled my bike in.

So Kochi and I hung around in the shop and about 5 minutes later the mechanic, Chris I think his name was, says he doesn't have a spoke the right size but he's going to make me one that will fit!  How's that for service, willing to help me out right away and make me a spoke when he didn't have one, awesome!

After about 30 minutes he had it all back together and working good! I asked him what I owed him and get this, he say,  $1.95... for the spoke, that's all. I said what about the labour, for your time, and he tells me they don't charge labour to cyclists that need help while on touring rides.  Needless to say I was really impressed with this shop and them being so willing to help me for almost nothing! The cycling community can be awesome like that, I love it.  

So bike finally all back together, it was time for the other half of my subway sandwich and then we headed for Wolcott. By this time it was about 3pm and we had another 40 km to go yet.

I hadn't mentioned it but the roads and scenery were really nice today too.   The road had a huge paved shoulder almost the entire day with lots of rolling countryside and nice views.

Now once we left Oswego we encountered so many hills, it was ridiculous and amazing at the same time.  The terrain map of the area is speckled with hills all over the place,  it really is pretty cool,  but a bit tiring on the bike, especially after 100 km of riding.  We battled on and both really enjoyed the hills and cool views and great road!

Around 5:30 pm we finally rolled into Wolcott.  it wasn't hard to find our hotel in the small one street village. I had to go to the bar to check in, amongst the patrons drinking and smoking, while I'm in my full lycra cycling gear!

Now this hotel is your typical small town bar / hotel with the rooms above the bar and main street. Our room is on the third floor and to get up there was two narrow stair cases and a bunch of doors, lots of fun.  The floors in this place are crazy angled and slopped and I amazed the place is still standing. But it has two beds and a decent shower so we're happy.

So that was our day, full of adventure, adversity and some of the best cycling I've ever done! Love it!

Total was just under 130 km.

Bike The Lake Day 4 - Picton To Watertown.

Day 4 of our trip was going to be an exciting and long day. Unfortunately it also starting with heavy rain! Was thinking about Rule #9 as we left the hotel.

Today we had 3 ferry crossings to deal with so we had to schedule our ride a bit more then normal.  We left the hotel at 7:30 and headed for Tim Hortons for breakfast. After a quick breakfast it seemed to be raining even harder but we had to leave to chatch our first ferry.

The first  ferry from Glonora wasn't to far away but by the time we got there we were  pretty soaked.   My new Sugoi rain jacket worked well but still couldn't repel all the water! A nice ferry worker let us hide out in a sheltered area on the ferry.

Once we got off the ferry the rain actually let up and soon after it even stopped. The road was really nice with very little traffic and nice scenery. Unfortunately after an hour it started raining again,  but only lasted about 20 minutes.

About halfway to Kingston an OPP cruiser passed us, then pulled over and waved us down. He just wanted to chat and see where we were going. Was a nice guy,  guess he stops most of the touring cyclists to see what they're up too. Maybe he wasn't too busy today!

After that we pushed on to Kingston trying to get the 11:30 ferry to Wolfe island.   We almost made it,  but due to some construction and lots of red lights we just barely missed it.  Was no biggie,  we just went for lunch at Subway and waited for the next ferry.

The road to Kingston, highway 33, had some great Lake views and was one of the nicest sections so far. 

Once we got to Wolfe Island we stopped for a little break at a coffee shop since we thought we'd have to wait a while at the next ferry crossing to the US.  We slowly cruised across Wolfe Island and met Richard, a fellow cyclist.   He had already rounded Lake Erie and now was doing Lake Ontario, the opposite direction to us. He was more hardcore,  with full camping gear.  Wolfe Island was a nice little spot,  lots of wind turbines and almost no traffic. Road was quiet and great for riding on.

We got to our last ferry crossing, to the US, a half hour before it was scheduled to leave by there were a few cars waiting so the very nice ferry Captain took us across early!

Entry to the US was a breeze and then we headed for Watertown. As soon as we got into New York,  the sun came out and it turned into a beautiful day.  We had a bit of a head wind but the road was in great shape and it felt good to be riding in the States, and also heading south for the first time.

After a few more hours we made it to our hotel and celebrated the half way point of our trip. 

Today was a long day, but the riding felt a bit better due to all the breaks we had to take for the ferries. It was enjoyable,  even with the rain. We might need to take some more breaks tomorrow,  as it could be a long one too!

