Our first rest day of the trip was spent in Plattsburgh (May 9th) and it started with a lovely breakfast. The remainder of the day was spent exactly as a rest day should be: reading, doing laundry, napping and eating. While Mark ran some errands, I went for a brief walk around town with Andy and Laura; highlights incuded a book shop and a mosaic mural. We went to bed early preparing for a long 90 mile day to Potsdam.
It was an impossibly foggy morning and the air was thick with moisture. We had our rain jackets on because the forecast had called for a storm. While we didnt get any rain, we were thankful for the jackets because biking through the moist air proved to get us plenty damp. It was a pretty mystical morning overall as we passed numerous wind turbines that disappeared into the heavy fog. Our route was pretty flat and we made it to Potsdam in record time after passing some nice views of the Chateauguay River. We enjoyed some quality burgers at Between the Buns, then headed up to the Clarkson TEP house where my friend Jon Parry (a Clarkson alum) had helped arrange for us to stay. Graduation had been a week before, but the few remaining brothers were very welcoming and set us up with everything that we needed.
The next day, May 11th, I had scheduled a bike fitting at a shop in town called Wear on Earth to address some hand numbness. After many hours, Downtown Coolsville and I were once again ready to take on the world. They even fixed some problems I was having during shifting! It was late afternoon at this point and as we left town we were experiencing gusty headwinds of about 20 mph. Thankfully we were only trying to make it 30 miles to Gouveneur, where a pastor I had contacted earlier in the day has graciously agreed to host us. We got there a little after dark and were greeted by some very excited dogs. After a lovely breakfast in the morning with Pastor Howie and his wife Brenda, we went into town with Howie to help unload a delivery truck at a local food pantry.
Afterwards, we got back on our bikes and headed to Sandy Creek, NY, where we were able to stay with my grandmother’s cousin Katherine (who we had just contacted that day)! I am so thankful for the large network of friends and family that have helped us get through this trip so far. We had dinner at a nearby diner and then were entertained by Katherine’s little dog Roxy, whose energy never ceased. Katherine was kind enough to cook us breakfast in the morning, and then we were off to Skanateales!
My aforementioned friend Jon Parry and his fiancee Jess gave us the royal treatment in this gorgeous little town. Drinks and hors d’ouevres upon arrival, wonderful pets to play with, and a delicious dinner downtown. We didn’t have very many miles planned for the next day, so we were able to take their kayak out on the lake and enjoy the beautiful views. After lunch together, we said our goodbyes and headed to the magnificent little city of Geneva, NY.
As we entered town, we rode through Seneca Lake State Park and my heart was immediately captured. We had made arrangements to stay with a warmshowers host, Jeff, who was offering us camping space on a neat piece of land that also had solar panels and a chicken coop. When we arrived, he met us at the property and said that he could actually offer us an empty apartment because two of his tenants had just moved out that day. Our good luck just never seems to run out. We spent a lot of time chatting with Jeff about his cross country biking expereince as he cleaned up the apartment and offered us all the food the previous tenants had left behind (score). In the morning we met Jeff at the same property we had visited the night before, and he gave us a brief tour. He explained how he runs a chicken co-op, where different families split up the chore list and then share the eggs that are produced. The solar panels power different parts of the coops (and the lawnmower), and he showed us a water collection system he set up under the panels. Jeff then took us to the best bike shop we’ve visited yet - Geneva Bicycle Center. The employees were extremely helpful and knowledgeable and made time for us and our questions because they knew we were in the middle of a tour. I liked the store so much I decided to put one of their stickers on my undefiled, virgin bike frame just for the memories. After grabbing brunch together at a local diner (we really like diners btw), we said our farewells and tearfully departed my newly beloved Geneva. Don’t worry Geneva, I’ll be back for you some day.
