Day 28a of ALAA-Fri, June 10th, 2011

Boondocking Behind the Elementary School in Grafton, NY

Okay, now I can admit it! Last night was boondocking behind the elementary school in Grafton, NY. A guy in Troy told me about Grafton Lakes SP but when I got there I found out there's no camping. So I rode into sleepy little Grafton, found the school, set up camp, and was gone by 6:15 AM. What would I have done if the Grafton, NY police had found me? I dunno, probably played dumb although that sounds pretty logical right now! Of course, I might have ended up in the Grafton, NY Police Station or before a magistrate but I guess it's better to be lucky than good! I'm having two cake donuts in Hoosick, NY headed into Bennington, VT.

The Front of the National Baseball Hall of Fame

George Brett-A True Hall of Famer!

Day 27 of ALAA-Thurs, June 9th, 2011-From Rochester to Grafton, NY

Well, my plan this morning was to get on I-90, the NY Thruway, and barrel East. That didn't work because being buffeted by cars and trucks going 70-80 mph flat out ain't much fun! I exited and rode the rest of the way to Cooperstown on Hiway 20, a much calmer and slower road that goes through the villages along the way.


Another coincidence popped up today. I was buying some postcard stamps at the Post Office in Waterloo, NY and the lady who works there has a daughter that went to Oklahoma Christian and now lives in Yukon, OK! Strange how those things just keep happening-first it was the Redelsbergers in Bodega Bay, CA and now this.


I spent most of the afternoon at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. Definitely worth the stop! The downtown area of Cooperstown is virtually all baseball-themed junque joints selling all manner of  baseball trinkets and trash. I guess they understand target maketing, huh?


I'm camping right on the border of NY, MA, and VT. A guy at a Burger King in Troy, NY, near Albany, told me about a wonderful campground at Grafton Lakes State Park. Well, I rode out to the state park and not only does it NOT have any camping but the entire state park is closed from dusk to dawn! Maybe that guy at he BK WAS smokin' funny smelling' cigarettes! Soooooo, it was boondocking again. There are no campgrounds near here BUT I did find an elementary school in Grafton with woods behind it so home for the night it was!


I should make it easily to Maine tomorrow. Tomorrow I will leave NY for VT but I'll be back in NY in a few days headed South down the Atlantic coast through the dreaded New York City. New Hampshire is similar because it also borders Canada and the Atlantic. Sometime I'll have to count the number of state border crossings on this trip. If I remember right, it's 31-32 states with 34-35 state border crossings.

Day 27a of ALAA-Thurs, May 9th, 2011

Well, I've got a change in plans for you: Rather than follow the roads along the Canadian border through upstate NY, VT, and NH to Maine, I'm following the NY Thruway to Albany, cut across Southern VT, North through central NH, and into Maine.


Why? Well, there are two reasons. The first is Cooperstown, NY where the National Baseball Hall of Fame is located. I've been to the National Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, MA so the Baseball HOF will be a new one! The second reason is moose! Two or three bikers I've talked with have warned me about the number of moose in upstate NY, VT, NH and ME. Since I don't especially like the odds on elk and me on my bike, I'll take the elk at 3-to-1 odds over me! Come to think of it, the possibility of hitting a moose scare the willies out of me! It's just flat-out not worth taking the chance so I'm wimping out and taking the Southern route across New England!

Day 26 of ALAA, Wed, June 8th, 2011-From Erie, PA to Rochester, NY



Most of us are accustomed to seeing Horshoe Falls but this is American Falls from the U. S. side




The Old Guy at Horseshoe Falls on the American side at Niagara Falls. I don't think I ever mentioned this bright-colored construction vest in the blog. It was worn anytime I wasn't wearing my brightly-colored jacket.



Horshoe Falls From the U. S. Side of Niagara Falls

Hard to Believe but I Took This Picture of the Maid of the mist and the Rainbow with my iPhone. (I guess it goes to show that even a blind bird finds a worm from time to time!)

Here are some pics of Niagara Falls. I'd been to the falls on the Canada side in the past but this was my first trip to the U. S. side. Even as a patriotic American, I have to admit that the views are better on the Canada side of the falls! From the Canada side, you look right into Horseshoe Falls and directly at American Falls. Of all the pictures I took at the falls, my favorite is the one with the rainbow caused by the mist with the Maid of the Mist in the background. No, I did NOT pay the $65 to ride the Maid of the Mist down almost under Horseshoe Falls!


The parking lot at the falls was very full so I took advantage of being on a motorcycle and parked in a questionable space. Well, as you can imagine, I got caught! A New York Highway Patrol officer drove up to my questionable parking space as I was preparing to leave and I thought I was going to get a ticket for parking there near the entrance. Well, I started talkin' wif a sooooouuuuttthhherrn draaaaawl and told him about A Lap Around America so he let me go without getting a parking ticket!


