Day 50 - Saturday, June 28 - Boston, MA, to Grinnell, IA - 1250 miles by airplane

I shared a taxi with three other people to Boston Logan Airport. We drove through the "Big Dig" tunnel - an extensive freeway system under downtown Boston. It, greatly, relieved the congestion on the above ground streets and made it much faster to pass through the city - especially much faster to reach the airport. The Big Dig was in the news in recent years because of construction disasters and extravagant cost overruns.


I had a connecting flight in Milwaukee, WI, so the route out of Boston took my flight on a path over Syracuse, NY, where we had stayed six nights ago and also where my sister, Janet, lives. As I watched our progress over the terrain, I tried to visualize riding the distance on a bicycle. I'm not able, yet, to comprehend what we have done the last seven weeks. During the tour, one would hear rider after rider saying that they couldn't think of doing the overall trip as it seemed unattainable. We found that we had to only think of one day at a time. Each day, after riding a distance to the next overnight, most of us could not name the town that we had stayed in the night before. We were only focused on the day's destination. One day I was riding alone and a highway patrolman stopped to ask if I was lost. He asked where I was coming from and where I was going. I had to look at our route sheet to remind me. While riding, we get so lost in our thoughts that we lose track of everything else. We just make the turns called for on our route sheets and that gets us to our destination.

A typical "route sheet" that we used for our daily guidance. Left-click on the sheet for a larger view. We folded them in quarters and attached them to our handlebars - usually in a waterproof see-through pouch.

The Milwaukee, WI, airport.

Thanks for reading my blog during the tour and I have really appreciated your encouraging comments.

Bob

Day 49 - Friday, June 27 - Burlington, MA, to Boston, MA - 18 miles - 700 climbing feet

We had a beautiful 18 mile ride from Burlington, MA, to Revere Beach in Boston, MA, this morning. The temperature was very comfortable, around 70F, and the sky was clear. We did encounter the typical Massachusetts roads - mostly no bike-lane shoulders, lots of traffic, and lots of rough surfaces with holes. Our procession sounded like Santa Claus on his route as we called out "hole" (ho ho ho) dozens of times to warn the following riders of holes in the road.

We are preparing to leave the motel at our normal starting time of 7am. Although we are going to ride only 18 miles, our starting procedure was unchanged except for not loading our bags - as we will return to this same motel for our last night. The photo is of Warren (TX) and myself.

Damien (Ireland) and myself.



Our final pep talk from Tracy, our tour leader, before signing out for our last day's ride.



Signing out for the last time.


We rode on our own for 13 miles to this parking lot where we regrouped for the last 5 miles to the beach.

Some photos were taken while we waited to regroup. Here are most of the women on the tour.

Most of the men. A few riders took wrong turns on the way to the regrouping area and had not arrived. I am fourth from the left in the second row.


Police escort to Revere Beach.


Arriving at Revere Beach.

Regrouping at the end of the ride to Revere Beach.

I am dipping my front wheel in the Atlantic Ocean, completing my journey across the U.S.

Alex dipping the wheel of his and his dad's (Achim) recumbent-tandem bicycle. Alex and Achim are from Germany and peddled their 60 lb bike every inch of the way. They went extremely slow up hills but went very fast down hills and on the flats. They generally finished each day's ride ahead of most of us.

Damien (Ireland) and Warren (TX) dipping their wheels. Damien and Warren rode together most days.

Damien with his bike on the beach.

Damien (Ireland), Randy (CA), and myself on the beach. Randy and I rode together on most days of the tour.

Our entire group at Revere Beach in Boston. Thirty-five riders arrived at the Atlantic Ocean. Some riders only rode part of the route as some take two or more years to complete the entire tour. Laura (CA), the woman in jeans in the front row, did only the first two weeks of the tour but came out to Boston to join the ending celebration. She plans to complete the entire route in future years. I am first on the right of the front row.

