TheSac
Active member
Hi everyone. I'm a long time lurker but after reading trip reports here I felt like taking the plunge and sharing the tale of my first bike trip. Last June I took my bike around Cayuga Lake in New York. About a hundred miles all told. A buddy of mine had done it in a day, but I figured it would be a good excuse to split it into two and camp for the night near Senaca Falls. My ride is a decade old Giant hybrid, and is in pretty good working order. I installed a new chain and bought me a new water bottle to fit in my water bottle holder, but other than that I had all the equipment I needed and set off early in the afternoon.
After a rough hill climb leaving Ithaca, I headed north, riding along the generous shoulders of the county roads of upstate NY along the eastern side of the lake. It's mostly far country up here, wineries and some other small agricultural outfits. This barn stood out to be because of how picture perfect it looked.
Riding along the backroads gave spectacular views of the water and occasionally you could see sailboats cruising around.
It really was a perfect day for riding. The first third or so of the day's riding was up above the lake, but near the town of Aurora, I took a steep hill down and hit the lakefront. That was the spookiest part of the whole ride; There was a small shoulder and so I had to share the road with semis. In fairness they did their best to make room for me.
This bridge is just outside Aurora, near the bottom of the hill. I road through a few sleepy lakefront towns on my trek north towards the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.
I was moving along; I wanted to make it to my campsite before sundown, so I didn't do much sight-seeing. Montezuma was pretty nifty though. The summer heat gave the whole place this sort of Florida vibe.
Eventually I made it to my campsite just south of Senaca Falls on the western side of the lake. I stayed at a state park; I view it as a donation. The night was pretty uneventful. After I got my tarp and pad set up I drank a bunch of water and ate a package of fig newtons. Riding made me a lot hungrier than I had thought I was. The campground was mostly deserted but there were some people who set up a tent close by. At 2 AM I awoke to the sounds of passionate moaning coming from their tent. All I could do was chuckle and went back to sleep.
The next day I continued heading south but avoided the road along the lakefront, since it has no shoulder.
Instead, I headed farther inland, taking county roads past farms and through small towns. This courthouse sign stood out to me.
It was getting more humid as the day wore on, and rain was in the forecast for the evening as I rode south. Something I noticed, the more affluent the town, the less they seemed to like having cyclists on their roads. When I was deep in fam country, people would give me an extra lane of space even when I was on the shoulder, but in towns I almost got clipped a couple of times! I did get a flat, thanks to a little shard of metal I had to fish out of my rear tire. As an aside I was wondering if anyone has any advice for buying puncture resistant tires or tire liners. The roads around here aren't the best and I get flats more than I'd like. But even getting a flat wasn't all bad. I met a cool guy on a mountain bike and he helped me patch my tube and we chatted for a while. Eventually I made my way back to Ithaca and the trip was at an end! It was a great time and I'll do longer ones once work and weather cooperate.
After a rough hill climb leaving Ithaca, I headed north, riding along the generous shoulders of the county roads of upstate NY along the eastern side of the lake. It's mostly far country up here, wineries and some other small agricultural outfits. This barn stood out to be because of how picture perfect it looked.
Riding along the backroads gave spectacular views of the water and occasionally you could see sailboats cruising around.
It really was a perfect day for riding. The first third or so of the day's riding was up above the lake, but near the town of Aurora, I took a steep hill down and hit the lakefront. That was the spookiest part of the whole ride; There was a small shoulder and so I had to share the road with semis. In fairness they did their best to make room for me.
This bridge is just outside Aurora, near the bottom of the hill. I road through a few sleepy lakefront towns on my trek north towards the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.
I was moving along; I wanted to make it to my campsite before sundown, so I didn't do much sight-seeing. Montezuma was pretty nifty though. The summer heat gave the whole place this sort of Florida vibe.
Eventually I made it to my campsite just south of Senaca Falls on the western side of the lake. I stayed at a state park; I view it as a donation. The night was pretty uneventful. After I got my tarp and pad set up I drank a bunch of water and ate a package of fig newtons. Riding made me a lot hungrier than I had thought I was. The campground was mostly deserted but there were some people who set up a tent close by. At 2 AM I awoke to the sounds of passionate moaning coming from their tent. All I could do was chuckle and went back to sleep.
The next day I continued heading south but avoided the road along the lakefront, since it has no shoulder.
Instead, I headed farther inland, taking county roads past farms and through small towns. This courthouse sign stood out to me.
It was getting more humid as the day wore on, and rain was in the forecast for the evening as I rode south. Something I noticed, the more affluent the town, the less they seemed to like having cyclists on their roads. When I was deep in fam country, people would give me an extra lane of space even when I was on the shoulder, but in towns I almost got clipped a couple of times! I did get a flat, thanks to a little shard of metal I had to fish out of my rear tire. As an aside I was wondering if anyone has any advice for buying puncture resistant tires or tire liners. The roads around here aren't the best and I get flats more than I'd like. But even getting a flat wasn't all bad. I met a cool guy on a mountain bike and he helped me patch my tube and we chatted for a while. Eventually I made my way back to Ithaca and the trip was at an end! It was a great time and I'll do longer ones once work and weather cooperate.