Day 40, Cazenovia, NY to Speculator, NY

Today I rode 103.49 miles from Cazenovia to Speculator, NY. There was 3,702 ft. of elevation gain. I have only 4 more riding days and about 310 miles left to complete the journey.

I witnessed a captivating sunrise and tried to capture it on celluloid.

I rode past Barneveld this morning. This is the closest that I will get to home in Lowville, NY. 45 miles north on Route 12 and I would be home.

The Adirondack Park is a publicly protected, elliptical area encompassing much of the northeastern lobe of Upstate New York, United States. It is the largest park and the largest state-level protected area in the contiguous United States, and the largest National Historic Landmark.

The park covers some 6.1 million acres (2.5×106 ha), a land area roughly the size of Vermont and greater than the National Parks of Yellowstone, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, Glacier, and Great Smoky Mountains combined.

As I was riding along route 8 just past Piseco Lake lost in my own thoughts listening to the “Om Mani Padme Hum” Buddhist chant, a car pulls up and stops just ahead of me. I slow down and stop. Bud Hall jumped out from the passenger side to greet me with a big bear hug. Bud, a pharmacist, has been a great friend and supporter of my crazy adventures over the last 20 years that I have lived in Lowville, NY. Also seen in the photo is his wife Chris, who works in the maternity department at the Lewis County General Hospital.

My abode for the night is Lake Pleasant Lodge. 

A panoramic view of Lake Pleasant. Lake Pleasant is considered a tourist hub in Hamilton County. Estimates put the number of summer homes at around three-quarters of the homes in the area. Between Memorial Day and Labor Day, the unofficial summer season, the small town is a busy community, with many activities including a parade, fireworks, summer musical, camping, nature hiking, water activities, and historical activities, art show, geocaching, mountain biking and so much more. Lake Pleasant is also famous for its fall foliage, and winter sport activities.

Janis Bond, a fellow rider from Delaware expressed a desire to go out on the lake in a canoe as she had never been in a canoe ever before. I was itching to be out on the water myself. So, we hopped in a canoe and off we went to the middle of the lake. The wind was blowing hard which made the waters choppy but no whitecaps. Looking around the shoreline from the water was very enjoyable, especially the fall colors. To read Janis’s blog, click here.

Wayne Pierce seen here has also been a friend of mine since I moved to Lowville 20 years ago. He works as a pharmaceutical representative. He is the one that got me into bicycling many years ago. He is also the one that taught me the game of golf. I have truly enjoyed his friendship and was so happy that he came out to join me for the evening. We had dinner together at the Melody Lodge.

My happiness knows no bounds now that I am reunited with my wife Sheree. She plans on accompanying the group for the last 4 days of the journey to Portland, Maine.

Here is my thought for today. I have been bringing you these “Wow” moments from across the country. But I realize that I live in the biggest “Wow” moment all year long. The beauty of Upstate New York is incomparable. Our fall colors, snowy winter wonderland, spring reawakening, brief but lovely summers, flora and fauna, lakes, rivers, streams, trails, mountains are a joy to behold. Why is it that one has to go far and away to realize what one has left behind? Now that I witness the beauty of the place where I live, I am more convinced that there is no better place in this big country of ours to live than Upstate New York. We may not have big “bank balances” but go check our “happiness balance”. The world needs to gauge people not on the basis of their “net-worth”, but on the basis of their “self-worth”.

I will be home on Tuesday, October 7^th and back in the office on Thursday, October 9^th.