A Very Hilly Ride - I'm Ready for GOBA!!

Today, I rode 30 miles. Thirty miles down here in hill country is like 50 up north. It was a tough ride, but very scenic and fragrant. There are so many flowering trees blooming right now, the air literally reeks flowers! There are honeysuckle everywhere (my favorite fragrance), lilacs also abound and there is another fragrant tree the flourishes here, but I don't know what it is. The flowers are light pink.

I stopped at a restaurant for lunch called The Cove. It's right on the shore of Seneca Lake. I saw people all over the shores of the lake fishing today. There weren't very many boats out there, it was too doggone windy!

Now if you don't believe me about the hills, I'm including a profile of the route that I created on De Lorme Topo Map. To get a better view of it and be able to read the statistics, click on the profile and it will get bigger.

The first big climb is on Yoker Valley Road. Tough Climb, but once you start downhill, you don't have to peddal again for at least 2 miles! New Gottengen, near the end of the ride, is also really tough, and that last downhill is one of those that you keep your brake on the whole time.

Sharon

A Cool Bike Ride in Salesville, Ohio

My Brother, Eric, was here today with his bicycle, and we went for a ride. I have been challenging him for quite some time to come down and ride on my hills with me. Today, I took him to my favorite spot, the "S-Bridge" .

A little about our ride - Eric was surprised at how hilly it is down here, but he did a pretty good job. He hardly ever had to walk his bike!

Now a bit about the bridge - This bridge was part of the National Road, the first interstate road in America. The bridge was built in 1828, before cars were invented, yet you can still drive a car across it today! I guess they really made things to last back then. The reason it's called an S Bridge is it is shaped like an S. The road and river met at an angle, so they built the bridge so that the span would be perpendicular, and the S shape guides them from the direction of the road, onto the bridge span, then back onto the roadway, if that makes any sense to you.

Here is a picture of Eric and me by the bridge. There are three of these bridges, but this is the only one that cars are still allowed to use. I plan to do a "Bridge to Bridge" overnighter soon. We will start at the western bridge, pedal to this one and camp at a nearby park, then ride back the next day, viewing many historical sights on the National Road on the way.

Sharon

The Chenango Loop

We had a great time on our ride today. Ed and Etta, Mary, Mary, Richard, Tom, Sheryl, Pat, and Pat and John. John was a great assistant, especially since I was having some trouble with left and right. Did I miss anyone? Anyways, the weather was beautiful, the company was grand and the route was spectacular. To make the map easier to read, just click on it. I wish I would have had a camera!:)