Erie Canal Ride, Day 4, Quiz 4

Seneca Falls to Syracuse: 40 miles - and all day to ride it. As the quiz has been so popular I'll start with it. There is a street light in Syracuse that is a bit different. If I was a good photographer the picture would easily clue you in, but since I'm not, I'll also tell you that it has to do with immigration. Today's prize is used "Erie Canal Bike Ride" water bottle. (And No Maribeth, you may not have my "I love Mormons" t-shirt.)

But back to our story. We left Seneca Falls well rested and determined to relax and smell the roses along the way. What with only 40 miles, bright sun and summer temperatures it was guaranteed to be an easy day. And indeed, things continued fair as while riding into Weedsport we noticed (actually it was hard to miss being painted on the side of a bridge abutment) a sign for Burritt's Cafe. The place had great people, a great bakery and great coffee. Coincidentally, they also had roses!

S. stopped to smell them, but the caffeine kicked in soon and we were off. Next stop Sims store. While most of the riders strolled through the recreated canal-era store, S. and I oogled the adorable Buoy Boat. Okay, S. didn't think it was adorable he was impressed by the engine. A Lathrop single stroke blah, blah, blah. I just thought the boat was one of the cutest I'd ever seen.

As we rode into Syracuse on 4 and 5 lane roads without bike lanes, or shoulders I mentally switched into my usual rant about bike safely rules and how few bikers know them, especially as it became more and more apparent that this group was woefully uninformed. The final mile-long ride up the hill our tent city cooled me down a bit, as did the evening wandering around the Syracuse Zoo.

Erie Canal Ride, Day 3, Quiz 3

Pittsford to Seneca Falls, (cue sheet pictured left) a lovely 62 mile ride beside the canal and through rolling farmland. As fascinating as it is to ride along "Clinton's Ditch" for days, it was good to see some other sites including Palmyra, NY. Birthplace of Joseph Smith the place where the Mormon religion began.

Palmyra is an immaculate little town of brick buildings, wide streets, parks and strangely enough 2 very nice coffee shops. The townsfolk treated us to a rest stop, an opportunity to pick up a free "I love Mormons" t-shirt and "Palmyra, the place the matters" pins. It was very inspiring. S. and I have often contemplating starting our own religion and this seemed really to be the place for a little dogmatic inspiration.

For today's quiz what am I doing in the accompanying pictures?

After that we cruised into Seneca Falls and camped at the same school we camped at last year. Dinner was on our own and after some confusion about the viability of local restaurants, we dined at Red's. Great burgers and an apricot wheat ale.

The tour hosted a gathering in the park where I heard one of the most unusual canal stories. Apparently, some 19th century entrepreneur with an interest in natural history has preserved a whale, loaded in on a canal barge and toured New York with it.

PS Today's quiz winner will receive one of those remarkable Palmyra pins so get your answers in early.

Erie Canal Ride, Day 2, Quiz 2

Today we rolled along the canal from Medina to Pittsford. The weather was perfect. We passed lots of beautiful New York farmland starting with our Tent City. Medina, in fact, is so proud of their main agricultural crop that they have erected a sculpture of it in the canal-side park. For today's quiz - what type of fruit is it?

Today we also were lucky enough to visit the lovely town of Spencerport. Lovely in its restaurants and coffee shop! There is nothing so wonderful as really good coffee in the middle of a long bike ride. Sure Gatorade has it's benefits but when it really gets down to needing a boost, a good latte not only gets you speeding down the road, but also tastes great.

Somewhere along the route today we also met up with Sue who became in integral cog in an amazingly fine-tuned peleton. (But more on that later) In the meantime we toured Rochester by bike, saw the aqueduct, the Great Falls and almost died in traffic.
Yes - even life on the Erie Canal has its dangers.

Early afternoon had us rolling into Pittsford. An other lovely canal town. Sadly however, the first town to block off a section of the canalside trail for pedestrians.

Erie Canal Ride, Day 1, Quiz 1

In 1825 the Erie Canal made it easy for goods to travel from the coast to western America. In 1998 the New York Parks and Trail Commission started an annual bike ride along that canal making it easy for the average biker to pedal those same 400 miles. In 2009 S and I went along for that bike ride.

Logistically it was run much like the Bon Ton Roulet that we rode last year. Scenically and historically it was much different than last year. Also different was the amount of conditioning, and biking knowledge required. The Erie Canal Ride is a great ride for people new to biking and bike touring. It being all flat and 75% on a designated bike path.

Day 1, Buffalo to Medina was no exception. It was flat, mostly on a bike path (most of that being paved), scenic and historic winding along Lake Erie and the canal through lovely parks and towns. And that brings us to the first of 8 or so quizzes related to this historic ride.

What type of bridge is this?
It spans the canal close to it's beginning and near the town of Tonawanda, NY, but before the town of Lockport and about 20 miles into our 50 mile ride for the day.
There is another bridge like it in Mystic, CT . (with a sign claiming it as the last, or the oldest, or biggest one of its kind)
It is not original to the canal, which was first constructed in 1825, in fact the reason for its existence did not even exist at the time.

Winners will receive a size large, bright green, "Cycling the Erie Canal" T-Shirt. Entries due by midnight.

Songs of the Erie Canal

A friend (thanks Kathy!) has brought to my attention the fact that there are many versions of the "Erie Canal" song, many performed by popular artists. Pete Seeger seems to be the King, but apparently the Boss has also recorded it - in the "Seeger Sessions".

Also, thankfully, there is more to the lyrics than the verse I knew. The traditional name for the song, "Low Bridge" comes from the chorus:

Low bridge, everybody down
Low bridge for we're coming to a town
And you'll always know your neighbor
And you'll always know your pal
If you've ever navigated on the Erie Canal

So while I had been dreading having that one verse run through my head for the next 8 days, there are really eight and a chorus.

