May 2024
After leaving my sister's house in Middleburgh, NY, we made our way to Albany. It rained for the first two days of the tour, but nothing too terrible. After riding south on the Empire State Rail Trail for three days, we finally started heading west. The route was beautiful with forested backroads, creeks and rivers. Part of the route went through the Amish farmlands. Ximena bought some fabric for her quilting project at an Amish Dry Goods store. We only camped two nights since there were not many campgrounds on our route. Also, during the evenings we had rainstorms blow through, so we were happy to be in a nice dry hotel on those nights. Traveling through New York, New Jersey, and into Pennsylvania, the roads were fantastic. Many had been freshly paved with wide shoulders. The drivers were polite and gave us a wide berth when they passed. We met friendly people who stopped and talked to us about our trip. Most were in disbelief that we were riding to California. Passing drivers honked, waved, and gave us a thumbs up. That made us feel like celebrities. We enjoyed riding through small towns with quaint downtowns, old cemeteries, and stopped to eat in local restaurants. It was fun stopping at several points of interest, such as the Pocono Indian Museum, where we met the owner, Mal, in the parking lot. He was impressed with our trip and gave us free passes to the museum. We took a couple of days off at a B&B in Punxsutawney, PA to recover from the 550 miles and 30,000 feet of climbing we had done so far. After riding through the Pocono Mountains, the Appalachians, and the Northern Allegheny Mountains, with some climbs as steep as 17%, we were ready for a break before continuing to Pittsburgh. Until next time…….
What a great adventure. Bonne route from Greg & Stacy!
Thank you sharing your adventures. Life is pretty awesome, ain’t it 😀?