All said,  today was about 125 km (including the ferries).  Part 1. Part 2

Bike The Lake Day 3 - Cobourg To Picton

Our shortest day of the trip started with cool temperatures (15 C) and a forecast for sun all day.   Turned out we didn't really see the sun at all but the cooler over cast day was fine with us.

The route today mainly followed  the Waterfront Trail, which was mostly on highway 33, also known as the Loyalists Highway.   The roads we okay,  a bit bumpy and also pretty busy. Almost always had a bike Lane so it wasn't so bad.  

The distance today wasn't really long but both us were starting to feel the affects of the miles.   My legs we a bit more tired today and my butt didn't like it much either!  Really it wasn't too bad though with mostly flat roads and almost no wind to deal with.

We had a short morning, made slightly longer by a 15 minute wait at a railway crossing, but got to Brighton around 11:30 for lunch.   Found a nice place on the water, a little by accident, called Douglass On The Bay. 

Right after lunch I noticed the headset on my bike was pretty loose and needed some fixing. Luckily I had the skinny wrench needed for the lock nut but no other wrench big enough to tighten the jam nut.   Google told me there was a hardware store back a few km's into downtown Brighton so off we went.  Had to buy a $14 adjustable wrench,  but it did the trick.

Other than that my bike has been working great. Kochi's bike has been pretty good too but is making some funny creaking noises. Not sure what it is, but don't seem to be causing any real trouble.  

The afternoon ride went smooth with lots of Lake views and nice houses to look at.  We made it to Picton in good time and even found another LCBO to get a few beers at!

Tonight we're at the Picton Harbour Inn,  which has a great harbour front view but the rooms are a bit old and dated.   It does the job though.

Today was physically harder then we were  both expecting so hopefully tomorrow goes a bit better.

All said, it was around 105 km on the road today.

Bike The Lake - Day 2. Richmond Hill to Cobourg

Day 2 of our cycling trip started with rain and wet roads.   Forecast for the day was 15+ mm of rain so we were expecting to get wet.   It was already really humid at 9 am.

The morning routed seemed to be full of construction and detours. The bridge was under construction on Whitevale Rd but we managed to get around a few barriers and made our way across.

Heading south towards Pickering the skies turned really dark and we were sure we were going to get wet.   Somehow though we managed to avoid the rain all day and by 2 pm the sun actually started to come out!

By Whitby we found the Waterfront Trail and saw lake Ontario for the first time! We followed the trail pretty much all the way to Cobourg.

The Trail was nice,  very quiet and lots of amazing views of the lake and some really nice houses. We stopped in Port Hope for a little break before heading to Cobourg. It was really nice to get out of the greater Toronto area and away from all the traffic.

As soon as we hit Cobourg we saw an LCBO,  so we had so stop for a couple of cold tall boys!

Found our hotel without too much trouble and all said and done we rode about 130 km in about six hours. 

Has a nice dinner in downtown Cobourg  and then enjoyed a bit of sun at the beach.   It really did turn into a beautiful day!

So far everything has gone smoothly,  bikes are working well and my legs have been feeling good.  Tomorrow is a "shorter" 100 km day,  which we're looking forward too!

I have to mention my Garmin Edge 510 gps bike computer had been awesome. I made up all my routes on Starva and then loaded them into my Garmin. The Garmin doesn't show full map info like a car gps but it tells me every corner I need to turn at,  which is very cool and really helpful! No need to look at paper  maps or my cell phone.

Bike The Lake (BTL) Day 1 - Waterloo To Richmond Hill

First day of my first ever cycling trip is finally here! My friend Kochi and I are biking around lake Ontario over the next 8 days.

Took a fair bit of time figuring out what to pack but managed to get everything in my pannier bags. Weight of both bags together was about 24 lbs which isn't too bad.

This morning at about 9 am we headed out. It was nice and sunny and warm.

Morning ride went great, nice easy rolling with a slight tail wind. Stopped in Georgetown for lunch.

After lunch it was getting really warm, but not bad while riding. Went through a nice little town called Klienburg, where a couple of weddings were going on. After Klienburg the roads seemed to get really hilly and the legs started to feel it.

The last little bit into Richmond Hill was pretty busy with lots of traffic, not so fun.

We found our luxury hotel.. Travel lodge... after about 139 km and a little over 6 hours on the bike. Was a pretty relaxed paced today which was probably a good way to start!

Great day all around!