Cycling the Erie Canal - Day 3 - Pittsford to Seneca Falls

Today was our longest ride (60 miles) and most challenging so far!  But I think it was a very lucky day for me!  (Cue the echoing voice of Lou Gehrig) It started with pouring rain and thunder and lightening that delayed our start and dampened our gear as we packed up. The rain let up a bit as we finally started out and then tapered to a drizzle. That was the last rain for the day. Lucky!  The canal trail was difficult to ride. The section from Pittsford to Fairport, which is newly renovated, had loose, wet stone dust and was very difficult to pedal through. After that we hit mud and periodic huge puddles that covered the trail. It really slowed me down, but also improved my cycling skills!  Lucky!  With the delay and the rough riding, I got to Lock 30 in Macedon in time to see a tug pushing a barge go through the lock!  Lucky!   Somewhere along the trail I lost the cap to one of my water bottles, but lo and behold, when I got to the morning rest stop in Palmyra, I happened to walk next to a man as he announced that he had found a water bottle cap on the trail and had picked it up. Lucky!  Along the rest of the ride there were so many villages offering unofficial rest stops, many with a hose for bike washing. Lucky!  From Lyons to Seneca Falls we left the canal path and took to the roads through farm country and Amish country.  There was a head wind for much of the way and many rolling hills, some longer and/or steeper than others, but the sun was out, the sky was blue, there were puffy white clouds, and the views were spectacular!  Lucky! In the evening they had shuttle busses taking us into Seneca Falls to find dinner and explore. I had a great dinner and then got to go to the Women's Rights National Historic Park, a place I have always wanted to go and never had the chance to before now. Lucky! So, you can see why I say, despite the challenges, today was a very lucky day for me!

Here are some photographs from today's journey.