Erie Canal – Michele Across America

Tough day! Good thing only 3 to go! Then I remembered seeing this on silos in several states along the way. I think I must have been getting a message.

Today was a little shorter – only 85 miles but I had a mild headwind all day and seemed to do a lot of climbing. It was pretty, even though it wasn’t sure if it wanted to rain or not all day. I rode along the Mohawk River and Erie Canal mostly on a bike trail but about half of it was packed gravel and dirt so tough to keep speed up.

Towards the end, I was on a fun path! Albany has had a lot of rain recently, so portions of it were flooded. Walked around a few spots…

Made it to my sister’s house near Albany and she and her family had fun telling the SAG team lot’s of stories. And yes, they’re that much taller than me!

For a nice surprise, my high school buddy Tami came by! She only lives about a mile away from my sister. 🙂

While I was on the Canal Trail today, I must have seen a hundred cotton tail bunnies…

so unfortunately, this song played over and over in my head all day – now it will in yours! You’re welcome! 🙂

Ride on!

They say you can’t go back home again once you’ve left. I beg to differ. I always love going home! Home is not just the place. It’s the people. It’s always good to re-connect with family and friends.

Today, I rode home to the Mohawk Valley. We are staying in Ilion which is right next to Herkimer where I am actually from. My Uncle Carl and many cousins live in Ilion and there is a great stop there at the Marina on the Mohawk River/Erie Canal. My sisters and several of my cousins were there to greet me as I rolled in. (Given their history, I sort of thought I’d get a 21 bun salute!) This is a short post because we had a big cook out at their house. I didn’t even take any pictures!

Sharon, a friend since Kindergarten stopped by to say “hi” too! Can you tell which ones we are?