brockport, new york

The Erie Canalway Trail in New York. Great Trail!

 We are over 3,000 and under 700! Our miles pedaled are now at 3,055.27 and we have approximately 659 miles to the ocean! We pedaled 71.48 miles from Buffalo, New York to Brockport, New York. We did have headwinds today, all the way, all day! But we made it and we are tired. Sarah, Barry, Phil and I left from the beginning of the Erie Canalway Trail at the Erie County Towpath Park in Buffalo where several drug deals were going down in cars nearby. We did pedal quickly and removed ourselves from the area ASAP! It didn't seem to be the best place in town to be hanging out.

The trail was paved for about the first fifteen miles or so and then became crushed gravel. The gravel wasn't too bad to ride on although it did require some major bike washing at a nearby car wash when we finally got to Brockport. Because the car wash was almost right next to a Dunkin' Donuts, we decided a donut or two would add additional power and pedaling strength to our riding tomorrow. I'm sure that's true.

The biggest obstacles on this ride were the Canada Geese. They must think this is their trail and that we don't belong anywhere on it. They simply plop down on the trail and dare you to ride through. I found that the best way to make it through is just to head straight for the ones in the way. Sometimes it's like an old-fashioned game of Chicken to see who moves first. I just want you to know that I won every challenge. The geese had their hissy-fits and I'm sure their geese language was not very kind as they flapped away in panic and turned to hiss a few censored goose words back at me.

The other obstacle between us and Brockport was the little, well not very little, piles the geese deposit onto the trail surface. Try as hard as we did, we simply could not miss all the piles. It was very much like a game that you will surely lose every time. But that game had several consequences which were not very pleasant. Most of our bikes have no fenders so whatever we run through or run over is often distributed in various directions. What we run over ends up on the backs of our clothes, on our bikes or the biker following, or on your bicycle wheels and frames. That's all I'm gonna say, except these piles also contributed to the need for the bike washes . . . and laundry . . . and showers.

It has been a good day. The headwinds made the 71 miles seem more like 101 miles but the ride is finished and tomorrow we only have to pedal 54 miles. How 'bout that! I always like it when a short day shows up on the schedule. If we begin early and finish by lunch time, it's almost like a rest day. We should be finished with the Erie Canalway Trail on Friday or Saturday. We'll then be close to Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.

The goose piles remind me of something I heard Barry Milliner say to Phil yesterday. They were talking about how we often hit obstacles on the road as we pedal and Barry said, "If you look at something, you're going to hit it." Same is true in other areas of life, as well. Think about that for a minute or two. Your focus will become your life. 

Our pastor is preaching through the book of Hebrews and he just finished chapter seven. Along this journey through Hebrews, he has often said that all of Hebrews is wrapped up, or summed up, in chapter 12, verse 2, first three words, "Looking unto Jesus." That's where our focus needs to be . . . a target worth hitting dead center.

Look to Jesus.

The Harriet H. Wiles canal boat. I don't know who she is, or was, but she's got a pretty cool boat named after her.

Just so you'll know . . . I just checked this boat out and it is one of a fleet owned by the Wiles family and named after a family member as are all of their boats. This is a house boat and can be rented for private and personal use.