Day 5 North Hero Island to Mooers, NY

Miles: 33.8 miles
Actual ride time in saddle: 2 hr 26 min
Average speed: 13.8 mph
Max speed: 28 mph

The final day had a perfect start. We woke to the sounds of water lapping the boats docked below our window and the sun rising over the Green Mountains. Tom took a quick swim in the lake before breakfast. The North Hero House puts on a nice buffet breakfast which consisted of eggs, flap jacks, fruit (meat for those who desire) and lots of muffins and breads.

After our morning nourishment we packed up for our final trek home. The sun was hot already at 9:30 and we were warned that it was going to approach 90 so we were eager to get moving. Traffic wasn’t quite as bad as yesterday and we had the wind at our back when we started. We felt optimistic.

The ride down West Shore Road was very scenic and relatively flat. However, when we headed over to New York and South on Route 11 we had a head wind and some steady small inclines that made it tough riding in the heat.

We were determined to keep a good pace to get back to Mooers before noon. For some reason the last few miles before we get to our destination are always the longest.

We arrived dripping with sweat by about 12:15. Dad and Claudette had made a banner to welcome us. It was a great trip and we are happy to have accomplished so many miles and seen so many beautiful things. We probably won’t do this particular ride again, but we really have some great memories.

Day 4 South Burlington to North Hero Island

Miles: 47.6 miles
Actual ride time in saddle: 4 hr 2 min
Average speed: 11.7 mph
Max speed: 29.5 mph

The morning started out with a leisurely ride through the bike paths of Burlington. The path wound through neighborhoods and parks and eventually took us down to the waterfront where we followed the lake for quite a while. The lakefront view was spectacular and the bike path and bridges are in great shape. The biggest hazard of the morning was dealing with the walkers, bikers, families and joggers who also shared the bike path. We rarely got to 10 mph. Once we got to Colchester the path was a maze of turns through more neighborhoods that fortunately were well marked, but unfortunately added about 10 miles and what seemed like a couple of hours to the trip. It was a beautiful ride though and we would definitely do it again.

After leaving the bike path however, we traveled on routes 2 and 7 and found it to have the most and fastest moving traffic that we encountered so far. For the most part, there was at least a narrow bike path, but the traffic was constant and fast. The good news was that we were also able to crank up the pace. Route 2 brought us directly to the islands with a relatively good shoulder but there were numerous gradual long inclines that tired us out in the highest heat of the day.

We were starving by the time we got to South Hero, and stopped for lunch at one of the first places we could find, Seb’s, which was a real disappointment. The food was greasy and the bees were a nuisance. Traveling again, we had to stop to hydrate and cool down after many of the slow climbs because of the heat. The last few miles were the most challenging -- only because of the heat. We found ourselves stopping just three miles from our destination to cool our sweaty and tired bodies on the shaded grass under a lonely pear tree we saw along the way.

It was worth the trip though, because once we got to our lakeside room at the North Hero House we changed and went for a refreshing swim in Lake Champlain. The water was cool and clean and the day seemed almost perfect. We hung out for a couple of hours and sat on lounge chairs taking in the incredible view of the mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire.

Dinner reservations were for 7:15 and we enjoyed Atlantic Salmon, a delicious field green salad, gazpacho, chocolate lava cake and a flourless chocolate torte for dessert along with a bottle of Fess Parker Pinot Noir.

After dinner we viewed the stars from the hot tub on the beach. Now I am finishing the blog on our private screened in porch while Tom enjoys the hammock. It has been a wonderful and challenging week.

We soon begin our last trek back to where we started. Thanks to all of our followers who have given us encouragement. We really appreciate each of your comments.

Day 3 Ticonderoga to South Burlington

Miles: 78 miles
Actual miles ridden: 22.4 miles
Actual ride time in saddle: 2 hrs 11 minutes
Average speed: 10.1 mph
Max speed: 31 mph

Ok. We never made any promises here. Today we decided to take it easy. We left Ticonderoga after breakfast and caught the 8 am ferry over to Vermont.

After about a mile or so, we turned onto Smith Street and traveled about 6 miles on unpaved roads. Tom’s mountain bike definitely handled better than my touring tires, but for the most part my bike was fine. However, the gravel really cut into our time. You just can’t go fast even on level ground in gravel, the relatively small hills we encountered would have been no problem on pavement but with the weight of bags maneuvering though the gravel was tough.