But there is even more good news. There are other songs about the Erie Canal. My favorite is:

E-RI-E Canal

Music

Lyrics



We were forty miles from Albany (and)
Forget it I never shall.
What a terrible storm we had one night
On the E-ri-e Canal.

Chorus:
O the E-ri-e was a-rising
And the gin was a-getting low.
And I scarcely think we'll get a drink
Till we get to Buff-a-lo-o-o
Till we get to Buffalo.

We were loaded down with barley
We were chock-full up on rye.
The captain he looked down at me
With his gol-durned wicked eye.

Chorus

Two days out from Syracuse
The vessel struck a shoal;
We like to all be foundered
On a chunk o' Lackawanna coal.

Chorus

We hollered to the captain
On the towpath, treadin' dirt
He jumped on board and stopped the leak
With his old red flannel shirt.

Chorus

The cook she was a grand old gal
Stood six foot in her socks.
Had a foot just like an elephant
And her breath would open locks.

Chorus

The wind begins to whistle
The waves begin to roll
We had to reef our royals
On that ragin' canal.

Chorus

The cook came to our rescue
She had a ragged dress;
We h'isted her upon the pole
As a signal of distress.

Chorus

When we got to Syracuse
Off-mule, he was dead;
The nigh mule got blind staggers
We cracked him on the head.

Chorus

The cook is in the Police Gazette
The captain went to jail;
And I'm the only son-of-a-gub
That's left to tell the tale.

The Great (Unanswerable?) Question

While some may ponder the meaning of existence, or the possibility of an afterlife I find myself wondering if I'll ever know if a megalomaniac can take on a supporting role. We know it couldn't happen for Ahab, but the question still hangs for Lance. Of course today's team time trial and his move into second place makes his chance of even considering the role of domestic more and more remote.

Tour de Erie / Tour de France / mapmyride.com

Next week I'll be bike riding along the Erie Canal from Buffalo to Albany on a trip I've been looking forward to since last years Bon Ton Roulet. Like last year I will also be choosing to ride instead of virtually living my cycling dream of riding the Tour de France but thanks to the wonders of the interweb...this year that virtual dream is even more, umm, virtual. Through the wonders of Mapmyride.com I am riding the Tour de France. We won't mention how they extrapolated the time for my ride yesterday to determine it would have taken me over 9 hours to complete yesterday's stage, or how they have me ranked 3396 out of 4907 riders. Nah! I'll just mention that it is fun to log my daily ride, and that while I'm pedaling along the canal my domestic will be recording the rides.

Today's ride is only 23.97 miles...but now the bigger question. Today is the Team Time Trial. Who will be my team?..and with the return to the old rules of using the real time...can we move up in the classification?

A Beer Interlude

Aprihops: "A serious India Pale Ale brewed with real apricots." Why, you ask, would anyone want to brew beer with apricots? Hmmm. I suspect the folks at Dogfish Head did so because then you can have a very hoppy brew, that is remarkably great tasting and smooth and still have an alcohol content of 7%.

Me, having greatly enjoyed said Aprihop, but being both a lightweight in the beer drinking world, and also having done so on an empty stomach will now conclude this post.

So little time, so many books

More than a few have asked so I guess it's time to address the question on this blog: "Why do you have links to Amazon? Are you getting a kick back or something?"

The main reason is I like books. I like to read them, I like to talk about them, I like to share them, and Amazon makes it easy. If someone is interested in a book that I'm interested in talking about - they can just click on the link at check out the book for themselves. On the site they can read others opinions of the book too, sometimes they can read parts of the book. It's something I certainly like to do.

I can also use Amazon to organize what I've read, and what I want to read.

The second reason, or rather, its not really a reason but a side effect, is yes, I get a kick back. A 4% account credit for all titles ordered after someone clicks through on a link I post. So far I've "made" a whopping $30.00 in over 4 years of blogging. I'd like to make more - mostly so I can buy more books. But I like it when people think enough of a book I like to want to read it too. (hmmmm. maybe that's one of the reason's I'm a librarian or is it more of a power thing?)

Rhode Island Sustainable Aquaculture

or ... why I should have raised oysters instead of chickens during my 'back to the land' phase.

Suppose you could indulge in one of your favorite foods and not only would it be good for you but it would also be good for the environment as well as supporting the continuation of an historic trade and a sustainable foodway?

Until a few days ago I thought chickens (and their eggs) were the closest anyone could come to that idea. But I have since discovered that if you like oysters then there is a much better proposition. This liberating insight occurred to me just as I had finished reading The Big Oyster: History on the Half Shell and A Geography of Oysters: The Connoisseur's Guide to Oyster Eating in North America while my daughter, having just read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life (P.S.)
was looking to by local sustainable foods, and S.D. was lining up a tour of Rhode Island aquaculture sites.

For various reasons aquaculture has gotten a bad name. But like agriculture which includes both the destructive practices of agribusinesses with feedlots, disease, and inhuman working conditions and sustainable, organic farms growing high quality produce for local markets so too does aquaculture range from high density feed pens (mostly foreign) to sustainable, locally run farms.

Oyster aquaculture falls soundly into the latter category. But unlike raising, say free range chickens or beef, oysters don't even need to be feed and they improve local habitat. They spend their lives removing excess nitrogen from the water. Historically, waters all along the coast were remarkable clear (explorers repeatedly, literally, remarked on the clarity). Scientist attribute today's murky waters to increased run off both from unanchored soil and excessive suburban lawn fertilizer (especially from coastal properties) and the absence of the giant oyster reefs that existed all along the seaboard and cleaned millions of pounds of nitrogen per year. Folks are trying to restore the oyster reefs that were decimated over a hundred years ago but in the meantime oysters are mainly grown in floating rows of wire cages that look surprisingly like lobster pots. Not only do these chains of cages clean the water around them but they also provide a safe house for small fish, which in turn feed the bigger fish.