Okay, an update on the bike: technically, the Honda didn't fail. A small clip on the top of the battery broke in two pieces and the electrical connection was broken. I bought a roadside service agreement before I left home and used it to get the bike taken to a Honda dealer in Rochester. They found the problem and installed a new battery in 30 minutes. Hip-Hip-Hooray! So I've been through Rochester, had my first Iced Frappichino there (it was way too hot for a latte!), rode 20-25 miles East of Rochester, and then back to Rochester!


A couple of observations about this part of our great USA: Buffalo is another one of those rust-belt cities that are surrounded by the evidence of dead or dying industries. I rode near Ford's former River Rouge plant in Detroit. If my memory serves me (?), it was once the largest, most comprehensive manufacturing facility in the world-iron ore came in one end of this massive factory and finished Fords went out the other end. Today? Closed and rusting! The exception to this is Erie, PA. I rode through a lot of Erie from BRC's house and Erie impressed me with its cleanliness and the cute factor-many of the homes were built in the post-war 40's and 50's and are very well cared for. It was surprising to see miles and miles of vineyards and wineries between Erie and Buffalo along the South shore of Lake Erie. It's not Napa or Sonoma counties but I guess it works.


Another surprising thing is how many American cars and motorcycles I've seen between Wisconsin and here-these folks support their local Detroit car companies and Harley-Davidson! Seeing a vehicle built in Asia or Europe is definitely not common in this part of the U. S. Niagara Falls from the American side is impressive and powerful but without the clear views from the Canadian side.

Day 26a of ALAA-Wed, June 8th, 2011

Things WERE going so well! I spent the morning cruising NY 5 along the South shore of Lake Erie, spent a couple of hours on the American side of Niagara Falls, enjoyed the back roads from NF into Rochester, had an Iced Frappachino at a Starbuck's in Rochester and then the Honda goes dead. I stopped on the side of the road to check the map and then she wouldn't start! A wrecker is on the way to take the bike and I to a Honda MC dealer in Rochester. Years I've owned Hondas and THIS has never happened before. I mean, a HONDA? I'll keep you updated.....

Day 25 of ALAA,Tues, June 7th, 2011-From Flint, MI to Erie, PA

Today has a lot of pretty boring middles with a good lunchtime and a great evening. From Flint, MI down to the Detroit area was run of the mill, getting a new front tire on the bike and a new helmet for me in Warren, MI was a pretty good. There was more middling through Detroit, Toledo, and Cleveland to a great end in Erie, PA. Some of the Cascadians out there remember Charles Strange-aka Chuck, Chuckles, or Back Row Charlie. Well, he lives in Erie and we hooked up for dinner, some good conversation , and a bed to sleep in for me. BRC moved back here after he graduated from Cascade and bought a perfect home in a wonderful neighborhood of Erie, PA. The streets look like where every kid should grow up!


Today was Lake Erie, the coast of Ohio and halfway across the NW corner of PA. Tomorrow is the rest of the NW corner of PA and into Western New York. It was almost sad to go through cities like Flint, Detroit, Toledo, and Cleveland because they were some of the most powerful industrial cities in the US in the 50's and 60's but now they are declining rust-belt ghost towns waiting for the day when heavy union manufacturing returns . . . . . but I'm afraid those days are gone forever.

Day 24 of ALAA, Mon, June 6th, 2011-From St. Ignace to Flint, MI

 The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island

 The Ferry From St. Ignace to Mackinac Island (Yes, the water of Lake Huron is very blue!)

 Main Main Street on Mackinac

 The The Post Office on Mackinac

  Fort Mackinac by a Cab Stand

 

This entire island looks like a postcard!

 

Mackinac Main Street

This hasn't been a good day because of the memories. Yesterday was my Dad's birthday and today is Ryan's. He would have loved this trip and Mackinac Island today. Mackinac Island is magnificent! Camping just South of Flint, MI tonight. The pic above is the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island-famous in the Somewhere in Time movie. Contrary to Richard Collier (played by Christopher-Superman-Reeves) driving his car to the Grand Hotel, the island does not allow motorized vehicles! The pics above are the trip to and the scenes around Mackinac. You'll see that there are no motorized vehicles so everyone either takes bicycles or horse-drawn carriages.


The place proably stays so beautiful because the whole island is a state park. I understand that it has about 400 year-round residents but the population swells to around 1500 when all the college students come to work there during the summer to provide services for the summer tourists. I talked to a local and he told me that the snow in the winter pretty much keeps them on the island almost all the time. He said Lake Huron freezes over in the winter so they use snowmobiles on the lake to to go to St. Ignace on the mainland for supplies. Mackinac Island is a place where my Bride and I are going to have to come visit again!


You can imagine what I thought when I saw the sign below! Actually, pasties are a type of stew put into a dough shell . . . . . . and pronounced past-ies, not paste-ies. Thank goodness for that- I would hate to think of Bessie selling paste-ies!

Pronounced PAST-IES but I was sure fooled!