The view of Lake Champlain and the Adirondack mountains from the Vermont side was exceptional. Once we got on pavement it was truly an enjoyable ride. The vacation I imagined – a few rolling hills, but for the most part it was pleasant and scenic. There wasn’t much around besides farms and orchards but we almost always had a great view. I love Vermont!

About 10:30 am we passed the Bridge Restaurant and ice cream shop at Chimney Point and felt compelled to pay homage to the local establishment. We each ordered a chocolate shake and enjoyed it under the shaded picnic area.

We headed toward Vergennes where we met up with Dad and Claudette for lunch. Before eating we took in a quick view of the Vergennes Falls, which were pretty impressive.











As we walked to the restaurant, we were surprised by Monique and her friend Jill who stopped by to cheer us on. They joined us for a delicious lunch at the popular 3 Squares Cafe on Main Street.

After lunch the sun was heating up and we succumbed to some real arm twisting and took a ride into South Burlington to our next hotel. Why not? It would give us time to visit the Magic Hat Brewing Co. with Monique and Jill. Besides, I’ll admit 78 miles on day 3 was a little ambitious.

We did a self-guided tour of the Magic Hat Brewery and tasted a few samples. We especially enjoyed the Summer Wacko brew and the Brown Rice Ale.

Afterwards we headed into Burlington and ate dinner at the Skinny Pancake. It is a great local restaurant a block from the lake that serves organic and locally grown food. They have a huge selection of savory and sweet crepes – hence the name Skinny Pancake. They had some great vegetarian options for us too. We sat outside and enjoyed the sights as we talked over an incredibly delicious meal. Although it would have been nice to stay for the live music, timing just wasn’t right.

Jill insisted she buy ice cream for dessert. So we crossed the street and had some local island homemade ice cream. We walked to the docks and captured a few great views and got familiar with the bike path entrance that we will be taking tomorrow. All in all it was a great day with a few fun twists that made it feel more like a vacation day.

Everyone has left and we are left in our hotel room with our bikes, so tomorrow we pedal through Burlington to North Hero Island. It should be a relatively flat and scenic ride. We’re really looking forward to it.

Day 2 Essex to Ticonderoga

Miles: 40.5
Actual ride time in saddle: 3 hr 39 minutes
Average speed: 11 mph
Max speed: 33 mph

We got a late start because the B&B we stayed at didn't serve breakfast until 8am. We did enjoy a delicious meal of scrambled eggs and French toast as we sat on the porch of the B&B and looked out at the quaint village. We had thunder showers in the night, but the morning sun was promising. We were on the road about 9:30 headed out of Essex toward Ticonderoga and immediately encountered more hills!! Did we say how much we hate hills? We have affectionately named these hills heart attack hills. Our training in Rochester was definitely inadequate. We rarely needed to use the small front sprocket prior to the trip, but found we could have used more – a little motor would have been nice. Hills after hills, and when we thought we surely must have been through with the worst, there was another. Yes, it is definite; we will not do this trip again. We’re thinking more like a leisurely bike tour through Niagara at the Lake might be nice. Anyone interested?

Although we were happy it wasn’t raining, the humidity and heat was intense and made climbing the hills that much harder. In fact, we could feel the heat from the pavement as we rode. There were a few points that we did feel a nice breeze off the lake and were able to enjoy the scenery. Most the time however, we were cursing the hills or praying that we could make it to the top.

It was a relatively nice ride from Westport to Port Henry – a lot of long rolling hills. Once we made it to Port Henry, we stopped to cool down at a picnic table in town and had a sandwich from a local diner called Helen’s Kitchen. It was fuel much needed. We realized this as we tackled a few more hills as we left town.

Leaving Port Henry on Rt 22 we found more gradual long hills, which were still intimidating in the heat, but not as bad as the steep heart attack hills. The worst was dealing with the heavy traffic which included tractor trailers and logging trucks. There were times when the shoulders were wide and it was not a problem, but there were other times when there was no shoulder at all. That was pretty frightening especially when traffic was going in both directions approaching a hill.

