Day 113, the Erie Canal

It rained all night.

And well into the morning. Eventually, after sitting in my tent awake for nearly two hours, I opted to cut my losses and pack up.

I took down camp as fast as possible and headed towards a covered pavilion I saw last night.

A few minutes after taking shelter in the pavilion, the downpour eased to a light drizzle. Regardless, it was coffee time.

The view of Lake Ontario was perfect.

Some days I am excited to hop on the bike. This is not one of those days. I watched a movie on Netflix for a while, drinking coffee, letting the rain continue to fall. I chatted with one of the park employees for a bit, trying to convince her to go on a bike tour - the weather was not working to my advantage.

I cut back down from the lake to the Erie Canal out of Lockeport. A bike trail runs parallel to the waterway across the state of New York. Just before hitting the canal, I found this river.

It doesn't look like much, but it had a strange phenomenon going on. The top layer was completely flat. Absolutely still. But right beneath that film of water and algae, the water was moving - and you could see the ripples and current. I've never seen anything like it.

Once on the canal, it was a straight shot to Holley New York. I spent the ride admiring all the houses, fields and yards along the canal - waving at the boaters and kayakers.

Definitely the most fitting play structure for the area.

And remember my favorite tree, the weeping willow? They were everywhere.

I don't remember the water being that green... but I guess it was.

While crossing over a dam, I met a few cycle tourists. The bike path changes from a nice crushed rock trail, lined with grass to a sheer drop on one side, complete with rapids and falls. Right in the middle, John & Nate showed up.

They are riding from Rochester to Buffalo and back, taking advantage of the weekend. That also explains why they can pack so lightly.

They said they found a bridge, a couple miles down the path, crossing the canal but isolated from the road. The connecting segments had been torn down. So they climbed one of the pillars to jump off into the canal. Far more adventurous than me.

We bid each other safe travels and pressed on.

The canal path stayed beautiful, all the way into Holley.

I heard the town had a boat dock that bicyclists can also use for camping and showers.

When I showed up, there were four people seated at a picnic table next to the sailboats docked alongside the path. They introduced themselves: Ericha & Curtis from Detroit, and Matt & Bernice from Wisconsin. Both sailing down the canal to the Atlantic Ocean, and eventually to the Bahamas.

The weather turned and Ericha suggested we continue the party on their boat.

Bernice, Matt, Curtis & Ericha.

We had a fantastic evening; fresh food Bernice prepared from the market, and wonderful conversation filled with nautical terms I didn't understand. But I learned a lot.

And now I know that the halyard is one of the many ropes on a sailboat. And you should not refer to the ropes as... well, ropes.

Thank you so much for including me in your adventures.

Safe travels and enjoy the Bahamas!

Joe