So instead of raising chickens, worrying about where their food came from and what it contained, as well as having to clean the pen and compost the waste and worst of all encounter mice, rats, opossums and weasels I could have grown some adorable little spats (I dare you to watch the video and not say "awww" when you see the baby oysters), set them out in a beautiful coastal bay, rowed out occasionally to check on them (all the while working on my tan) and then harvested the best food ever. (No offense to chicken eggs, which remain an essential part of my daily diet.)

Getting Ready for the Tour

Less than a month to go until the Tour de France and I'm gearing up. Not by riding necessarily, but by reading. Inside the Postal Bus: My Ride with Lance Armstrong and the U.S. Postal Cycling Team is a great way to get back into bike racing lingo. Written by Michael Barry, a professional cyclist and member of the United States Postal Team it tells of events in his cycling career up to 2004. Lots of Lance stuff there, but lots of other details including Floyd. I'm still not sure what to think of Floyd but after reading the book one thing is certain. He has a lot of drive but not too much self-control.

Anyway, the book is a fun reading on how the team handles their crazy lifestyle riding all over Europe and US, how the team bus has an espresso makers and other insider details on races. When so many cycling books are dry, this one keeps you reading...and wanting to pedal.

I could still do it, couldn't I? With a little training? Couldn't I ride Le Tour?

Moose, Thoreau Falls the AT and some very sore feet, . Day 4

The plan for day four was to hike (or see if we could hike) the 9.9 miles back to the car. The trip was beginning to take its tole on two relatively out of shape bodies. Back when I worked at EMS I would joke with people who thought they could just get up off their couches, strap on a pack and climb a mountain. Now, I understood a little better, but the joke was even funnier as it was on me and my feet. With every step they felt like they were flattening out another centimeter. And bending down to go over fallen trees, or climbing...aaarg.

However, there was something else to keep us occupied. Moose poop. Today's trail was on an old logging train bed. It was a wide, relatively flat lane through dense forests and it was easy walking. Apparently, hikers, were not the only one to use this lane. Every 5 feet or less there would be an enormous, but strangely tidy, pile of moose poop. My first concern was stepping in it, but then it occurred to me that with where there's poop there might be an animal. What does one do when meeting a moose on a relatively narrow lane? Sure I'd thought about bear encounters before, but never moose. This one could have actually been fun. Sadly it did not happen.

At 5 miles we arrived at Thoreau Falls. A gorgeous fall, and fantastic, moose-free lunch spot. The water was soooo cold. We were both tired and hurting but given it was only noon and we were over half way to the car, we thought we should push on. If we made good time we could even get in the car in time to beat the Memorial Day traffic through the New Hampshire tolls. (Nothing is worse that broiling away in your car, the dirt and smell of 4 days percolating away, while waiting to get through those tolls).

The trail from Thoreau Falls back to Zeeland is the AT. And it is a most beautiful stretches of AT. Running, again, on an old railroad bed it is easy walking. But as this railroad bed was cut out of the side of a mountain it has much better views than the morning's trail. Walking along we could look back over our entire 4 day loop. From Zeeland Hut and Falls to the East, along the ridge to Mountain Zeeland, south to The Bonds, southeast to the Pemigawasett River valley and the North along the River/train bed. The panorama was stunning, and a great way to end a great hike.

The Bonds - Day three and planning

Ever since I first began serious backpacking I've heard of this mysterious thing called "The Bonds." Each mention of it is made with reverence and awe.

"Oh man, have you been to The Bonds?"
"Yeah, I went last year and it was more amazing than I'd remembered"

Or

"I haven't been in years. Really got to go."

And then there were those like me.

"No, but I really, really, really want to go."

And finally I did.

It takes a bit of planning to get to The Bonds. Located in the middle of the Pemigawasett wilderness just sumitting one of the three Bonds involves either a very long day hike or treking in from a base camp. We had planned our trip so that on Day 3 we would be traversing them on our way south to the river.

We started early, leaving Mt. Guyot campsite around 8:00. By 9:00 we had summitted West Bond. It is there, looking North that hikers get a fantastic view of the ridge between Mt. Bond and Bondclift. And boy did we ever get a view.

Looking South west we also got a view of a large, gray, fast approaching cloud. On the summit of Mt. Bond, the cloud was much closer and the wind was picking up. Still, the one mile ridge stretching southeast to Bondclift looked amazing and inviting. We headed down.

The thing about backpacking that has always intrigued me is what I refer to as 'the turtle effect.' In backpacking much like with turtles, everything you have is on your back. If you're out in the middle of no-where, or perhaps on ridge in the middle of nowhere and you need something, it had better be in your pack.

And so it was that I found myself standing, or rather, trying to stand on the ridge between The Bonds, braced against a 40 knot wind with driving rain wondering if, perhaps, I should have packed my raincoat on the top of the pack, and thought to buy a rain cover!

My rain plan had always been that I would stop before the rain hit and repack everything into my dry bag. Dry bags are great. The help compress things, are lightweight, keep everything extremely dry and you can use them kayaking. But there on the ridge, as D. pulled his pack cover out of the bottom pocket and flipped it over his bag, I questioned the wisdom of my plan.

Luckily, the rain didn't get too heavy, and the sun came out later that day so I was spared the agony of sleeping in a wet down bag in wet clothes. But it does make me think, perhaps I should plan a little better.

Good plans don't lock you in but they do give you alternatives. For instance, if you don't have time to repack everything into a dry bag, you can pull up a pack cover. Or...if you are crossing the most beautiful, most coveted ridge in New Hampshire, you can decide whether to wait for a break in the weather, or trudge on through.

Luckily (again) we had planned for the second scenario. There were options on Bondclift but we got a few great views - what is more spectacular than a storm sweeping through a mountain valley? - and had plenty of time to hike down to dry land.

