86.4 mi
5.54.57 st
14.6 avg
TTD-2682.71
We left at 7:20 in very warm and humid weather and rode right along the lake for most of the day.
At Lake Avon we rode 3.5 miles off the route to Walmart to get a camera. We bought a Nikon Coolpix for $99, plus another 1G SD card, and some food items. We had lunch at the Subway there.
It was hot today; at one bank that we rode by at 3:00, the display said 96 degrees. We were sweating like crazy today, totally soaked, and the humidity added to it.
We rode by some incredible lakefront homes today. Huge, gated, beautiful! We decided that most likely the people that live in those homes would probably not want to hang around us.
From Vermilion, it was continuous city; we never did ride again in countryside all day. Vermilion, Lorain, Sheffield Lake, Avon Lake, Bay Villge, Rocky River, Lakewood, Cleveland, Bratenahl, Euclid – they all run together into one metropolitan area.
Between Bay Village and Rocky River, we saw a portly guy on a loaded bicycle across the road so we stopped to talk with him. Hey, if you think what we’re doing is admirable in any way, you should think of Duane! He’s 72 and left Seattle the first of March, rode to Boston and is on his way back to Seattle! He expects to get back in September. He said he’s been doing this for 11 years! He stays in motels and churches. He said he gave up camping because there just aren’t that many places to camp anymore. We can relate to that. At the time we saw him, he was actually trying catch a ride because he was too hot. (I noticed that he had on a fleece earband or skullcap under his helmet, so it’s no wonder he was overly hot!) He’d done 24 miles and it was all he could do for the day, even though he said he usually does about 50. Once again, I got so engrossed in conversation that I forgot to get a picture.
Riding through downtown Cleveland wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated. The Adventure Cycling map uses a safe route and is very detailed.
We missed only one turn and that was Paddles' fault for reading one street on the map wrong. When we got into downtown Cleveland, I was surprised at how easy it was to get through. Of course, going through at 1:30 in the afternoon was a real plus. 
We rode right by the Cleveland Browns stadium and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame which are both right on the lake. 
Then we rode next to the lake clear into Euclid. Here is where I noticed that we were the, um...."palest" people anywhere in sight. After getting a number of l-o-n-g stares, we decided that we needed to keep moving. We saw on the AC map that there are two or three motels on Euclid Ave, which is about a mile and a half south of where we were.
5.54.57 st
14.6 avg
TTD-2682.71
We left at 7:20 in very warm and humid weather and rode right along the lake for most of the day.
At Lake Avon we rode 3.5 miles off the route to Walmart to get a camera. We bought a Nikon Coolpix for $99, plus another 1G SD card, and some food items. We had lunch at the Subway there.It was hot today; at one bank that we rode by at 3:00, the display said 96 degrees. We were sweating like crazy today, totally soaked, and the humidity added to it.
We rode by some incredible lakefront homes today. Huge, gated, beautiful! We decided that most likely the people that live in those homes would probably not want to hang around us.
From Vermilion, it was continuous city; we never did ride again in countryside all day. Vermilion, Lorain, Sheffield Lake, Avon Lake, Bay Villge, Rocky River, Lakewood, Cleveland, Bratenahl, Euclid – they all run together into one metropolitan area.Between Bay Village and Rocky River, we saw a portly guy on a loaded bicycle across the road so we stopped to talk with him. Hey, if you think what we’re doing is admirable in any way, you should think of Duane! He’s 72 and left Seattle the first of March, rode to Boston and is on his way back to Seattle! He expects to get back in September. He said he’s been doing this for 11 years! He stays in motels and churches. He said he gave up camping because there just aren’t that many places to camp anymore. We can relate to that. At the time we saw him, he was actually trying catch a ride because he was too hot. (I noticed that he had on a fleece earband or skullcap under his helmet, so it’s no wonder he was overly hot!) He’d done 24 miles and it was all he could do for the day, even though he said he usually does about 50. Once again, I got so engrossed in conversation that I forgot to get a picture.
Riding through downtown Cleveland wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated. The Adventure Cycling map uses a safe route and is very detailed.
We missed only one turn and that was Paddles' fault for reading one street on the map wrong. When we got into downtown Cleveland, I was surprised at how easy it was to get through. Of course, going through at 1:30 in the afternoon was a real plus. We rode right by the Cleveland Browns stadium and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame which are both right on the lake. Then we rode next to the lake clear into Euclid. Here is where I noticed that we were the, um...."palest" people anywhere in sight. After getting a number of l-o-n-g stares, we decided that we needed to keep moving. We saw on the AC map that there are two or three motels on Euclid Ave, which is about a mile and a half south of where we were.
We rode past a Clarion and a Comfort Inn, knowing we couldn’t afford either of them. A half mile down the street we saw the Plaza and pulled in. The guy who met us in the parking lot was a bit on the redneck side, but extremely friendly. He showed us a couple rooms, then said there was a king room that would accommodate the bike better. Once in the room, we emptied the trunk pack, then rode back up the road to a grocery store for some food.
While Gerry did the shopping, I stayed outside with the bike. A young guy in his 20’s started asking me about the bike. He asked how much it cost and I just said “Lots.” There was no way I was going to tell him how much it was worth. He’d ask a question or two, then move away, then come back and ask more questions. Each time he’d come back, he’d move a little closer. I was starting to get a little creeped out by the time Gerry came out. But I wasn’t TOO worried because there were about four cops right there on the street taking care of some incident. (I thought it was just a fender bender, but when a couple ladies came out of the store, one of them said to the other, “It’s about time they did a drug bust here!” Hmmmm.
When we got back to the motel, we were so hot we sat down with the ice cream and two spoons. Then we both showered and took all the sweaty clothes to the "laundry" room. Ugh. It was in the basement and was icky. But we got them washed and mostly dried, then brought them back to the room to hang dry. Gerry fixed pasta, tuna and corn, then we finished the ice cream.
While Gerry did the shopping, I stayed outside with the bike. A young guy in his 20’s started asking me about the bike. He asked how much it cost and I just said “Lots.” There was no way I was going to tell him how much it was worth. He’d ask a question or two, then move away, then come back and ask more questions. Each time he’d come back, he’d move a little closer. I was starting to get a little creeped out by the time Gerry came out. But I wasn’t TOO worried because there were about four cops right there on the street taking care of some incident. (I thought it was just a fender bender, but when a couple ladies came out of the store, one of them said to the other, “It’s about time they did a drug bust here!” Hmmmm.
When we got back to the motel, we were so hot we sat down with the ice cream and two spoons. Then we both showered and took all the sweaty clothes to the "laundry" room. Ugh. It was in the basement and was icky. But we got them washed and mostly dried, then brought them back to the room to hang dry. Gerry fixed pasta, tuna and corn, then we finished the ice cream.
We thought we were going to ride only about 70 miles today, but the safety factor pushed us on to 86, a bit far for such a hot day.
I saw gas for $3.99 at a couple places today. All along the way, it’s been anywhere from $4.06 to $4.14. How much is it at home right now?
I saw gas for $3.99 at a couple places today. All along the way, it’s been anywhere from $4.06 to $4.14. How much is it at home right now?
Computer's kicking me off, so until next time,
Gerry and Pat
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