Rainy days

We woke up a bit soggy this morning. We passed through a few showers yesterday and woke up to misty skies this morning. Last night, we figured out that we are about half way through our journey. We have also changed our route a bit to bypass the flooding and the oil boom crazyness of North Dakota. Yesterday, I (jay) caught my fingers in the moving spokes of my bicycle! What a smart move! My right pointer finger is a bit brooded and puffy, but I don't believe the damage goes farther than that. It could have been alot worst and I don't think I'll be making too many "in flight" adjustments to my bike in the future. We have been traveling with our friend Erik, he is a great person and makes a good riding companion for us! Things are going well and we are making our way

Rolling Along!

We are through the state of Michigan! And about half way through Wisconsin! The roads have flattened out, so as long as the wind isn't blowing too hard against us, the riding is pretty easy going. Along the way we met Randy, he is a serious cyclist and invited us to camp in his back yard. Before we knew it , he and his wife, Edwina, had fed us dinner, let us take showers, let us do laundry and insisted we sleep in their house on real beds! Ev and I feel so lucky to have met such giving people! 
We also met up with our friend Erik from Holland again! What a fantastic surprise when we rolled onto the campsite and saw that he was there! Last night, we shared dinner with our new friends Craig and Sarah. They were vacationing at the campsite with their two daughters and had met a cyclist this time last year at the same campground who was cycling the same route as we are this year. They are such great people and meeting them ended our day in a great way! We hit 1500 miles today!

The people we meet

We are through Canada! I have to say, I became quite fond of the place. We met some great characters along the way. We talked to a guy who studies the clouds that airplanes leave across the sky, with the theory that "they" are using these clouds for weather control, radar, and even mind control! He had also been bit by a moose and says that cucumbers are the breakfast food of champions! They actually aren't a bad start to the day! Next, we met a guy from new Zealand who was riding a 200 lb bike, wrapped in electrical tape and bungee chords. He claimed to carry such things as DVD players and numerous crank radios. He was also about 140 lbs soaking wet and a bit crazy!!! Then there was the German father and daughter who we had dinner with at the campsite. They were great people, their trip would bring them from montreal to Chicago. We also met Erik from Holland, he is biking cross country to meet his daughter and son in law in Portland Oregon. He was pretty awesome, maybe we will cross paths again! 

Riding the Erie Canal/ Oh Canada

Spent all day riding along the mule path of the canal. We were able to cover some good distance, as the path is smooth and flat. Today I met an 86 year man who was riding his road bike down the path. He turned put to be named John Bird, he has run in 20 something marathons including 3 Boston marathons, up until 1991! After keeping up a good pace for
about half and hour as we rode side by side, he told me that if he was a bit younger he'd love to join us on our ride!
Later that day, we met an older couple from New Zealand, they were both very friendly and eager to chat. He was a former cattle farmer and she grew veggies for the restaurant she owned. They both had great accents!
Later, at the campsite, we met two cycle tourers, Adam and Racheal, they were headed the same direction as us. In the morning, we headed out as a group and met Dad and Rob in Lockport for lunch! It was great to see them! Ev and I decided to finish our day early in Lewiston. The city was having an art fair, so we walked though that for a bit. Tomorrow, we are headed a short distance to the Canadian border! "Canadia" here we come!

We are at the Erie canal!

A beautiful day of riding! We covered 75 miles today and now we are tenting alongside the Erie Canal. Lock 30 to be exact. We made a dinner of fresh veggies from a farm stand, cheese, tuna, and a bag of tortilla chips. We finished off the meal with small apple pies we also bought at the stand. I think we are both looking forward to another good night sleep!

Keep pedalin'

Well, we've been making our way across the Empire state (NY)! Day to day, we are seeing our progress on our maps. The weather has been keeping us on our toes lately; we've had some rainy spells and some sunny spells. Last night, we managed to roll into camp about 15 minutes after the skies let go with mighty roars of thunder! By sundown, we were again nice and fairly dry as we took shelter under our makeshift tarp fort!
Today, save for a few showers early morning, was a beautiful day! We rode 60 miles to our campground where our campsite is adjacent to a cycling trio headed toward the east coast. We have met many fine people along the way. Ev and I joke that even the most stone-hearted people tend to soften up a bit when the Aubertin boys pass though town! 

Even mo' hills!

I thought Sunday was supposed to be a day of rest?! Right out of Ticonderoga, the hills started! All day was spent climbing rolling hills as we made our way to the state park in Newcomb (pop. 481). We haven't seen any bears here, but are told that they aren't exactly rare around here. As a safety precaution, we put all our food and stinky soaps in a " bear proof" canister away from the campsite. YIPPIE FOR BEARS!!! even more terrifying than bears are the large, mutant mosquitos that hover outside the tent door waiting to come in for a snack. They seem to crave the sweet smell of freshly-applied bug spray. At the end of the day; after the hills have eaten the energy from your legs, after the bears have eaten your food, after the mosquitoes have drank their fill, we are having a great time of all this!  We are meeting great, friendly people along the way and that makes the mosquitoes tolerable.

Mo' hills

Today, we worked hard; we started our day pretty early and wrapped it up fairly late. We are both tired and just enjoyed a big meal and a few beers at a restaurant down the street from our 70's era motel here in Ticonderoga. After sleeping in the back yard of green Mtn. Cycles's owner, Dune, we started pedaling up Breadloaf mountain. It was by far the most difficult of the climbs so far. Ev received a bit of encouragement from a local rider near the top of the mountain. A long downhill was our reward! After a long ride through eastern vt. Farm country, we took the ferry across lake Champlain. After riding though fort Ticonderoga, we rode into town. Almost immediately, I spotted a fellow cross-country cyclist! His name was Gary and he lives in Oregon. He was almost done with his trip, so he had a few pointers for us, and we for him! What a great chance meeting! We are now planning our route for tomorrow!

Battery is nearly dead... The I pod and figuratively, my own. No time to edit ttyl

Ello there, we are currently in Rochester, vt camped out in back of a bike shop. Yesterday we did 66 miles through hilly north nh finishing the day in enfield. Tomorrow we tackle the most intense climb of the east coast. iPod battery is nearly dead, more details as soon as we charge this thing.
Ev and jay

Ready to Go!

Tomorrow Jay and I embark on our bicycle journey from Manchester, New Hampshire to Portland, Oregon. Today, after packing our panniers, we went on a twelve mile test ride. Fully loaded, the cycles are quite heavy but are geared to accommodate the weight. On my drive home last night I tuned into NPR just in time to catch a segment about cyclists being assaulted by drivers with doors, bottles, etc. Great. timely, very timely. Regardless, we are both excited and will update the blog when ever we have enough patience to type it out on an I pod touch.
Ev and Jay