Cycling the Atlantic Coast

Today we are approaching the 3 week mark.  We have covered 800 miles and climbed 35,000 feet of hills.  We are 1/3 of the way done with cycling days. We will cover 3,000 miles on the trip.  Most of the hills are on the first half of the ride.  Once we hit North Carolina,  it becomes very flat and our daily mileage will increase a bit. They group is fantastic and we are learning a lot and having lots of fun.  The weather has been unseasonably cold most places.  From looking at historical averages, we are about 10 degrees below normal for day and night temperatures. Map 3 shows the next segment of our adventure.

Today was a day of rest, so what did I  do.....bicycle.   I  did a self guided biking tour of Valley Forge National Park.  It was a amazing the sense of history one gets viewing the actual sites and hearing the stories.   It adds great perspective to the events. The park was wonderful.  I was struck by number of foreigners visiting the site on a holiday weekend. Pictured are examples of the cabins, me in front of the memorial and Washington's headquarters. 

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1954126770?share_unique_id=64 Another cold start at 48 degrees this morning.  We cycled our way through suburban Philadelphia until we found a great place to eat, the Back to the 50's Cafe.  It was filled with local folks enjoying a Saturday morning brunch.   I had the perfect cycling second breakfast,  a camel apple waffel.  On a cool fall like morning,  it was wonderful. We had a little rain on the way into town, but not even enough for rain gear. Most of the group headed into the city.  Tom and I decided to stay near Valley Forge to see the national park on our layover day.  Our "campsite" was a Holiday Inn Express. The rest day has been well needed.   Tomorrow we are on our way to Washington DC.   It will take us 5 days.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1952560576?share_unique_id=62 It was a cold start to the day at 48 degrees.   I snapped a picture of Tom with socks on his hands as gloves. We had another fine day of cycling along the Delaware River.   We crossed the river a couple of times which put us in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The roads were quiet and flanked by beautiful homes.  The stone homes and fine gardens were fun to see. Tomorrow is our last day of 10 in a row of cycling, before a rest day on Sunday.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1948392624?share_unique_id=56 Today we woke up to a foggy morning, with dew covered tents.  After a short ride, the sun came out and it was a perfect day to ride.  By mid afternoon,  we found ourselves cycling in the rain, only to have that pass and for me to be sitting in camp in the sunlight with a nice low humidity breeze.   Certainly an odd weather day. What the weather lacked in consistency,  the scenery was quite the opposite.  It was all beautiful.  Almost the entire ride today was through the Delaware Water Gap Recreation Area.  It was a 40 mile network of low use (and variable condition roads) along the wilderness of the Delaware River.   We probably saw more canoes on the river, maybe 10, than cars all day in the rec area.  There were no stores, restaurants,  gas stations or services of any kind until we crossed over the river near the end of the day. I got a  picture of Tom ...

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1948392624?share_unique_id=56 Today was a quick and easy 26 miles.  Since this is a 10 day stretch of riding says, today is essentially a rest day. Highlights of the day were the rolling hills and crossing into New Jersey.   We are making a big swing around New York city.   It showed a bit in the aggression of the drivers.   I was cut off twice in the first 5 miles.  Nothing serious or dangerous,  just  not the friendly courtesy from drivers  which we have come to expect. I have a couple of pictures of the countryside.   Nothing to dramatic on the short ride.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1946742938?share_unique_id=54. (data incomplete) Today began with a quick ride down to Poughkeepsie where we crossed over the Hudson on a pedestrian bridge.  There were some fantastic views.    The next event was riding though the wine country of the Hudson Highlands.   The hills were rolling, the scenery fantastic and traffic light.  As you can see from the photos, it was cloudy.   At 60 degrees, it was cool and we had a few rain showers.  Overall, it was a good day riding.  Rob (in the picture below) is cooking burgers tonight.   It should be a good meal.