Day 3 - Midwest Tandem Rally, Fort Wayne. Well... that weekend went fast! We headed to the mass start this morning hoping for no rain today. We all got another police escort out of town too! Rode the 56 mile route. Very nice scenic countryside again. It was very humid today but no rain! A couple of sprinkles here and there but no rain! About half way through we had a great lunch. When we were very close to finishing we stopped off to get an ICEE....just for old times sake! We were getting pretty used to our ICEE and ice cream breaks on our tour! The rally officially ends tomorrow but we came home this evening. Still trying to transition back into "real life"! Last year was our first rally. It was in Dayton and we really enjoyed it. So we decided to end our tour a little earlier than than desired...so that we could attend. Ideas are really flowing for the next tour!!! Goodnight for now!
Day 2 - Tandem Rally! 72 miles and 300+ tandems! We all gathered downtown for the "mass start"...the mayor officiated and dedicated today to tandem riding! We all got a police escort out of town! There were three routes from which to choose: 25 miles, 53 miles, or 72 miles. We were feeling pretty good and chose the 72 miles! It was a great day...hot (just how I like it!). We met up with old friends and chatted awhile and then made new friends and chatted awhile! It's really fun to meet folks from all over. After lunch we had some headwinds. The country roads were flat with rolling hills.....pretty easy and very pretty. Wow...it's a piece of cake to ride the bike without 80 lbs of gear!.....we felt like we could just fly! After the ride we attended a seminar on bike touring in Europe. I admit that I'm VERY excited to bike tour internationally! It was then time to head to our hotel, get cleaned up, get some dinner, and r-e-l-a-x! Arrived at the Midwest Tandem Rally in Fort Wayne, IN. Over 300 tandems join together from all over to enjoy ride time and fellowship! Tonight's ride was the Ice Cream Ride!.... Y'all know I would LOVE this ride! Our ride tomorrw is 72 miles and Sunday's ride is 68 miles. There's a ride on Monday too but we will be heading home before then. We were just in Fort Wayne at a WS home not too long ago while on our cross country tour. It's a pretty lively city of 250,000+ population. It was a beautiful day for a ride! I already miss being on tour. We will be incorporating daily bike rides back home from here on out. And we'll be planning our next tour as well....yeah!!! Planning to get some cool pics this weekend. Here's just a few to start! Day 112 - 720 (or so!) miles today...lol. Spending the day on the road from Boston to home. Won't be long.....almost there....! It's been a beautiful sunny day for a drive. We had a fun and great time last night with Paul, Elizabeth, and their daughter Saoirse (pronounced seersha). How incredible to meet so many generous folks these past 4 months! To think that we just met Paul last week in Freeport, ME and here we are staying all night with his family! We were just taking a break in Freeport when this very friendly Irishman (Paul is from Ireland) came up and started chatting with us for quite awhile. We parted with him offering us a stay in his home when we got to Boston! He is a photographer and his wife Elizabeth is a neurologist. We laughed a lot and had a really pleasant time with them. Their 11yr old daughter Saoirse left this morning for camp on Cape Cod. Paul happily drove us to the pick up the rental car after she left. He had us laughing so much......and his Irish accent was delightful! We arrived back to his house to pack up the bike and gear. We said our goodbyes and headed out. It's been a day of "decompression"!.....just regrouping our minds and breathing deeply! So many thoughts and ideas flowing for the next journey also! We have decided that our arrival home is a "new beginning". In various ways we are not the same souls that rode that train to Seattle months ago. Hope....it's a good thing. We've all heard that line. It is truly medicine for the soul. We are excited at what lies ahead for us both. It is an awesome world in which we live.....our Creator is Thee Great Artist indeed! Day 111 - Well folks...the time has come....we arrived in Boston today! At times it seemed like the end would never come. Right about now it seems like it went so fast. We did make some route changes recently to allow for another short weekend trip over Labor Day weekend. But WOW.....we are done.....we have finished our cross country journey! Reality is starting to set in. Tonight we are staying with Paul and his family! This is the fellow we met up in Freeport, ME recently! The kindness and generosity of strangers overwhelms me. We rode 35 miles today....a short day. Arrived in Boston this afternoon....on a nice sunny day. Tomorrow, as we are on our way home, I will try to sum up the journey. If anyone has any questions....please send them! (Questions actually help me to sort things out!). Gonna take a nap now! Goodnight! Let me share this very cool youtube link with you first: The Muffin Man and The Muffin Man Exchange. Go to youtube and search for it....watch it....and be very inspired. This fellow is the