We camped that night beside the Pemigawasett river. It was a beautiful site, and from the bridge nearby we had a clear shot of a place we could now fully appreciate, The Bonds.

Equipment shakedown - Day 2 From Zeeland Mountain to Guyot basecamp, then out and back to South and North Twin (theoretically)

There are 3 key factors in every backpacking trip.

1. Planning
2. Equipment
3. Physical abilities

It was on Day 2 that the Equipment factor weighed in. First and foremost there are The Socks. On Day 1 I wore my well worn Smartwool Ombre Crew No. Technically they are not hiking socks but after many hikes they are unequivocally the best socks for my awesome Asolo TPS 520 GV Hiking Boots. After many hikes they are also literally threadbare and it became painfully clear this was their last hike.

Next in importance in the backpacking lineup is The Pack. The right pack carries all your stuff comfortably, is easy to keep organized and accessible, while at the same time weighing as little as possible. My Gregory Z55 Pack Backpack[the blue one!] fits the bill. It fits the stuff, weighs very little, and is easy to organize. S., on the other hand, is still mid quest for the perfect pack and after one day had the sore hips and shoulders to prove it. We hiked from the camp on Zeeland to our basecamp at Mt. Guyot where we set up the MSR Hubba Hubba on a nice platform overlooking the Pemi Valley. The Z55 compressed right down into a manageable day pack which we loaded with a day’s worth of food, and fleeces and took off for South Twin.

This is when the poles became indispensable. The Twinway between Guyot and South Twin runs along a low forested rim. The perfect conditions for creating a 2 mile snow pile or monorail. If it weren’t for the poles we’d have been post holing all the way.

We reached the summit of South Twin around 1:30 and pulled on our cozy fleeces against the cold wind. The view was beautiful. Looking toward North Twin, and looking at the map, then back at the 1.5 mile trail between South and North Twin, then again at the map, I realized I would again, just as I had in July of 2007, have to leave that summit for another day. One thing about good equipment, in this case maps, is that no matter how good they are, you really have to use them.

Back at Base Camp we fired up the pocket rocket, cooked an edible dinner of curry chicken, and before the sun set crawled into our sleeping bags. At 4000 ft, in May, temperatures are bound to fluctuate and on this night they were fluctuating downwards. Quickly. When I crawled into my 45 degree bag I was wearing my techwick tops and bottoms, heavy socks, and heavy fleece. Regardless I soon discovered my bag was failing. The down had clumped and areas of the bag were completely empty. It was going to be a long night. When I did sleep, I dreamed of warm, fluffy synthetic sleeping bags.

A Long Weekend in the Pemigawasett Wilderness

After a long debate on bon bon eating vs. backpacking S. and I choose the later for a long Memorial Day weekend. The only remaining question was - could we survive?

The plan was to circumnavigate the wildernerness, in a counter-wise direction, from Crawford Notch in 5 days. We'd start by climbing the mountains and finish up with some nice easy days in the flats. Sounds good so far.

Then we looked a little closer at the maps and parked Moby at the Zeeland Road trailhead. Substituting some rather tough climbs for an easy 2 miles into Zeeland Hut. There were trilliums along the trail everywhere, both the white and even a few purple. It was lovely. The falls too were magnificent as was the view from Zeeclift. The hike up to Zeeclift was a little tough, but the view was great. Looking out over the Pemigawasett, the very area we'd be hiking in the upcoming days was inspiring. The weather too was good. Sunny, and moderately warm. Somewhere in the 50s, I'd guess. Which made the snow so much more unexpected. But there it was right there in the path where the hiker we'd met earlier said it would be. All mounded up into what he so descriptively called a "monorail". Considering that the trail was very narrow and the undergrowth alongside, very thick, there was no choice but to walk, and sometime posthole, over the monorail.

By the time we reached the peak of Zeeland Mountain (another4000fter bagged for S.), we were tired. Although 2 miles short of our intended destination, we pitched the Hubba Hubba, ate a hearty dinner of Backpackers Pantry Cashew Chicken Curry and called it a night. Tomorrow we would establish a base camp at Mt. Guyot, then ascend South and North Twin.

Vise-Grips from Heaven?

This morning I was tooling along on my bike when I noticed a pair of vise-grips laying in the road. There was still 2/3rds of the commute left and only an hour to get to work and to shower, so I rode on.

But it began to seem strange. Good tools rarely lie around in the road. Last year I'd also seen (and picked up) a pair of vise-grips while riding, and that had been my second found pair. The year before, I'd also rescued a pair off the road. Was this some kind of annual sign. Not superstitious, but not willing to tempt fate, I turned around and picked up this pair too. Were the tools gods telling me something? Was there something I needed to get a grip on?

Come to think of it, I had spent the morning stressing over little things and ignoring the bigger, and better aspects of life. I took a deep breath, changed perspective and pedaled on.

As a great American poet, Robert Frost, once wrote:

The way the vise-grips lay before me
on the Road to Westerly
Made me have a change of mood
and saved a part of a day I'd rued.

Ride Forest Ride*

Why, exactly, would someone ride their bike 42 miles through the 5 Boros of New York City in the rain? Why for that matter would 30,000 people do the same, on the same day, at the same time?

Honestly, I can not provide the definitive answer but I have some ideas. Even as we waited in the early morning drizzle for the Staten Island Ferry to take us to Manhattan, and then again, on the Ferry, loaded in the car hold bike-to-bike-rider-to-bike it became more than apparent that this was a special, self-selected group. The bikes ran from "sit up and begs" to hard tail mountain bikes, to finely tuned road racing machines. The people ranged from grandmothers in pumps, to kids in street cloths, to baby boomers in matching cone head adorned helmets. As different as they were, they all shared the notion that this ride was something that needed to be done.

