Maine to North Dakota
(Originally Maine to Washington)
NH & VT
|
The reward
of a thing well done is to
have done it.
Ralph Waldo Emerson -- The Conduct of Life: Fate (1860) Tales From The Trail -- New Hampshire. As related by Gary and updated 6/8/05. New
Hampshire The
Town & Country Inn in Gorham is a very nice place to
stay. It is a true
"Ski crowd" kind of place but it suited my purposes perfectly. The food
was
excellent
(they have fine dining at reasonable prices, something I enjoy on
occasion,)
the service was great and the staff was very friendly. On my second
night's stay I
decided to stop by the lounge and that turned out to be a great idea. I
met a
lot of great people that night and had a wonderful time. First, I met
Judy (the
bartender) a very pleasant (and attractive) gal who enjoyed talking
almost as
much as I do, We were then joined by Ron and Betty A. from North
Yarmouth, ME.
Ron and Betty were on their way home after a trip to Montreal to
celebrate
their 49th Wedding Anniversary, Ron and I hit it off immediately and
chatted
non-stop until they had to leave for a dinner reservation. Ron
suggested that I
stick around and we could continue our conversation after they had
their
dinner, I found that idea hard to resist. While
waiting for Ron and Betty to return the band began to set up, I met Tim
Donovan
and we chatted about music, New Hampshire and Boston for a quite a
while. He was
the bass
player in the band -- Flashback. They were
a great
band!. It turns
out that Tim's wife Guylaine is one of the other bartenders at Town
&
Country who I had met the night before; it was one big happy family.
While
sitting there chatting with Judy and Tim a photographer was setting up
to take
pictures. One of the owners of T&C (I believe his name was
Scott)
came up
and started chatting and asked me if I'd like to be in their new
brochure. I
couldn't pass that up so Judy and I danced with a few folks as the
photographer
snapped pictures of us. Judy promised to send me a copy of that
brochure once
it comes out. Shortly
afterwards Ron and Betty returned from dinner and the three of us sat
for hours
talking
about anything and everything. I had truly made a pair of new friends
in Ron
and Betty, we just seemed to click. To Ron's chagrin I ratted on him
and told
the band that they were celebrating their 49th Anniversary so the whole
place
of course joined in song to congratulate them. Ron was a little miffed
that I
shot off my mouth but to be honest I think he enjoyed the attention
even though
he wouldn't admit it. He later evened the score by insisting that I
dance with
Janet, a pretty young lady from Minnesota who was sitting next to
us.(Yes Ron,
I enjoyed that quite a bit. Thanks!) Ron is quite a guy, he looks at
least 10
years younger than he is and he is also a dancing machine. I'll feel
blessed to
have
half that much vitality at his age. Ron & Betty -- I'm sure the
sun
shines
on you wherever you go. It was a pleasure to spend an evening with you.
I look
forward to doing it again someday soon! The
following morning I began my ride out of New Hampshire, it was
challenging to
say the least. After 2 miles of fairly flat town riding I began
climbing what
is known as Gorham Hill Road (RT 2 heading West out of Gorham.) For
about the
next 15 minutes I pedaled - stopped - breathed hard - poured sweat and
began
the cycle of events all over again. My guess is that it was about an 8%
grade.
It was a serious climb. Once I got past the first 2 miles it leveled
out to
about a 4% grade so I could actually sustain a speed of about 7 mph and
that
lasted until mile 11. At that point I reached the summit of Rt. 2 in
New
Hampshire and began the ride down to the Connecticut River and
Lancaster, NH. I
had conquered the White Mountains! When
I
reached the Connecticut River I paused to take a picture right in the
middle of
the bridge, my front tire was in Vermont and the rear was in New
Hampshire. 
 Shelburne, New Hampshire New Hampshire State Line 
Rest Stop New Hampshire View Vermont Here I Come! Tales From The Trail -- Vermont. As related by Gary and updated 6/8/05. Vermont When I was about 10 miles East of St. Johnsbury I came upon a Hot Dog stand, it was a welcome sight since I was pretty hungry. While stopped there I had a pleasant conversation with "Dennis the Hotdog Man." Dennis is one of those guys who has done a lot of things in his life and has a lot of cool stories, we chatted for quite a while as he explained how he had left the city for the peace and quiet of the mountains of Vermont. I understood him perfectly, I had left the suburbs of Chicago many years earlier to live in the Great Northern Woods of Minnesota. Dennis also had great Hotdogs! By coincidence Dennis' Hotdog stand was located at the exact start of the Winooski River, the river parallels Rt 2 and I would be following it all the way to Lake Champlain. (I planned it that way, it is one of the main reasons I choose RT 2.) I can't say it was an easy down hill ride but it was less strenuous than Eastern Vermont and New Hampshire. I made a special point to visit the Capital Building in Montpelier, VT. I had visited Montpelier several times before by car but it was particularly rewarding to visit by bike, I had dreamed about pedaling up to the park like common and seeing that golden dome glinting in the sun from the saddle of my bike! It was definately on my list of "must do things" when I planned the trip. 
