Day Eight – Saturday, September 13

Expectations: We will depart Little Falls and head for
Indian Castle, East Creek, Mindenville, St. Johnsville, Fort Plain/Nelliston, Canajoharie for lunch, Palantine Bridge, Sprakers (Between Sprakers & Randall look for the “Noses”, escarpments facing each other. Watch for vultures, hawks and maybe a bald eagle on the up-drafts). Randall, Fultonville/Fonda, Auriesville, Fort Hunter – Schoharie Crossing Historic Site. Aquaduct. Amsterdam

This night will be our last. We’ll stay in a motel, eat in nearby restaurants, then complete our journey to Albany.

I got up feeling not so good. I think I need food. I need my coffee. I hope to be able to ride today, because if I can’t this presents a major, major problem! I realized there was no need for me to buy a new book of maps. What was I thinking? I’m never going to do this ride again. ☺

As well as I thought I had dried everything out last night, I gather my things and I’m still mopping up water in order to stow my gear. Everything just got so wet yesterday. (Note: the sound of my voice on the digital recorder has no energy as I transcribe this. I sound defeated).

I found some orange juice in the fridge and that helped hold me over until I could get some food. In the meantime Kathy still had a flat tire. I found her out in the side yard changing it herself. She had done it once before and wasn’t going to wait around for the local bike shop to open up. Luckily I had my CO2 cartridges with me specifically for inflating bike tires. Kathy got the job done in no time and was able to inflate the tire (the rear one, of course) enough to walk down to the gas station to finish the inflating.

I made several trips up and down the stairs getting our gear ready to roll. Every trip up made my quadriceps, glutes and calves burn so bad. I had to stop at the top until the burning stopped.

We had breakfast in a local restaurant (whose name I don’t recall). Food and coffee made me feel a lot better. We cleared Little Falls at 10:42, way behind schedule. Once again the maps failed us. What it looked like on the map was not what it looked like in reality. The pathway was obscured on a side street AND nowhere did the map tell us we had to pick up the Miracle Mile and a Half. You do not go over the bridge into Little Falls and you have to hunt down people to ask about the continuation point

I had electrolyte tablets with me and I put half a tablet in my water bottle and swigged it down. It didn’t make me feel better. If I had been low on electrolytes I would have felt better immediately.

The “old lady” carried “crack bags” and “mixes cocktails” on this trip. That’s a story for Kathy to tell (or not).

We left Little Falls in misty, cool weather. It didn’t take long, however, for the sun to burn off the overcast and warm the air and our spirits. We went past the Herkimer Home Historic Site, but we were so far behind schedule we chose not to stop.