One newspaper account attributed that notion to a sense of fair play stating "runners have the marathon as their chance to take over the city. Bicyclest need their day." But as we waited an hour and half on Broadway just to get to cross the finish line. I couldn't vouch for that. Hopeful riders weren't talking about that, they were mostly telling bike stories, strategizing the upcoming miles, and waiting. Patiently waiting, more patiently waiting than I. To be honest, I almost dropped out after an hour of waiting in the drizzle, knowing the rain was coming, knowing that I would, if I stayed, be riding through city streets, not with cars, but will All These People.

Once we did get going, the ride proceeded at about 5 mph. Riders weaving in an out, passing, stopping, taking pictures, talking with friends. For me, it was physically a very easy ride, but mentally, it was exhausting. One second of inattention and you could skid out in the rain or simply run into a fellow cyclist. There were lots of accidents, some serious. Somewhere in Queens I watched a mountain bike fishtail right in front of roadbike that subsequently went airborn. On the Verrazano bridge the crowd had to slow for a biker on the side of the road. He was under a blanket with a leg extending out at an awkward, unnatural angle. For an idea of what 'riding' involved, take a look at the video shot from some rider's handlebar camera. This was how it was for 5.5 hours.



The route wound all over the city, from Broadway, thru Central Park, down the FDR Highway, over the Queensborough Bridge, over a bunch of other bridges, through Brooklyn, past the Navy Yard, over the Verazzano Bridge and back to Staten Island. Some of the places we rode by were really cool. Places I've always wanted to visit and can now say I have. But honestly, I didn't see much of them, unless you count my knowledge of the road surface.

Reading over various comments made on youtube, flickr and blogs, I'm also not the only one who feels this way, So I have to think that also like me some of the riders were there not necessarily for the ride (honestly there are better ways to get in a good 42 mile ride) but for the experience of riding.

Rain or shine, this is a one-of-a-kind ride. A riding experience that can't be gained anywhere else. Riding a bike, a simple but elegant mode of human powered transportation all around the worlds biggest city. Holding cars and pedestrains at bay for hours even as enthusiastic citizens of that same city cheer on the thousands and thousands of bikers pedaling by in the rain. It's just an incredible experience and one that I and everyone else was able to share with 29,999 other bike riders.

...and as always, made ever more enjoyable by having 1 great riding companion!

*Title supplied by KK!

Bike Commuting Begins

I used to joke about riding my bike to work. After all it sounded good and...I only lived 2 blocks away. Well now the commute is 17 miles, and the joke isnt' so funny. Even so the commute has begun! Today I just rode home (Moby is spending the night at MSM). It was a great ride. Tomorrow morning there will be a ride back. That's as far as the plan stands at this point.

Whale Street

Killing whales never really appealed to Giselle. But after being 'layed off' following nine years working in hedge funds she figured it couldn't be too bad. Besides she really wouldn't be killing the whales, they were long dead. Even extinct. Blubber, boiled for oil or some such thing. She would just be using her trading talents to sell 'the rich history of whaling.' She didn't see much difference...except she wasn't sure stilettos were the right shoe. They kept sticking into the cracks of the boat's floor.

...And a strange-looking man with a full beard, perhaps even unwashed, kept staring at them.

"The crew usually went barefoot" he noted. "The Morgan often sailed for five or six years without making landfall. Shoes wore out after only a few months."

She smiled, nodded, and looked away. "Um, thank you."

"Can you imagine being out of sight of land for five years? Spending your days chasing The Big Leviathan? Cutting it up into small 'bibles of blubber' and standing on the deck, stirring the oil as the black smoke rolls across the deep blue sea?"

"Pardon?"

"Whaling! It was a man's life!"

"Oh," she realized," You must be one of those interpreters?"

"Yes mam," he replied.

She looked at her watch, glanced over at the ground. She wasn't sure she could wait much longer. Matt said he would brief her here 'on the deck' at 3:00. It was 3:10 and she didn't want to talk about the 'deep blue sea' or a 'man's life' for another second. She was here to save this place, to bring in the big money. Not to talk about whaling.

"Have you seen Matt Hawthorn lately?" she asked the unwashed one.

"Why. Mr. Hawthorn is just off the port bow."

"Where?"

He pointed to land to the right and front of the boat.

Giselle sighed, how much of this historic horse stuff, nautical lingo would she have to endure? Maybe she could still go back to the Street, a few less thousand a month wasn't so bad.

A Short Rant: Earth Day

Every day should be Earth Day. Or, as studly says, "One day a year is just to assuage people's guilt."

What I say is - we don't need to save the earth, we need to stop messing it up. (Usually I use a more 'graphic' term).

What to do? Live an "Earth Life." Pledge today that when you leave here, no one will know you were here. Live a "Leave no trace" kinda life...and stop printing, selling, buying Earth Day stuff. Stop buying anything. Just stop. And I will now, stop ranting.

An Ode to Gore-Tex

When spring hikes follow showers
And mud fills in the trail
When the sun rises through mist at an early hour
And the day ends with a hearty ale,

Then it's time to salute the Gores,
Robert, Rowena and Wilbert.
Those saviors of all small, dry pores
Those inventors of ultimate water resistance.

But 'tis not Robert's induction in the hall of fame
Nor fluorosurfactant perfluorooctanoic acid
For which we toast his name.

It's the fact that we can hike all day,
In wind, and snow and rain
And all the time stay toasty dry
Through the 100 mile wilderness of Maine.

monday the 30 day I ffecthed my wifes mare

This week, in between hikes, when the rain was falling or threatening to fall I've been hanging out with Thomas Minor. One of the first people to keep a record of life in Stonington, Ct. Minor records his monthly activities from 1653-1684, as he clears farms, hunts, raises a family, deals with local politics, and does every day things. Intended only for his own record keeping the entries are a bit terse but they do remind me of some tweets you read these days. And reading between the lines you do get a sense of what life was like.