After the festivities at the beach, we all were hauled back the 18 miles to our motel in Burlington, as by late morning the Boston traffic was quite heavy. Since we had completed our journey, there was no need to take any more last minute risks in the traffic.

Our completed journey. This map was displayed in the hotel lobbies each day.

Back at the motel in Burlington, we began the tasks of washing our bikes and packing them for shipping home. Some would take them in personal vehicles, others by plane, but most would ship them by UPS or FedEx. The other Bob, Boston Bob, lives only 4 minutes by bike from the motel so will ride his home. Here Rich (IL) is packing his bike.

Mike (England) packing his bike.

Clark, one of the CrossRoads staff, packing a bike. Riders could have their bikes packed by CrossRoads for a fee - which many did. I boxed my own bike and it should arrive home by UPS later next week.

Friday evening we had our final banquet during which our completion certificates were presented. Riders said their final goodbyes to each other. We became a family after spending seven weeks together sharing the hardships and joys of struggling across the varied terrain of the U.S. We have made many friends and will stay in touch for many years.

Most riders and their guests will spend this last night in the motel and then leave at various times over the weekend. I will be flying out of Boston late tomorrow morning.

Bye for now and thanks for the comments,

Bob

Day 48 - Thursday, June 26 - Brattleborro, VT, to Burlington, MA - 87 miles - 5600 climbing feet

Our 87 mile ride to Burlington, MA, involved almost as much climbing as yesterday. However, today's climbing was much different. Yesterday, we had a few long climbs - up to 7 miles at a time. Today we had many shorter, steeper, rolling hills.

We rode in a light rain much of the morning and several chose to ride in the sag van - at least until it quit raining. Up until today, most riders had agreed that Ohio had the worst roads - lots of holes, rough areas, and poor shoulders. Today, we tended to agree that maybe Massachusetts had the worst roads. The roads were rough with lots of holes to dodge, mostly no shoulders on which to ride, heavy traffic, and the drivers were very rude. Miraculously, all riders arrived at the motel without accidents although several riders spoke of very close calls.

Preparing for the day's ride - waiting to load luggage in the truck and sign out.

Our first state line of the day - New Hampshire.

A New Hampshire license plate.

We passed through this covered bridge on today's ride.


A bicycle repair shop if needed - maybe two centuries ago, though.

Most of our route, today, was along tree-lined roads. However we were unable to enjoy the scenery as much as we would have liked because of the rain and rough shoulders. We had to keep our eyes on the road. This shoulder is one of the better on today's route.

Our second state line today - Massachusetts. Two state lines in one day by bicycle!

After our evening group meal, our tour leader, Tracy, instilled in us the magnitude of the journey that we had just accomplished and how it would affect our personal and professional goals for the rest of our lives - namely in persistence in pursuing them. Obstacles would not seem so impossible and goals not so unattainable. Each rider then tried to relate what the tour had meant to himself although many admitted that they were not, yet, able to comprehend what they had accomplished. There were some very eloquent speeches.

In the above photo, six riders were presented "Top Dog" t-shirts for having ridden "every fantiastic inch" (EFI) of the tour. As I related in earlier posts (Days 18 & 19) , about one-third of the riders, including myself, were stricken with food poisoning which took us off the road for at least a couple of days. The food poisoning related to the national tomato salmonella fiasco. Other riders also missed days of riding for various reasons. The six riders riding every inch were Janie (NJ); father & son, Achim and Alex (Germany) on a tandem bicycle; Damien (Ireland); Don (NY); and Daryl (UT). Daryl was not present to receive his award.

This photo shows a group of riders singing a song to the tune of "She'll be coming around the Mountain" with a somewhat humorous verse for each state. The skit was organized by Linda (MI).

Don (NY) sang a-capella solo of verses that he had written to the Porgy and Bess tune, "Summertime".

The evening was very joyous as riders reminisced about the last seven weeks. Rider guests were present as family and friends were beginning to arrive to greet the riders at the end of their journey.

