Photos from Glacier-Waterton Loop

Day 3 of riding on the Glacier-Waterton loop

Some photos from the road :

Day 35

Finally the tour group members are here!  Super excited for tomorrow!

Day 31 & 32

After more than a week of sitting around, I finally got some riding in.   I rode to Whitefish Lake as fellow bikers suggested.  Wrong was the assumption of "oh, it's by a lake... Must be flat"  Not!  The rolling route was gorgeous.
Trouble posting photos. Will share after the trip.

On Thursday I rode to West Glacier and back. The Sun Road is open but bikes were not allowed at the time.  Well, I'll be back anyway with the group in a few days.

Day 30

I arrived in Whitefish, MT this morning (@3:30), after a long train ride from Chicago. Thankfully, weather was good. I pulled my bike out of the checked bike box, put the pedal and handlebar back on and rode to the campground through the lit empty streets.

I woke up to find that the three other tenters were all touring cyclists. We did the thing - admired each other's gear, talk about where we are going, and shared tips on the local area. I also inherited a lot of powdered milk.

Finally got myself to ride into town for a proper meal and explore Whitefish a bit. The train station is beautiful in daylight. I met Dale, who was walking there (and did an awesome job photobombing)




We chatted for a long time and watched the oil tankers go by. Apparently they are one of the reasons for the Amtrak delays.

I got good info for the next couple of days. There are fun short rides I can do tomorrow. And now, time to check out the local farmer's market!

status update

Today marks my 6th day in Chicago.  Special thanks to Cathy and David for having me here and letting me relax for a few days.  And thanks R for visiting me here! 

A few changes happened to the trip that I originally had in mind.  Long story short,  I am making some modifications.  Hopefully things will work out! Fingers crossed. 

Day 18 & 19

Day 18

start: Pewamo, MI
end: Cedar Springs, MI
mileage: 51

Despite the late start, I didn't spend a lot of time on the road.  There was a good tailwind, plus beyond Cedar Springs, there wasn't really lodging options until Muskegon, more than 30 miles away where I will take the ferry.

With that, I decided to set up camp in Cedar Spring, after spending too much time at a local game/coffee shop for free wifi. Cell phone reception is spotty in some places and one needs an occasional fix of useless information!

Day 19

start: Cedar Springs, MI
end: Muskegon, MI (by bike), Milwaukee, WI (by ferry), Chicago, IL (by car)
mileage ridden: 39.4

It started raining right after I packed up my tent, and poured once I hit the road.  Forecast didn't look better for later in the morning, so I decided to keep going and try to catch the 10:15am ferry.  Got there just in time, but wet, tired, and cold.  It was great to get off the ferry and see my sister Cathy waiting for me.  She took me to a Korean supermarket and we had yummy Korean food.  It was an exciting and comforting change from sandwiches pasta, apples, and bananas...

Days 16 & 17

Day 16
Start :Emmett, MI
End : Flint, MI
Mileage :54

Day 17
Start : Flint, MI
End : Pewamo, MI
Mileage: ~60


Jesse had to return to Boston so this is my first day alone.  Half way through the day I was caught in a major thunderstorm. Luckily the folks at an equipment retail /service center let me take shelter there.One of the customers, Steve, offered to give me a ride to the campground. I hopped in but got off at St. Johns once the sky cleared up.The campground was nice, but since it was near a river and very wet, mosquitoes galore.Even being in a cabin didn't help that much.All night long I heard buzzing around my ears...

Day 15

Start: Courtright, ON
End: Emmett, MI
Mileage: 47.5

Took the ferry across back to the US in the morning. It's hot today! We felt pretty sluggish from the long ride yesterday (and having ice cream and banana for dinner last night probably didn't help). So it was really nice when we finally rolled into the campground. Time for shower, laundry, and some rest.

Day 14

Start :Tillsonburg ON
End: Courtright ON

Mileage : 100

We had rare south-east wind with us all day. Since there is no accommodation between where we were and the border, at 3:30pm, 60 miles in, we decided to take advantage of the empty road (Sunday afternoon), good weather, and wind to do another 40 miles to find Campground or motel.

Then when we got there, surprise... No motel. Google map fail. And neither of the restaurants in town were open. Luckily Jesse met a very kind local family who welcomed us into their home, let us shower and sleep in the basement. They have two very cute boys who didn't want us to leave!
Thank you, everyone who has been so nice to us and all fellow travelers, it makes a a huge difference!

Day 13

Start : Dunnville ON
End : Tillsonburg ON
Mileage: 70

Headwind pretty much all day.

