Hi,
We are in the process of further updating the blog site. More to come soon. But below is a bunch of updates and photos and videos will be updated to this blog post soon (overcoming some technical issues!). Soon, we will have more updates as Tracy has progressed through the Northeast to the North Central part of the country as he makes his way west. Thanks to Tracy for his efforts and you all for your patience!
Day 17 - 7 Jun 24: After an very nice breakfast with
Bruce & Janice, I was sent on my way with some sweet pastries Janice had
made (and which I conserved and ate over the next couple days), I cycled to the
Gorham Bike Shop to see about getting the "hop" removed from my rear
tire. They were unable to get rid of the "hop" and suggested,
given the two fairly substantial cuts in the tire, that a new tire would be a
good idea. I had noticed the cuts when I changed the tube, so I readily
agreed. Turned out that Gorham's did not have the size tire I needed and
informed me that there was another shope a couple miles up the road (in the
direction I was going, even), Maine Bike Works, that specialized in touring
bicycles. A quick call confirmed that they had a tire that would work for
me. Maine Bike Works was extremely accommodating and fit me right
in, checked my chain and rear derailleur, changed my rear tire (and rid me of
my "hop") and sent me on my way. One of the mechanics told me
that he hoped one day he could do something as foolish as what I was
doing! On up the Eastern Trail, across the Scarborough Marsh / Nonesuch
River (picture) and into Portland. Along the streets with a fair bit of
traffic and navigating my way, I suddenly spotted the Ri Ra Irish Pub and I
knew exactly where I was - having spent a couple enjoyable evenings in the pub
with clients over the past few years. The bike trail took me right
along the coast (picture) and out of Portland and into Falmouth. Got a
couple pictures of the grist mill on the Royal River in Yarmouth. Hid out
a bit from some rain showers and hen picked up Route 1 and stumbled across
Mainely Custard, so I had to make a stop and treat myself to a frozen chocolate
custard. And the day ended superbly - after 41 milesI found the Freeport
Econo Lodge right next door to the Maine Brewing Company. I checked in,
got all my gear into my room and as I walked next door to have some pizza and
beer, it was starting to rain. What timing!!
Day 18 - 8 Jun 24: Nice hearty breakfast in Freeport
and then pedaled Route 1 through New Brunswick along the Androscoggin River
(picture) and then through Bath and past the Bath Iron Works on the Kennebec
River (picture). Continued on Route 1 up to Newcastle (not the Geordie
one) and had fish and chips for late lunch / early dinner. Called Lake
Pemaquid Camping and secured a site for the night. Pedaled to the
campground, set up the tent and used their nice public room to charge my
electrical equipment and plan the next day's route and called it a day - 44
miles.
Day 19 - 9 Jun 24: Got the tent taken down and put
away just as it was starting to sprinkle and made off toward the south!
Google Maps said that was the best way to to get around Lake Pemaquid (picture)
and up the coast to the northeast. Stopped in Waldoboro for breakfast at
Dunkin Donuts and picked up some groceries and was on my way. Lots of
beautiful scenery, meadows and forests (picture), and, of course, the coast
(video) at the Whale's Tooth Pub in Lincolnville, where once again, I had the
fish and chips for late lunch / early dinner. Then it was up Route 1 42
miles to the Merrybell, where the nice young couple who own and run the motel
let me use their hose and a bucket to wash down my bicycle and its
drivetrain. Lubricated the chain so my trusty steed was ready to go
again. Planned the next day's route to go to Acadia East Campground and
called it a day.
Day 20 - 10 Jun 24: I decided to get off Route 1 and
take Shore Road toward Belfast, which perhaps was not the best choice.
Very scenic (video - I believe the tide was out!), but VERY hilly. I made
it to Belfast for breakfast and then back on to Route 1 and across the
Passagassawakeag River (picture). Nice bridge and nice river, but the
Penobscot Narrows Bridge and the Penobscot River were even better
(pictures). The Mt. Desert Narrows was pretty, but not as grand (picture).
