Day 8 - World's Longest Bike Path over water
Day 8 - Plattsburgh, NY to Montpelier, VT - 73 miles - 2,910 ft of elevation gain
If you ever want to stay at a hotel with long hallways that seem to turn corner after corner and lead to another hallway, I recommend the Best Western Plus in Plattsburgh, NY. I tried to get to the front desk and thought I was going to need to drop Cheerios in order to find my way back to my room. In the morning, I had to plan on the walk to the breakfast room to make sure I had time before our 8am departure.
Today involved two ferry rides, one for cars and bikes and one for bikes only. The first ferry took us from Plattsburgh to Grand Isle, then we biked to the south of the island. Here we picked up the bike path. This is the longest bike path over water in the world. We biked a few miles and then we got on a little ferry for bikes (or walkers) that took us like 40 ft to the next section of trail. This was an old rail line that had a swinging bridge connector which was hand cranked to turn to allow boats to pass through. The swinging bridge is no longer there, so the little ferry takes riders from one side to the other. The trail continues into Burlington, VT. It’s a well used trail, and offers great views of Lake Champlain.
We exited the trail in downtown Burlington and much to our chagrin, we were climbing a steep hill out of town. For a minute, I thought my superpower of choice had come true and we were transported to San Francisco because I blinked. By the top of the hill I was experiencing a rain storm of sweat and burning eyes, it was gloriously hot!
Northern New York spoiled us with cool temperatures and great roads. Today was hot with 100% humidity, which really does change things. Another thing that changed was the quiet roads with great surfaces. We arrived before their road work was complete and had to navigate miles of milled roads and one section that was pure stone. If you’re looking for a jolt while you ride, then these roads are for you!
We knew the final stretch to the hotel was going to be uphill, but it gave us more than we bargained for in the steep category. I also question what they consider a bike lane. One that has grates and potholes and debris is not my idea of a great ride. I stuck with the edge of the road. It’s amazing what pops in your head when you are climbing these hills. I was singing and humming and talking to myself. At one point I had to change the radio station (in my head) to something more motivating.
Our hotel, a Comfort Inn, offered us free Chocolate Chip cookies, sodas, and milk in the lobby. These cookies heated in the microwave are amazing! I’m not going to mention how many I ate. We got a dinner recommendation from the hotel, which was for a diner that has been in operation for over a 100 years. Our meal was great, and reasonably priced. After dinner, we went to see the state department building in downtown Montpelier. Then we returned to the hotel for devotions about the use of our tongue and a talk about what lies ahead tomorrow. It’s going to be a day to dig deep and find our grit to take us to the next hotel.