For instance - here what he recorded for March of 1668:

the .6. day Thomas Tracie and leaffingwell was heare the .7. dai I branded .2. Coults [colts] I sowed hemp & pease in the orchard sabath day the .8. day: sabath day the 15. The 13. I was at mr palmes I had A barell of mallases [molasses] wensday the 18. we made an End between Jossepth & Marie Averie monday the 30 day I ffecthed [fetched] my wifes mare and 26. day Thursday we trained fryday .31.

It was while starting to research the history of Barn Island that I came across the diary. Surprisingly enough there are a few others kept by people who lived in that area around that time. Venture Smith, Joshua Hempstead (1711 To November, 1758), and Minor's son Manassah keeps one from 1696 to 1720. The person I wish had kept a diary, Thomas Stanton, was apparently too busy translating and trading with the natives to write anything down. He certainly sounds like an interesting guy and one who's history is closely connected to the Barn Island area.

The diary is available for free through the Internet Archive: http://www.archive.org/details/diarythomasmino00minogoog, or you can buy a hardcover reprint through amazon.The Diary Of Thomas Minor, Stonington, Connecticut: 1653-1684 (1899)

Carolina Management Area

The quality that makes Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
the most-loved book of the AT (Appalachian Trail) crowd is not that it just describes a fantastic hike, but that it describes that and all the other things that make a walk a hike; the history, geology, plants, animals and people that you meet along that hike. I have never laughed so hard, nor so nervously as when he discussed the Bear issue, nor appreciated the history of the Appalachian people, the chestnut blight, or the community that develops among the thru-hikers, until I read that book.

This past weekend S and I hiked more trails in Arcadia and in the Carolina Management Area, again with the guidance of Ken Weber's Weekend Walks in Rhode Island: 40 Trails for Hiking, Birding & Nature Viewing, Fourth Edition. Ken (we've spent so much time together lately we've become friends) does a great job of picking interesting loop hikes and providing useful maps and written directions to keep even the most directionally-challenged hiker on the trail. He also points out the locations of abandoned cellars, forest cemeteries and the occasional outstanding tree, however, I'd suggest a few more additions.

• Geology - Rhode Island has had an intimate relationship with the glacier that spread over North America a few years ago leaving drumlins, glacial moraines, erratics, and kettles. Many of these which one runs into while hiking.
• Plants - I love trees. Especially the big tall ones. Fagus grandifolia, Quercus alba, and my personal favorite, Liriodendron tulipifera Give me a virgin forest and I'm speechless, heck a few hundred years of unchecked growth will silence me for minutes. And then there is the Hemlock. A beautiful, majestic member of the pinus family that is under attack by the Woolly Adelgid. Saturday we walked for 2 miles through a forest of dying Hemlocks. Once tall, regal giants, some over 3 feet in diameter, now bald. We crawled over the littered remains in the understory. Here and there a small white pine poked through the brush but it was all very sad and all needing a few lines to explain the life story of our long-loved plants.
• History - One cannot walk more than a few miles anywhere in New England without running along a stone wall, a cemetery or an abandoned house or stone cellar. I see those and I see a glimpse of the people who once lived here. Maybe it's the historian in me, maybe it's really the romantic, but I love to stand at the threshold, look around at the lay of the land, the run of the stonewalls, the probable site of the barn, the apple orchard, the lane to town, and think of what it was like to live here when they did. What that area did for them, and what nature is doing with it now. Every hike book should include the history of the area.
  

Back to the Carolina Management Area. It's a great place to hike. It has everything. Fields. Trees (big ones). Cemeteries. Abandoned farms. Oh, and a trout stream (if you're into that sort of thing)

Of course Ken isn't putting out any new editions, and I doubt I'll get around to it. But it's always nice to dream.

Arcadia Wildlife Management Area

This past weekend, with temperatures in the 60's, and snow on the ground, we headed to nearby Arcadia. It's a great place to hike with over 30 miles of trails wandering over 13,817 acres. We hiked the Mount Tom and Shelter Trails through beautiful pine forests and up onto ledges looking out over the whole snow-blanketed state. We also bagged two of Rhode Island's 400 fters. We, or mostly I, also pondered the existential question - is there a single definitive map of the trails?

We've been using Weekend Walks in Rhode Island: 40 Trails for Hiking, Birding & Nature Viewing, Fourth Edition as our Rhode Island hiking guide. It's a very good guide to the best trails and it certainly did a good job of pointing out the trails, and trail highlights for both weekend hikes. The maps, however, for the trails, just aren't complete.

Bill's Wild Outdoors posts some maps of Arcadia, divided into North and South by RT 165. http://newportvisions.com/home/arcadia3.html - but all the trails there don't match the ones on the ground.

The Rhode Island New England Mountain Biking Association also posts North South Maps of Bike trails superimposed on topo maps: http://www.rinemba.org/arcadia-management-area/.

But all in all, or rather my anal-retentive love of good maps aside, Arcadia is a great place to hike, and even more so when you've got the best hiking buddy ever.

The 400 fter's Club - Hiking Rhode Islands' Mountains

While small in size and low in height, the state of Rhode Island is plenty diverse in geography. From drumlins to erratics, from pine barrens to dense hardwood forests there is plenty to see, plenty of places to hike. But sometimes, hiking aimlessly, wandering hither and yon gets a bit umm, aimless. Especially for the more goal oriented of us hikers. And so it is with the acheivement oriented in mind that the 400 fter's club was born.

Can't make it to New Hampshire?
Not in shape (yet) for the big ones?
Leery of sudden blizzards?
Want to hike but have to get to Mom's for dinner by 6:00?

Go Peak Bagging in Rhode Island!