It was getting late and the legs were not the happiest when I happened upon
the Acadia Seashore Camping & Cabins and decided to call it a day
at 61 miles. The sign on the office said closed, but there was a
telephone number. As I started to call, the door opened and a man asked
if he could help. He and his wife certainly did!! I got an
excellent camping spot and good advice on which ice cream to get at the
restaurant / ice cream stand next door. The blueberry ice cream was
excellent. As I was setting up my tent, they were taking a walk around
the campground and stopped to chat. Michael and Gloria are from Yuma, AZ
and are spending their summer minding the Acadia Seashore
Campground. They invited me to have breakfast with them, and I agreed
posthaste. Took a walk around the campground, saw a beautiful sunset
(picture), did some route planning and went to sleep.
Day 21 - 11 Jun 24: Day started with a pancake
breakfast and nice conversation with Michael and Gloria. Glorias sent me
on my way with a bagged lunch so I wouldn't have to make a lengthy stop on
the way. Today's destination was Lubec, ME, "home" of the
Easternmost Point of the Continental US. Enjoyed some beautiful weather
and passed more picturesque waterways everywhere (pictures). As I was
starting to get hungry and looking for a good place to pull over, I happened
upon the Jonesboro Memorial Park alongside the Chandler River and the Jonesboro
Grange Hall. After eating and drinking yet more water, I started to leave
and in front of the Grange a woman was putting up a sign about the upcoming
"Crush Cancer 10K" to be run, I believe, on Saturday, 15 Jun
24. Since we were kindred spirits, both looking to battle cancer, I
stopped to chat. Turned out her daughter, Rebecca (I think - I never even
got the woman's name), initiated the Crush Cancer 10K several years earlier,
after her father's battle with cancer (which I believe he won) and she donates
the proceeds from the run to Sarah's House of Maine, which is an organization
very much like the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodges. She wanted to
record a short video of me and what I was doing and then we wished each other
well and went our ways. I made my way to the Eastland Motel, checked in
and got a recommendation for the Fisherman's Wharf for dinner. I sat
outside to eat, which was pretty chilly, but the view was worth it (video).
Went back, warmed up and went to sleep - 76 miles had me pretty tired!!
Day 22 - 12 Jun 24: Got up fairly early, grabbed some
yogurt and blueberry and chocolate chip muffins at the Eastland Motel office
and took off for West Quoddy Head and the Easternmost Point of the US.
Route was an out-and-back past the motel, so I left all my gear there - I
didn't think my tent, camping gear and panniers really cared about seeing West
Quoddy Head. I certainly did care and after about a 5 and a half foggy
miles, I was there (picture). By the way, Wast Quoddy Head is at the
mouth of the Bay of Fundy - home to the highest tides in the world. I
also did wonder how the easternmost point of the continental US got a name of West
Quoddy Head. Pedaled back to the motel, packed up, checked out and headed
west - for the next few months.
Here's the rest of Day 22 - 12 Jun 24: My initial
route west was the reverse of my route to Lubec. More picturesque
waterways (pictures) and greenery along the way. I stopped at the
Cottonwood Campground for the night and had to satisfy my "dinner"
needs with a sandwich from a gas station up the road - not ideal, but it
worked. Another 55 miles and I was out for the night. By the way -
probably the "easternmost point" of the continental US is down on these
rocks someplace over the fence (picture) at West Quoddy Head - exactly
where depending on whether the tide is in or out!