Welcome To
Vermont
Capital Building in Montpelier
After
passing through many beautiful small towns I arrived at Grand Isle
State Park
on South Hero Island surrounded by Lake Champlain. I fell in love with
Vermont
when I
first visited Lake Champlain and Vermont in the middle 80's. Grand Isle
State
Park was as well near the top of my list of places to see and stay. The
weather
was
sunny and mild for my two-day stay and the campground was the nicest I
have
ever stayed at. The surroundings and the scenic views are stunning and
the
lean-to shelters (about 40 of the 126 sites have lean-to shelters) are
wonderful! The ride out of Vermont was very pleasant but also kind of sad, I was leaving New England. I had conquered what many cross country cyclists consider to be the hardest riding of my entire trip (grades are much more gradual in the Western US, newer roads are designed to a much different standard than the older, steeper roads of New England) but I hated to leave the beauty of the Northeastern mountains. I remember having a strangely empty feeling the first time I left the mountains of Vermont, that was way back in the mid 1980's, I felt that same feeling all over again this time. It must be something to do with seeing the green hills on the horizon all around you for days and then suddenly having them gone. I
crossed the bridge at the northern end of Lake Champlain into
Champlain, New
York at 11:20AM, the ride this day would turn out to be the longest
ride of the
trip so far. By the time I arrived in Malone, New York that evening I
had
ridden 85 miles. The last 50 miles were hot and hilly. New York would
prove to
be a hilly state. Hello
New York! Update -- 5/31/05 -- 9:20 PM -- Gary is currently in Vermont. 
 Grand Isle State Park - South Hero Island - Lake Champlain And he even has a roof over his head 
 That is his rear view mirror on the handlebar A moment of rest 
 Supper time -- and I knew it! -- "Ramen Noodles" The New York State Line Update -- 5/30/05 -- 2:23 PM -- An update from the Lad himself from the Gorham, New Hampshire Public Library. Message via email from Gary 5/27/05. Maine
The weather was quite nasty for my ride across
Maine,
I'm told
this is the worst May since around 1940 and it is very rare to have a
Nor Easter in May, a Nor Easter is typically a winter storm. In fact we
have had 3 consecutive Nor Easters in a row. The temperature has been
between 42-50F (more 42F days than 50F days) each day
and it
either
showered, poured or drizzled, drizzle is the worse since it doesn't
wash the road grime (from traffic spray) off of me or the bike. I have
been staying in hotels every night since I have no other way of getting
dry, I've been climbing dozens of hills and
mountain passes each day,
on the climb up I get hot and become drenched to the
core, on
the
way down it gets very cold so I can't stop for long without
getting a
chill. Since it's raining constantly nothing will dry out so a motel
each night is my only answer. The only real regret is that I can't see
much of this beautiful state or take many pictures, everything
is
shrouded in mist and fog. I've passed a dozen spots I'd love to
photograph but the conditions are just too poor.
The up sides are that I am putting the miles
behind
me, getting
stronger and building character, If I can cycle through this
stuff
I
can cycle through almost anything! And hey, I don't know many people
who can say they cycled halfway across Maine in a Nor Easter! (To be
frank, I don't know anyone who would want too, but that's another
story.) Another upside is that I've had the wind strongly at my back.
As I write this I am sitting in a library in
Gorham,
NH, it's not
raining today, it's cloudy and warm (58F) and I'm taking a day off to
let my legs and body recover from the rain, cold and hills.
Crossing
over the ME/NH line yesterday afternoon was the first
of
many waypoints
on my trip and it felt good to see that sign, it gave me a sense of
accomplishment. Someday I'll return to Maine (by car) and see all the
things I missed because of the weather, and I'll visit some of the
places and new friends I met along the way, the little sandwich shop in
Etna, ME where the small chicken salad sandwich is 3 times the size of
a large in the city, and the people were so warm and
hospitable... Or
the cozy comfort of the Blue Iris Motel in Rumsford Center, ME
beautifully pearched along the Adroscoggin river... It's a beautiful
state with great people... I'll be back some day.
----END5/26/05 -- 7:30 PM First update New Hampshire/Vermont. Gary made it to New Hampshire. See Maine for latest update. Gary hopes to be in Vermont by Saturday. More to follow on New Hampshire/Vermont. Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you've imagined.
As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler. Henry David Thoreau |