Warmshower host kindly took us in on very short notice, for which I am so grateful, because I was not looking forward to biking any more on gravel road to look for camping spots...

Day 11

Day 10 was a rest day in Rochester.

Day 11:

Start : Rochester, NY
End : North Tonawanda , NY
Mileage :78.9

Today in pictures: (use your imagination)
Ditch:


Taking shelter from downpour



Getting caught in this



Then we had a huge dinner.

Day 9

Start : Phelps, NY
End :Rochester, NY
Mileage: 61

Since the day's ride was going to be fairly flat and around 50 miles, we decided to add in a few detours to check out interesting things we found from Atlas Obscura (thanks, Tchad! It's a great resource):

1. The Sacred Grove
2. The Mushroom House



3. Mt. Hope Cemetery

We arrived at our host, Chris' house in the evening. After wine, cheese, dinner and some great conversations about riding, we got to sleep in the family camper:

Day 8

Start : Syracuse, NY
End : Phelps, NY
Mileage : 53.4

Jesse pulled his back in the morning. Today was pretty tough for him.

We are in the finger lakes region but are too tired to go explore. I think my family had been here years ago when we went on a road trip?

Day 7

Start :Utica, NY
End : Syracuse, NY
Mileage :70

What we encountered along the way:

RC car race


Colonial Fort



Canal operator who has a poetic love for sailing (he likened biking to sailing on land).

A wonderful host family, Jenny, Olin, and Zita who took us in at the end of the day and spent a great evening together.

Days 5 and 6

Day 5
Start :Troy, NY
End:Sloansville, NY
Mileage:47.5

Day 5 was generally a rough day : late start, headwind, hills, and heat. We didn't get to the campground but instead camped behind a post office off route 20

Day 6
Start :Sloansville, NY
End : Utica, NY
Mileage:60

We took the Erie canalway trail for a good part. It is nice and flat, but the fine gravel was scary.... Heat and headwind continued.

Day 4

Start: Plainfield, MA
End : Troy, NY
Mileage : 65.3

We biked through some serious rain in the morning and took refuge in McDonald's in Adams, MA. It only took us the three days to break down and get fast food. Well, anything tastes good when you are cold, wet, and hungry...

We crossed the state line today. Hello, New York!

Day 3

Start : West Brookfield, MA
End : Plainfield, MA
Mileage : 61.4

We packed up our campsite early and hit the road at 7 am. The rain last night cooled things off quite a lot. That worked out well because doing the big climbs in 80+ degrees would not be fun at all.

We continued on Route 9 West and took the Norwottuck rail trail. Rolled through Amherst and started the slow ascent at Williamsburg. Highlight of the day : we ended up at a super nice campground with a hot tub!

Elevations for today:

Day 2

Start: Hudson, MA
End: West Brookfield, MA
Mileage: 42.5


On the way to the campground called "Highview Campground". True to its name, it's on top of a seemingly never-ending hill. We both ended up walking the bikes.

First time cooking and camping on this trip. Thanks Cathy for lending me the lightweight tent!

Supposedly there might be a thunderstorm rolling in soon.

Day 1

Start: Malden, MA
End: Hudson, MA

Dipping the rear tire on Charles River (not the ocean, but close enough):
Bags were off the bike because they were so heavy and we didn't want to lose them in the river...

Weighing in

Everything that I'm bringing

My Lemond Reno with Old Man Mountain Sherpa front rack and
 the old Topeak Explorer rear rack.

Bike with racks:   11.2kg / 24.7lbs
Front bags:            5.3kg / 11.7lbs
Rear bags:             9.6kg / 21.2lbs

I loaded everything up and went for a ride around the block.  As David said, it "handles like a mule".  Hello, uphills!!

Ice cream!

It's gorgeous out today.  Good ice cream? Totally there. 

After the 30 miles round trip for me,  the knees seem to be doing okay so far.  I am really hoping that all the foam-rolling and stretching will help me keep tendinitis from returning.   The hardest part from here to Chicago is the first 200 miles!

Switching Gears

photo: Herbert Chang

After 8.5 years at my company, I've decided to leave the working life for a while to pursue other interests and reflect on my life.  It's not hard to cruise along and go through the routine once you've built up the momentum ... but sometimes it's good to stop and check that you're still heading in the right direction and moving towards your destination.  Well, that time is now for me.

What that means:

1. I'm going on a long bike trip soon.
2. I will be posting on this blog while I'm on the road.
3. What will I do after the trip? No idea. For pretty much the first time ever, I'm planning to be spontaneous.