The morning was, once again, cool and there was "steam fog" rising from the river. If you've never heard of "steam fog" check this out.
I decided today was a music day and that I'd listen again to some music I haven't heard for a while. I began with Frank Zappa. Zappa, who may be best known for his satire of American culture, created more than 60 albums spanning rock, jazz, jazz fusion, pop, and orchestral music. Rolling Stone magazine not only named him one of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, but also placed him at number 22 of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. Next came Jimmy Buffet and some feel-good, island-escapism tunes, with a little social comment thrown in for good measure. I couldn't help thinking of our good friend Ray Dunn, who is an avid Buffet fan. K.D. Lang was next up with the soundtrack of the movie "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues." The movie, in spite of a stellar cast — Uma Thurman, Keanau Reeves, Angie Dickinson, Buck Henry, John Hurt, etc., etc. was a flop, but the soundtrack was not. And, the book is still a favorite and available here. I moved on to K.D. Lang's album "Shadowland." After all, "too much K.D. Lang" is an oxymoron. Her classic rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Olympics bears re-watching here. Next came an old Billy Joel album I haven't listened to for ages. I wrapped up the morning listening to one of my favorite local bands, the Prozac Mountain Boys, who have been guests on the Chuckanut Radio Hour several times.
Speaking of the Chuckanut Radio Hour, this Thursday evening's CRH will be a special Whatcom Community College 50th Anniversary celebration. The show will feature Nathalia Holt, author of The Rise of the Rocket Girls. Go here for information about the show. Whatcom Community College is one of the organizations for which I'm raising money. This would be a great time for you to donate here.
I've often mentioned the wildlife I've seen along the way. Over the course of the ride I've only seen a few rabbits, but today attempted to make up for that. I actually lost count, but I saw three within just a few minutes and others during the day. Here's one that sat still long enough for a portrait.
Before I hit the trail I had one encounter with a dog. It was standing in a driveway as I rode up and began moving toward me, looking more playful than vicious. I yelled NO! NO! and the dog stopped in its tracks.
The ride today was a mix of roads and trail, with an assortment of trail surfaces as before. There were some interesting features on the trail today. At one point I was riding in a fairly narrow "canyon" and spotted this tunnel ahead.
Looking back from a ways down the trail the "canyon" looked like this.
The canal trail was along the Mohawk River much of the time. I spotted this mile marker, but the trail was far enough from the river at that point that I suspect it was a road or railroad marker.
Shortly before lunch in Amsterdam (no not THAT Amsterdam, or the ones in California, New Jersey, Ohio, Missouri, Montana, Pennsylvania, Texas, or Virginia. The one in New York) I had nearly seven miles of paved trail that was fairly smooth, except for the usual root bumps at times. But, just over a quarter mile of the trail was the most unusual I've ridden. Take a look.
That's right, two lanes and my own bridge. I was hoping this ran all the way to Amsterdam, but no, the trail resumed just the other side of the bridge.
After riding the first fifty miles I ate a big meal at Shorty's Tavern — hot beef open-faced sandwich, with fries soaked in gravy. I should have taken a picture. I couldn't finish the fries. It was just too much.
I needed some strong beat music for the after-lunch, hill-climbing, road-riding, segment of the day so I put on "Rock Anthems, Vol II", Lazlo Bane's "Guilty Pleasures" (covers of rock classics),
The last thirty miles to Saratoga Springs was on roads, the first few miles of which were in the city of Amsterdam. Boy could these folks learn a bit about bike lanes from their namesake — they have none. I was riding on busy highway 67 with a very narrow lane...in some places, and none in others. Once I got out of town, bless the state of New York, the shoulder was wide and smooth and the rest of the ride was good.
About four miles from tonight's campground I came to a road where I thought I should be turning, but the voice on my GPS didn't tell me to turn. So I came to a stop, but I once again experienced the "failure to unclip" syndrome and fell over, skinning my right knee and calf. And I'd gone so long without a fall.
Yesterday I mentioned finishing Sunil Yapa's Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist. Here's a link to a great interview with Yapa, conducted by Christine Perkins, Director of Whatcom County Library System.
Ride Day Twenty-Seven by the numbers:
80.9 — miles ridden
2923.1 — feet in elevation gained
8106.1 — calories burned
1 — fall (see above)
1 - dog (see above)
Thanks to Beth Golay, who does the blog "Books and Whatnot," you can also follow the journey on Story Map.
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