Tomorrow, will be an 18 mile ceremonial ride to Revere Beech in Boston with only 700 feet of climbing!

Bye for now and thanks for the comments,
Bob

Day 47 - Wed, June 25 - Albany, NY, to Brattleboro, VT - 76 miles - 6100 feet climbing

Today's ride from Albany, NY, to Brattleboro, VT, was another great day of riding. The day was mostly sunny with temperatures in the high 70's, a little warm on the climbs but still quite comfortable.

A roadside deli on today's route.


Thirty miles out of Albany, we crossed into Vermont.


A Vermont license plate. I take the license plate photos in our motel parking lots. One of these days someone is going to catch me taking a picture of "their" license plate and want to know what is going on.


The Col. Seth Warner monument in Bennington, VT.


Left-click the photo to read the inscription on the monument.


There were many life-sized sculptures along the streets of Bennington. This one was labeled "Weekend Painter".


The inscription below the sculpture.


We crossed the Appalachian Trail on a 7 mile climb out of Benningtion. The AT stands for Appalachian Trail and the LT stands for Long Trail.


Bill, from Kansas, who has hiked the full length of the Appalachian Trail and many other major trails.


I would imagine that this motel is named after Bill Bryson's book, "A Walk in the Woods". The book is a humerous account of Bill and a friend hiking the Appalachian Trail.
This looks like fun. I reached 43.5 mph on this downgrade. There were other reports of a 47 mph and of Achim and Alex (Germany) reaching 53 mph on their heavy recumbent-tandem.


A clean bubbling brook.


And a sky-blue lake.


Don Berens (Albany, NY) greeting his Vermont "Uncle George" and wife on top of Hogback Mt.
A restaurant on top of Hogback Mt.


Randy (CA) topping one of our climbs today.


George (England) getting some sun at the end of the day. Sorry, George, for the perspective on the fountain (left-click the photo). Hope that your hair is not getting wet!

Tomorrow will be our last full day of riding with our 87 mile journey from Brattleboro, VT, to Burlington, MA. Burlington is just outside of Boston. Tomorrow's ride will also involve a lot of climbing and will be a long day.

I might add that 40 years ago this year (1968), I rode a bicycle from Ft. Devens, MA, to Brattleboro, VT, to visit my brother, John, who was attending a Spanish language school for a few weeks before spending a year as an International Farm Youth Exchange worker in Nicaragua. I was stationed at Ft. Devens during my Army training.

By for now and thanks for the comments,

Bob

Day 46 - Tuesday, Jun 24 - Little Falls, NY, to Albany, NY - 69 miles - 2900 feet of climbing

Another beautiful day for riding. There was a 30% chance of rain all day but again we lucked out. The temperature was also comfortable - being in the 70's. During the evening there was a lighting storm but no rain over our motel.


We passed the historic site of Fort Klock.


A fortified farmhouse at the Fort Klock site.


A landscape view along today's route. We followed the Mohawk River most of the day.


A dam and lock on the Mohawk River.


Our second sag stop today was again hosted by Catholic Charities, the charity for whom our rider, Don Berens (Albany, NY) was raising funds on his cross country ride.


Tyrone, a golden-poodle, also greeted us at the sag stop.


Don volunteered to lead, those who wished to go, an off-route tour through Albany to our motel. Don's tour replaced about the last twenty miles of our ride for the day and primarily used bike paths - which we appreciated for getting us away from the highway traffic. The tour also included cycling through the historic district of Albany. In the photo above, Don is getting a lot of help in changing his flat tire which occurred at a most inopportune time - at the start of the tour he volunteered to lead.


The bike path tour led us along a scenic area of the Mohawk River. Thanks to Don for leading this relaxing and enjoyable tour.

Tomorrow, we will ride 76 miles to Brattleboro, VT, with 6100 feet of climbing.

Bye for now,

Bob