A list of the 50 heighest peaks (all above 400 ft) and their locations is at:

http://www.mountainzone.com/mountains/highest-peaks.asp?s=RI

Still to do:

1. Determine the patch design. -I'm nominating a chicken climbing a hill
2. Select award dinner location
3. Compose detailed peak criteria - i.e a peak must be 20' lower/higher than the nearest peak...
4. Compose fancy excell spread sheet for recording peak, date hiked, trail taken, etc.
   
5. OH - and hike the darn hills.
   

PS I've got Mt. Tom and Penny Hill

Return to Piney Island

Funny to think that less than two weeks ago I was walking around in a t-shirt where I was now skiing.

This time however, I remembered to bring a camera so I can share a bit.

Adventures in a Recession

The defining characteristic of the latest adventure is that unlike others, this one comes to you. Most adventures involve making a plane reservation, driving a car, or at the very least getting on a bike, but this one, this one I don't have to do anything but sit and watch it flow over me and my fellow adventurers. And folks we're all in this one together.

Technically an economic recession is defined as:

"a significant decline in [the] economic activity spread across the country, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP growth, real personal income, employment (non-farm payrolls), industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales."

<sup>Personally I'd define it as:

"a period in which the general population makes significant changes to their daily habits in reaction to the feeling that "holy s$%t, we could/have loose/lost our jobs/savings/homes at any minute."

The noted changes vary greatly, and include but are not limited to:

1. forming facebook groups entitled "If I get laid off I'm going to be a gypsy"
2. going back to school
3. leaving a satisfying, but low paying job for a higher paying but not so cool one
4. selling off your personal hedge fund
5. selling off some of your toys (anyone want to buy a yakima bike rack?)
6. shopping at Walmart.
7. checking out books from the library instead of buying them
8. watching more tv, going out less.
9. pirating music
10. spending more time online...making lists.</sup>

End of one Adventure, the beginning of another

Retail, and shopping have always been the backbone of the American economy. So little did I know, two Decembers ago when I chronicled the highs and lows of working retail, I was documenting what might be the end of an era. Certainly it was the end of an era for me. What with moving, and EMS drastically cutting employee work hours, I am no longer working there and will probably never work retail again. From discussions with other EMSer's and watching the nightly news however, it is clear that retail, as an industry, and also as a pastime, has also reached the end of the adventure.

Watching shoppers storm the doors and paying full price for TNF Denallis and UGG boots this Christmas, even as the layoffs and recession had already begun I wondered, no I sincerely doubted that America could give up its shopping addiciton. I too have struggled with a bit of shopperholic syndrom, debating what and/or how much to buy before loosing my employee discount. How many pairs of smartwool socks and Asolo 520 boots are really enough? Will I someday want to go winter camping, and if so should I get the 0 degree bag? And what about the cute little Timbuktu mini messenger bag that I've had my eye on for months, but really have no need for. Should I get it now? Not that I need it. But for that matter, no one ever Needs UGG boots.

If I, minimilist that I am, am having this much problem giving up shopping (or rather buying) then what about the rest of America? What about those who on the most beautiful sunny spring day would come to the mall to buy hiking sneakers? (While I wanted to be hiking!) Now that they can't buy, what will happen to those who have have come to buy the experience rather than do it?

Take the Average American on an Average Weekend Day - you know the one they work all week for. What do they do? Well, traditionally they sleep late, work around the house, visit friends and shop. Did you know those same average American's spend 90 percent of their lives indoors. Who knows what the percent was that they spent shopping. But what will they do now? They could still shop. Shopping does not mandate buying, but it is bound to happpen. That is where the gratification comes in. Put it off as long as you want but if you spend all your time looking at stuff you utimately know you can't buy - it just sucks the fun out it.

So what will American's Do? As the economy continues to tank and spending becomes less and frequent what will fill the void? What brave new American will replace the American consumer? It is an adventure into the unknown.

Barn Island - aka Piney Island

Yesterday I walked around Barn Island alone. S. is away - hence the pinning. But... in the last eight years I've walked all over that place at all times of the year. I've kayaked it spring through fall, and walked it fall through spring (too darn many ticks in the summer). I've seen the Burdick graveyard, the Wiccan Oak, the rock moved by Venture Smith, and the sweet gum trees in their fall blaze but I've yet to see a Barn and I even in the highest of tides I doubt very much that it is an Island.

Other People's Adventures

I'm just so thrilled for Bethany that I have to take a break from the usual posts to give her a "shout out". Being a published author is so cool, and a maritime author! Amazing! But so it is. Bethany Bromwell's name will even auto fill when you type it into the amazon search box. Her book?

Mothers of the Sea: Female Lighthouse Keepers and Their Image and Role Within Society ,
the definitive work on women lighthouse keepers. Considering how interesting and informative her presentation at the Luncture was, I can't wait to get the book.

Monadnock and Microspikes

Yesterday S. and I, and a lot of other like minded people headed up Mt. Monadnock. Only the white dot and white cross trails were open so in some ways it was a bit like walking up and down a highway but it was a white highway to an icy summit with 50 knot winds. As always good gear played a major role in the hike. Along with techwick and smartwool, winter hiking boots and windbreakers we also tried Kahtoola Microspikes. While some of the hikers had nothing on their boots, some had full mountainering crampons and some summitted with snowshoes, the Microspike folks were the ones with the perfect gear for the day. They were easy to put on, stayed on with no trouble, didn't add any drag and really dug into the solid ice sheets that were the last mile of the trail. Definitely a good addition to the gear closet for anyone who does winter hiking.

Glacier Park - Westerly

Yesterday the temps rose to 47 degrees and it was sunny! So....I decided to check out a local park and see how the trails ran. Glacier Park turned out to be a nice little plot of 134 acres. There are several trails through the park and if you link the white and blue it'll make a good hour walk with views of the Atlantic Ocean and a sweet little moraine kettle.