We missed a turn that should have taken us off Rt 22 for a while, so we probably missed a scenic portion of the route because we stayed on Rt 22 until we got to Crown Point where we could reconnect with the planned route. It seemed like a long 10 miles from there to Ticonderoga. It didn’t help that we missed another turn. (We made daily route directions and had that attached to our bike. see pic) It wasn’t so bad since it gave us the opportunity to actually ride through the village of Ticonderoga before arriving at the hotel. The only problem was the black clouds hovering over us. We tried to pick up our pace, but honestly we were too exhausted to ride fast at this point. About 1 mile from the hotel the sky opened up and we were soaked! As hot as we were, it actually felt good, but it really wasn’t safe riding. Stopping in the rain is more challenging and the rain on our glasses made for very poor visibility. I walked into the lobby of the hotel soaking wet, but luckily the hotel attendant was very pleasant and gave us rags to wipe down our bikes before we brought them into our room.

After showering away the grit of the road and warming up from cool rain, we went into the hotel restaurant/pub and enjoyed a drink and appetizer while we loaded last night’s blog (since the wireless at the B&B we stayed at last night was useless). It was pasta night so we ordered dinner– which we thoroughly enjoyed. We are so happy to be in a nice hotel and also enjoyed relaxing in the whirlpool. What adventures await us tomorrow??

Day 1 Mooers to Essex

Miles: 68
Actual ride time in saddle: 5 hr 30 minutes
Average speed: 12.2 Max speed 39 mph

Due to wireless problems at our B&B we weren't able to post this yesterday.
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Left at 8 am this morning. It had already rained by the time we hit the road, so all we got was some backsplash. Other than that, the weather was actually pretty nice.

We have to admit that since we are not exactly in our prime shape of our young lives, we seriously considered asking dad to take us part of the way. However, since the route from his house to Plattsburgh is relatively flat, we decided to go the whole 68 miles and we are glad we did. It was a scenic and peaceful ride with very little traffic. We rode along the Chazy river to where it merged into Lake Champlain. The lake to our left and farmland and orchards to our right was just spectacular and flat! It was a beautiful ride and we were able to cruise along even with 18 and 20 pounds of bags on our bikes and average 15 mph.

We stopped at Peru Dock Boat launch just south of Plattsburg, 39 miles into the ride about 11:40am. We had our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on our favorite marathon bread from Wegmans, and a Clif Energy drink. We sat at the lake and had a nice view of Valcour Island with light house.

After lunch things got tough. We had two big hills on our way to Ausable Chasm. It was worth the climb with the beautiful view. The sun was heating up and it was starting to get very humid, but we had no idea what was ahead of us!!!

First, we had to climb over a guardrail to cross a closed bridge to continue on our planned route. Don’t worry, we checked for safety first!! Once across we began a series of large climbs that really kicked our butts! We went through a lot of water to stay hydrated and had to make quite a few stops to attempt to cool down. Our route took us through the Adirondack park along Highlands Rd, which we soon realized was aptly named. It was a steady ascent between Rattlesnake and Lynch Mountains (both 1300 plus feet).

Then we started a series of steep winding downhills which at first were a blast, but then getting up to 39 mph on a bike with traffic behind you and uneven pavement and curves, it was down right scary. But on the bright side, (aside from surviving) it helped make up for the slow climbs.

Once we made it into Willsboro, and stopped to hydrate with multiple energy drinks we felt much better. Only 6.5 miles to go to our destination, we felt tired and sore, but were optimistic being so close. It was a relatively short ride into Essex. We arrived at the Essex Inn and after showering went over to the Essex Ice Cream Shop for the biggest dissapointment of the day – they were closed. We decided to go right over to the The Dock House restaurant and have dinner, since there really wasn’t anything else open in town. Actually there wasn't really much else in town.

Dinner was good, but I think we paid more for the view than the meal, but we ate it all. It was enjoyable eating outside as we watched the ferry come across from Vermont while discreetly icing our sore knees under the table.

Luck was on our side after dinner, we found the ice cream shop open. After telling her our woes of our first visit, the women said they closed for dinner. Only in a small town!!

Not exactly looking forward to Day 2 at the moment, but we don’t really have much choice. Tom said next time he picks the vacation.

Ready to go

All packed up and ready to go. We had a great breakfast with Claudette and Dad. Now we are just wishing the clouds would go away, but it looks like we start out with rain gear.

The Bike Route

The map to the left shows our intended route. We begin at dad's house in Mooers, New York heading south along the lake. We plan to take the ferry over to Vermont at Ticonderoga and then work our way back up the other side through the islands and cross at Rouses Point back to dad's.

The elevation below shows what we have to look forward to. We'll tackle the tough stuff first. The route was designed around destination points so we will have some long days and some easy days.