July 23rd lets get wet

Wonderful ride in the morning, absolutely sweltering hot. Rode the Merritt parkway north out of New York. A nice curvy rolling 4 lane highway running through lush forest. It started raining in the afternoon and I got drenched. I chickened out of camping again and found a Best Western for the night. No photos today.

July 22 New York

I spent the day as a tourist today, trying to see as much of New York City as possible in one day. Thanks to D & F for being such great hosts and giving me the New York in a minute tutorial. I started my day by walking around ground zero listening to an audio walking tour which told the story of the buildings and of some of the victims. Incredible stories that yanked at my emotions some.

I walked around a bit and got a glimpse of the Statue of Liberty


and the Brooklyn Bridge



Then a subway trip to the Empire State Building. Here is the view looking north to Central Park


From there a walk to Central Park where I wandered for 2 hours before I got on the subway again to go to a New York Yankees ball game.






The stadium is Incredible. All the workers there were fantastic helping me find my way around.

After the game back on the subway (I'm a pro now) to Times Square to see the huge lighted signs. Quite a sight, very much like Las Vegas.

Then back to the Adventure loft to share my day with my New York hosts.

What a day.

New York

Wow, what an incredible couple of days. Took the ferry from South Baymouth to Tobermory and met a GS rider from Queens. He was heading home after his trip and we spent most of the ferry crossing sharing stories. The Tobermory islands are beautiful and it was good to have a few hours relaxing off the bike.

When I got to Niagara Falls, I was dissapointed because all the parking is quite far off and I had no way of securing the bike.I took a few shots from the road that aren't great but I did get a good look at the falls and they are pretty cool.

New York state has proven to be as beautiful as all the others I have riden through.
The amount of forested areas has surprised me, and the number of classic farms with storybook barns and silos were fun to see.

Still no wild animal sightings but then I got to New York City. People everywhere like ants. All in a hurry but like a symphony, everybody knows the next persons move. Cabs, bike couriers, pedestrians, just what I expected but more intense than I imagined. I like it but it is a different world, especially right in the city.

My hosts are wonderful and love showing visitors their city. Tomorrow will be a walking tour of little italy and the world trade center site. I have to go see the empire state building and central park too. And I will be sampling food all day until I get to Yankee stadium where I may dine on a hot dog or two!

Back into Canada

The upper peninsula of Michigan delivered as promised. Vast forests, a mixture of straight and twisty roads, a great ride. The bridge crossing from Michigan into Ontario was quite a sight but not really a good vantage point to get a photo. I got acquainted with the North shore of Lake Huron today and I like what I see. Almost everywhere I've been so far I find myself thinking that I'd like to spend more time exploring.

Interesting that after 3200km I have seen no wildlife except for 2 wild turkeys that I almost ran over. I thought I saw geese on the road ahead. Naturally I expected them to fly away but as I approached they turned and looked at me while I hit the brakes. Not too bright.

Here are a few photos








Spending the night in South Baymouth Ontario. Tomorrow a short ferry ride to Tobermory, then off to see Niagara falls!!

The Great Lakes

I traversed three states today, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and am now in Ironwood Michigan. Minnesota was incredible, starting with massive corn fields and ending with beautiful forest and plenty of lakes (look up the state slogan). Paul Bunyon says hello to everybody. Arriving in Deluth was impressive with expansive bridges and my first look at Lake Superior.

Having difficulty uploading photos, maybe tomorrow I'll have a better connection

East Across the prairies

The vast Canadian praires with enormous fields of yellow canola seem endless. A beautiful sight.
The past two days traversing the flat straight roads make me feel small. Huge storm cells stayed just minutes ahead of me as I rode, the pavement often wet with that unique humid smell of fresh rain on the road. Multiple times I thought that I would receive a soaking but the clouds stayed clear of me.
I have become aware that I take the condition of Alberta roads for granted. Even the Trans Canada has gravel shoulders in places throughout Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
1800km in two days doesn’t allow much sightseeing but riding through Kelly Buchberger’s home town was a thrill.
Staying at a Motel 6 in Fargo Saturday night. Basic but only $54.00. For that price camping doesn’t seem so appealing at $25/night. I’ll look for more cheap motels if it’s raining but I do like camping when I can.
So far everything is going great and the bike is purring. I did discover what that little red button next to the throttle is. If you press it while travelling.... the bike stalls! Go figure.

3 days to go

In 72 hours I'll be well into the first day of what will be a great adventure. As things turn out, I'll be on my own this trip. Going solo brings both good and bad. No one to share the day with around the campfire but I can set my own pace. Next trip hopefully things will be different.

The bike is ready to go with new tires and all the routine maintenance required...I hope. Today I received my custom seat from Rick Mayer Cycle in California. A little late to be sure but it looks great and seems to fit my behind quite well. I'll know sometime Friday if it was worth the wait.

This trip would not be possible if not for my wonderfully understanding wife. Our 22nd wedding anniversary on Friday and I'll be leaving for 3 weeks....amazing. Thanks too for my co-workers who will take on extra work load while I'm away, I truly do appreciate it.

I'll try and post every few days as the internet permits.

Thanks for following me as I cross the continent!