Day 23 - 13 Jun 24: An issue that makes nightly
camping in the Northeast a bit of a pain is dew. I don't like the idea of
putting the tent away wet in the waterproof bag I carry it in, so packing up
after a night of camping includes way too much time spent waiting for the sun
to dry off the tent. But at least there was sun to do the drying. I
think when I get out in the plains and the Rockies, the air will be dry enough
that this issue will go away, and maybe reappear in Washington and
Oregon. At any rate, it took a while to get packed up due to the
dew!! I did meet the owner of the campground, Shirley, while I was
packing up, and she ended up giving me a very nice discount. It was late
morning by the time I started to roll so I stopped at the gas station again for
a breakfast of gas station pizza. Today is the day I head away from the
coast. My plan was to ride Route 1 to Ellsworth and then Route 1A to
Bangor. It was going to be a long ride, and with my late start, I had
doubts. Route 1 took me across the Narragaugus River (picture) where I
saw something I had never encountered before (video). The river was
flowing upstream, I am sure as a result of the tide coming in, but I had never
seen this before. I was becoming more certain that I would not make it to
Bangor and hit upon a plan while looking for a place along Route 1A. I
called Sarah's House of Maine, the facility for cancer patients and their
caregivers to stay during treatment that I had learned of when I met the woman putting
up a sign for the Crush Cancer 10K. The facility is several miles short
of Bangor and I thought, given my ride being to raise money for cancer, I might
be able to spend a night there. My call got me the number for the
facility's Executive Director, Heather Massey. I called Heather and was
turned down - Sarah's House has a very specific charter and Heather feared
that allowing a guest to stay who was not within the charter might impact
their funding. She also suggested that I might get a room at The Lucerne
Inn, located on 1A a few miles before Sarah's House. I called the Inn and
was told they did have a room available. Thank you, Heather. After
61 miles, the last several being very uphill, I arrived at The Lucerne Inn
and my happiness evaporated. The place was beautiful and I was sure, well
beyond what I wanted to pay. I was right. I explained to the young
ladies at the desk what I was doing and asked if they might offer me a
discount. They did, but still too high and I told them I could not afford
even that kind of price, being on the road for a year. They said they'd
contact the owner to see if he'd offer me a better deal, because he was "a
good guy". Indeed he was!! He gave me over 60% off the normal
price! I got a great room, outstanding service from the staff and a great
dinner. Talk about stumbling into a good deal!!
Day 24 - 14 Jun 24: A continental breakfast was
included as part of the accommodations, so I chowed down (much better than gas
station pizza), returned to my room, loaded up my bike and rode around front to
check out. There was a gentleman behind the desk, and as he completed the
check out, he said something that prompted me to ask if he was the owner - and
indeed he was - Mr. David Silverman. I thanked him for the generous
discount he had given me and he voiced his appreciation for what I was
doing. Our conversation led to him asking if he might take a look at my
bike, to which I readily agreed. After looking my bike over, we went back
inside to finish the check out and I asked him if he would like a copy of the
letter that ACS and I had put together about my journey to post in his hotel,
and he agreed that he would. I went back out to get a copy and when I
came back in, David was finishing a phone call and told me he had called his
media contact he uses for advertising and that I would probably be getting a
phone call from the Bangor TV station. WOW!! I offered David more
thanks and headed up Route 1A. And of course a few more miles up the road
was Sarah's House of Maine, so thinking that Heather Massey might be there, I
stopped to see. She was, and she told me the history of the facility and
gave me a tour. Back in the saddle and on to Bangor. As I was
navigating my way through town, my phone rang, and it was WABI Channel 5 News
in Bangor. The News Director, Jeff Jones, wanted to do an interview with
me. H e proposed having a reporter meet me at Hayford Park. I
pedaled up to the park and spent about half an hour talking with Grace Bradley
and her camera about my trip. Amazing how getting turned down for a stay
at Sarah's House of Maine ended up getting some of the best publicity
for the American Cancer Society Circumnavigation of America yet.
Thank you Heather Massey and David Silverman. Following our
discussion, I attempted to get back on my westerly course, and as
has been the case much too often, the Garmin was upset with me for departing
from the saved course and didn't seem to want to help me much. After
coming to a "Dead End" sign and making a couple false starts I
decided to have some lunch. A short discussion with another diner at the
restaurant, I found out the "Dead End" was closed to automotive
traffic, but bicycles could get through. I made it a few miles and the
weather started to look ominous just as I came across a Holiday Inn. I
checked in once again just as it started to rain. With all the events of
the day, I only covered 20 miles, but hopefully the publicity will result in a
few more donations for the ACS. The only real downer was that I thought
stopping early due to the weather, I could get some updates written and sent to
Jamie Kane. The Holiday Inn's internet had other ideas and I got next to
nothing done!
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