nephew of one of our WS hosts. Day 110 - 60 miles today. Stayed at a WS host home in Kittery, ME. Richard & Danielle were very friendly hosts. It rained most of last night. We left mid morning after the heavier rain had stopped. Stopped at a convenience store to get some breakfast. It was very cloudy and dreary today with scattered light showers at times. Chilly too. Headed out to the coastal route to view the Atlantic. We crossed into Portsmouth, New Hampshire early on to visit Bruce's old stomping grounds. He lived there back in the late 70's. We visited Prescott Park...a beautiful display of colorful gardens. We rode around town a bit for him to reminisce. Headed south again enjoying the coastal towns and views. We also stopped off at some of the New Hampshire beach areas......just had to dip our toes in the Atlantic! Even though it was pretty cold out there were still folks out swimming in the ocean! Whoa! I could hardly handle my feet being in the water! Continued on south into Massachusetts. Boy...the hills suddenly got bigger in Massachusetts! We kept rolling on though. It felt good. Got caught in a few sprinkles at times but certainly enjoyed the day. We checked in to our lodging for tonight, had a great dinner, and now off to shower. These last days are hard. Till tomorrow! Day 109 - 46 miles today. Left our campsite this morning heading out to visit Kennebunkport, ME. Today was a cloudy day with some light showers at times. The temperatures are getting cooler....the leaves are starting to change a bit. The school buses are running. Fall is in the air here. It is hard to get my mind around our journey coming to an end. I can feel the transition beginning in my mind and my thinking. It's a vastly different world when touring. It is invigorating, exhilarating, transformational, enlightening, overwhelming....to name a few. One cannot remain the same.....It is life altering. It will take awhile to process the entire adventure. Anyway......our day was very scenic beginning with the Bush Estate in Kennebunkport. We were surprised at how close you can get to their compound and we were also surprised that the estate is smaller than we imagined. It is beautiful though and a gorgeous setting. Met a couple of local cyclists...Dan & Bruce...very friendly guys! We then rode along the coast aways in that area to enjoy the beautiful homes and the Atlantic. The coastal towns are very busy. But on the bike ...it allows for a nice visual scan of the towns while traveling through them at a nice pace. It can get pretty jam-packed with cars and people in these small towns yet we can breeze on by! We arrived at our WS host home just in time for the rains to begin again! Yes...indoors tonight! Had a nice dinner and visit with Richard. Danielle, his wife, had some work to do. Off to bed soon. Goodnight! Day 108 - 43 miles today. Another short calm ride. Our WS hosts, Jean & Lucy, had taken us to their neighborhood party last night. We had a great time meeting the "neighborhood"! Afterward we went back to Jean & Lucy's to have a yummy dinner. Lucy made homemade Mac & Cheese....oh my.....best I've ever had! We also enjoyed meeting their niece Priscilla. She's 15, from Mexico, and has been staying with them this summer. Left this morning after a good rest. We rode to the Portland Head Light lighthouse just outside of Portland, ME. It was a beautiful day for viewing it as well as the Atlantic. Continued on down the coast enjoying the sunny day. Arrived early to an excellent campground. The bath house is spotless clean and very well kept. Lots of friendly "bikers" around as it is a "biker" campground. ("biker" as in motorcycles!.....your kinda place Jim!.....some awesome bikes here!). Met some very nice folks. Had dinner at their saloon and doing some laundry now. Actually the last load of the trip....sniff sniff. As I said before the end is bitter sweet. Till tomorrow...... Please watch the following video to learn more about this hidden evil in America: Day 107 - Short day...35 miles. As we are winding down to the end of our journey we are slowing our pace down a bit. Last night we stayed with a delightful couple ...Peter & Leslie. They shared a scrumptious meal with us. Today they are heading off to Acadia Natl Park. We started off early this morning heading south. Our plan is to end in Boston....but we are taking in some extra sights along the way as well. Today has been beautiful...another perfect riding day. We met up with some great folks today....first was Paul....a photographer from Boston. He invited us to stay with him in Boston if we need a place! Then Curt & Nancy....actually they are Ohioans who recently moved to Maine. Then Mark...who owns and operates a local B&B! Orianna and MayMay are neighbors of our WS hosts for tonight. We arrived to our next town early so we goofed off a bit ....relaxing along the Atlantic Ocean in a gorgeous park. Then met up with our WS hosts...Lucy & Jean. Jean is from France. The two did a 6 month bike tour through Russia and Central Asia a couple of years ago. Amazing! We are off now to visit a neighborhood BBQ with them. We are hoping to really savor these last days of our tour. It's bitter-sweet. Till next time... |