Photo map of the park

Moving to Westerly gonna eat a lot of oysters*

*sung to the tune of "Peaches" by the Presidents of the USA.

Today, a bright clear 28 degree day with snow in the afternoon forecast, is moving day. Actually big stuff moving day. I've been packing and moving the little stuff for a week now.

One thing that has really amazed me in the packing process is how much stuff I accumulated in 9 years. Yes. It's been 9 years that I've lived in the little apartment in Mystic and in that amount of time the amount of stuff I have has grown from a pick up truck load to a 16' rental truck load...and I'm throwing lots out too! (PS If anyone needs dishes, books, towels, a piece of furniture or two, or wants a few good books, be sure and stop by sometime in the next few weeks).

The funny thing is, the more I get rid of the better I feel. This of course, does not apply to the toys. Probably the most significant category of growth has been in the toy department, and those I'm not throwing out at all. I've gone from one bike, to two bikes, one kayak, two tents, three backpacks, cross country skis, snowshoes and all the related gear. I love my toys. But the furniture, dishes, towels, paintings, etc. ehh.

But back to moving. So today we pack it all the stuff up and move it to Westerly where most will wait patiently in their little boxes and bags until 1. I need them. 2. We arrive at our final destination (unknown at present).

Millions of oysters oysters for me

Biking the Canals

To most people, Washington DC means monuments and politics but after a a few days along the Potomac all I could think of was bike riding. Sure the Lincoln Monument is impressive, and all the activity around the White House is historic and the Smithsonian is the mother of all museums but it was the lure of the traffic-free bike path that held my attention during a recent visit.

It all started at a place called Great Falls, a few miles Northwest of the capital, where our hosts took us to see the rapids, told us about the kayakers who run the falls and the history of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal. Back in the early 1800's George Washington (yes that George Washington) and others decided that running a canal along the Potomac would be a great way to expand commerce and exploration with the west. After several years, numerous setbacks and lots of lost money the canal was finished, used briefly and abandoned, only to be resurrected as a bike path. And a really cool one at that. Not only that, with the addition of the Great Allegheny Passage Trail a biker with moderately wide tires can ride the 318 miles all the way from DC to Pittsburgh!

What could be cooler you ask? Well, perhaps a ride along the Erie Canal? Not only does it have a bike path as well, it also was a successful canal. (My theory on why one was successful and the other not has to do with one, the C & O being located alongside a river prone to massive flooding while the other, while harder to build, didn't flood, stayed built and by the way, drew on a much larger hinterland) But regardless, and more importantly both make awesome bike paths and a huge quandary. Given that one might only have one week for bike touring in a given summer, which ride should one take?

I want an alien for Christmas

So... the irony continues. It appears that there is something I want this year for Christmas. It occurred to me the other night while working at EMS. One of our patrons got the most puzzled look on their face, apparently in response to a song that was playing on our musac disk. The song, "I want an alien for Christmas" by Fountains of Wayne, is a catchy, upbeat, slighly off beat little Christmas tune that I thought was somewhat mainstream. Well, it appears I've been working the holidays at EMS a little too long. The public is not familiar with this endearing Christmas tune. A tune more classic and generous in its Christmas spirit than "Silent Night". This tune is about universal, even global getting.

It is in that spirit that I have nominated this song as the offical EMS - Waterford theme song, and the best Christmas song of 2008, and in that spirit, I would like to share this song with you.

Adventures of a Nomad

Ironic that the previous post to this one, and this new series of adventures is one listing things I want, because right now what I want most is to get rid of stuff. Looking into the crystal ball (another thing I have to get rid of) it looks like I'll be moving for at least the coming 6 months, if not more.

Looking around the apartment, my home for the last 9 years, I realized there is a lot of stuff. Even considering that I brought little, and even went through clear out phases every year or so. Still there is stuff. More stuff than a nomad can reasonable carry along. One the one hand I could almost (almost) just walk out and leave it all. On the other, I've been giving select items to folks who would obviously enjoy it, and well, I've been packing some books, clothes and toys. Selecting the best of the years accumulations. Will be interesting to see how much of that is persistent. How much is the same stuff I brought and therefore thought was important 9 years ago and remains so today. Aside from some furniture I doubt there is much of that.

But the immediate question, the bigger question, is what to do with what's left. How to best pass that along to more landed folks. It's good stuff, and somehow there is an attachment to it and finding it a good home seems necessary.

Excellent Christmas Present Suggestions

International Ficus Rescue Association

Mr. X,

Each year millions of innocent baby ficus trees are purchased by well-meaning, but unprepared 'plant lovers'. Plant lovers who have no idea of the amount of time, attention and resources necessary to sustain a ficus tree from a fragile twig to the robust, strong, sheltering tree we all know and love. Plant lovers who, in the midst of their busy days, do not make the time to water and feed their charges. Plant lovers who eventually abandon their plants.

Plant lovers? Ha

I am writing on behalf of abused and abandoned ficus trees around the globe. It has been brought to my attention that you are presently the caretaker of one of the millions of ficus trees abandoned every year. And while you think it may be too late for your tree, let me tell you that ficus trees are incredibly resilient. They have been known to suffer through weeks and drought and deprivation and, with the return of loving care, thrive once more.

Mr. X,

We are asking you to take a long, hard look at that ficus tree in your office. Does it not deserve water? Does it not deserve sunlight? Does it not deserve more than the tragic fate of withering and dying?

But do not despair at the enormity of effort. There is help.

International Ficus Rescue Association does provide a number of services for those unable to care for their ficus trees. These range from home care visits where cheerful volunteers provide pruning, and revitalizing food and water as well as care training for the owner to placement services where the tree goes to a carefully selected home.

Please be a real Plant lover and love your ficus! Let us know how we can help!

Cash donations also accepted.

Rosales Moraceae

President
International Ficus Rescue Association