Some Routes look better on paper.

Monday, October 6:  Corfu to Egypt, NY

This should have been an easy ride.  Rob’s wrist/hand was swollen and painful, but he taped and wrapped it, which helped.  Again, we waited for the rain to clear, and pushed off at 10:00.   In that first hour, we covered 13+ miles, getting through Batavia with ease.  But then, Rob had a flat rear tire.  He switched out the tube (to be patched at the next hotel), and put in enough air to walk the bike to a tire shop across the road (Diane had spotted) for good air .  We were off again, but not for long, because Rob had a second flat.  Fixed and on our way, again finding good air, and then he got a third flat.  Luckily, we again found good air, and on we went. 

Even with all the flats, we expected to be our hotel by 5 o’clock.  Not to be.  The road we had planned to take during our last 10 miles turned out to be a nightmare (Definitely, my bad - Rob) , made worse by rush-hour traffic. (And you know you have really made a bad choice when Google Map's bicycle function starts giving you directions to "go thru the Wendy's parking lot and then take the service road behind Home Depot."). 

Recalculating, we added about five more miles to our day, by heading on to the Erie Canal Heritage Trail, which we biked for several miles, then onto the Rochester-Syracuse and Eastern Trail, which took us within about a mile from the hotel.  These trails are mostly stone-dust, comprising crushed limestone.  Not the best surface for road bikes, but manageable.  But in that last hour, darkness befell us, and then came the rain.  Fortunately, in that last mile, the highway had a wide shoulder.  It was a great relief to arrive safe and sound!  Another good fortune was the Thai restaurant next door!  And our room was modest but functional.  Rob repaired the three tubes, and readied the bikes for the next day.

You don't take many photos when the day's ride starts going sour. Mostly you try to get back on track.  Especially when you have seemingly painted yourself into a corner. Which is what we did as we tried to make NY Route 252 work as a way to avoid Rochester, NY.  Faced with an unrideable  4-lane overpass during rush hour, we improvised by walking the bikes up the median.  Once past this obstacle we threaded our way through the back of a strip mall on to a somewhat safer road.

It was with some relief when we hit the Erie Canal Trail, but the next task was to get to our motel before sundown.

There are times when Diane rides with a certain grim determination - usually at the end of day and especially as the sun  begins  to disappear.  Here Diane is zipping down the trail trying to beat total darkness. As most of you know, Diane really is a most considerate person, but when you are between her and a warm motel room - the other Diane appears. Not too long after this photo, she hollered at a WWII veteran using a walker, "Get over! I am coming through on your left!"

Nope not abstract art. After you patch a tube, it is very good practice to test your work by partially inflating the tube and passing it slowly through a sink partially filed with water. If you have done a good job there will be no telltale bubbles signifying you still have a tube leaking air. Above are the three newly patched tubes ready for their bath.