Journey of living life with joy, gratitude and adventure

Day 58 August 26 Byron to Romulus

Today’s stats
Distance 79.35 miles
Time in saddle 5.43 hours
Average speed 13.8

We woke up this morning at 530 rather than five as it is still pretty dark. Hank and Mel headed out on the road at about 7 AM. I left with Al Karsten and we rode almost the whole way. Al left me at the East Palmyra refreshment at mile 52. I hooked up with Clare and Roger the last 30 miles.

Al and I stopped in Avon for coffee along with lots of other cyclists. The ride along the Finger Area is very beautiful. Unfortunately, we did not go through some of the quaint towns located on the lakes. We rode just north of them through some very nice country side.

At mile 52 we were treated to a great lunch by the East Palmyra CRC church. We had sloppy joes, chips, fresh fruit, squares, ice cream, and cold drinks. This was very much appreciated by the cyclists. Many of the cyclists had not packed a lot of food so they were very hungry by the time the lunch stop arrived.

I saw my cousin Grace and Ralph Hutt at the refreshment area as they are members of the East Palmyra church.

It was a good ride, Hank arrived at camp at about 430 and I arrived at 230. When I arrived the gear truck was not yet there so we just relaxed for a half hour.

Our camp site Sampson State Park was located on the shore of Seneca Lake, one of the largest of the fingers lakes. This area was also at one time an training area for the department of defense. The Finger Lake area has 11 lakes shaped like fingers, is a very beautiful area with lots of cottages, vineyards, and quaint towns. There is excellent sailing on most of the lakes. Watkins Glen a famour park and gorge area is at the base of Seneca Lake. It is part of the glacial shield.

Shortly after I arrived, my brother John and his wife Besty showed up. Hank and I put up our tents and took showers. John and Betsy than took us to into Geneva for supper and to look for a battery for my camera.

We also went to see the latest home that the TV show Extreme Makeover did in Geneva. It was built for a boxer who began injured and subsequently got involved with training disadvantaged kids. It was interesting to talk to the guards and a few people on the street that this house was on. One gentleman commented that he was in withdrawal as he would be out on his front porch at 630 AM and would not go to bed till 1130. The guard told us they work on a site for 2 weeks than are off for 5 days. The neighbourhood itself had been quite overrun by construction equipment and people. It appeared that lots of work had to be done to restore the neighbourhood.

We headed back to camp and saw an albino deer that is part of a herd located in an area opposite our campground. Neither Hank nor I had ever seen an albino deer before.

We ended the day with a peleton meeting followed by our last small group meeting. At our small group we talked about what we might expect life to be like when we return home and try to get back to a normal life. For most of us, we expect life to be somewhat different and to be more focused on how God might use us. It has been a good small group that felt comfortable to share needs and ask for prayer support. We did not meet every night but did meet several times a week.

As we are on sweep in the morning, we need to get up early 5 AM to report for kitchen duty by 530.