Day 14 - 2013 East Coast Trip: Tupper Lake, NY to St. Catharines, Huntsville or Sault - The Last Day

Start: Tupper Lake, New York
End: St. Catharines, Manitoulin, Sault Ste Marie
Distance: 664 km   Total to date: 6188 km for Doran;
Gas: Tupper Lake, New York: 4.159 gal @ $3.899/gal; Total $16.22
Rochester, New York: 2.632 gal @ $3.799/gal;  Total: $10.00
Lewiston, New York: 5.457 gal @ $3.879: Total: $21.17 US
Weather: Perfect starting out! We woke up to a fog covering the lake. The temperature was about 58 degrees, but it was a very clear, gorgeous morning.

The day started early, with us getting up about 7:30. The lake looked beautiful with the fog lying gently over the water. It seemed like we were ending our trip with great weather.Jamie took his last embrace with nature and we hit the road heading toward Alexandria Bay so we could cross at Gannanoque, Ontario.

We took Hwy 3 then Hwy 27 (after a short gps detour) and headed to Gouverneur, NY. From there, we took Hwy 11 to the Interstate 81 to Alexandria Bay. Just before the border crossing, we stopped. I decided to say good-bye with the group and head back to St. Catharines via northern New York instead of riding thru Toronto. I got home at about 6:30 p.m.

Al and Jamie made the decision to make it back to the Sault tonight and Al and Lori would take it easy going back over two days.

Al and Jamie had a 1000+km ride to do. Unbeknownst to them, there was a massive thunderstorm in Northern Ontario and they would have to ride thru that. They did eventually make it to the Sault safely...at about 1:00 a.m. Kudos to them for hanging in and persevering.

Al and Lori stayed in Huntsville overnight and went to their place on Manitoulin the next day.

We were all tired and put on a lot of miles over a short period of time. There were many things we saw and many things we could not see because of time constraints. I loved the adventure and can't wait to join up with these guys for another biking adventure. Thanks, guys!

Day 13 - 2013 East Coast Trip: Farmington, Maine to Tupper Lake, New York

Start: Farmington, Maine
End: Tupper Lake, New York
Distance: 528 km   Total to date: 5524 km
Gas: Bethel, Maine: 3.009 gal @ $3.719/gal; Total $11.31
Montpelier, Vermont: 3.095 gal @ $3.719/gal;  Total: $11.51

Weather: Perfect! It started out a bit cool at about 59 degrees and warmed up to about 69 degrees. The sky was bright blue with wispy white clouds...a gorgeous day. The moon was very bright until about 8:30 a.m.

We headed down Hwy 2 towards Bethel, Maine and the scenery started to ramp up. We rode into a cute town, located just before the White Mountains, called Rumford. Rumford has a beautiful waterfall and dam system that was first used as a fishing ground by the native Indian bands and later as a power dam. It's the largest waterfall east of Niagara.

Down the road from Rumford, the area is a popular ski area for the Black Mountain. There are quaint wooded rustic hotels that add flavour to the area.

Further down Hwy 2, the hills got higher and the scenery more spectacular. Just past Bethel, Maine, we came to a gorgeous little lake that reflected the blue sky and white clouds. Hwy 2 was starting to show it's stuff.

Once we crossed into New Hampshire and the town of Gorham, we saw Mount Washington, the highest peak in the northeastern states at 6,288 ft. and is part of the White Mountain National Forest.

We continued across Hwy 2 to Montpelier, Vermont, a small city with interesting architecture.

We stopped in Montpelier, Vermont and had lunch. We had to decide on our next route. We had to get on the west side of Lake Champlain and had the option of going to Burlington, Vermont and then taking a one hour ferry across, or we could ride south to Port Henry and cross over a bridge to get to the west side. We opted for Port Henry as we would not have to worry about ferry times and would also have a more direct route to Lake Placid.

We headed down Hwy 12 and then turned south onto Hwy 17. This was one amazing ride. We climbed a mountain that had tight curves all the way up, switching back and forth as we slowly made our way up. At the top, we met a couple of other motorcyclists that were ecstatic about their ride from the other side. We took a few photos, Lori caught her breathe and courage and we had a very curvy but bump ride down. Jamie said my trailer was air-bourne a few times on the way down. It was a super and exhilarating ride.

Once out of the mountain, we Hwy 17 continued as a rolling road, going thru farm land with the view of distant mountains. It was gorgeous. The bridge at Port Henry was a magnificient structure. Being on the highway without and parking area, we could not get a photo that gave it justice.

We headed up Hwy 17 and Hwy 9 to get to Lake Placid. Once again we climbed the mountain that went up and up and up. It wasn't as windy as the previous mountain, but it was surely high. We saw many cyclists and runners along the way. By the time we got into the city, there were even more of these very healthy bodies everywhere. The town was bustling as the Ironman competition was happening and there were over 2500 participants and their families there. Once again, time was our enemy and we had to find a place to stay and it was apparent, it was not going to happen in Lake Placid. We continued down Hwy 3 to Tupper Lake where we found a nice municipal campground. We set up and then went back to the town for dinner. As it was 8:00 p.m., the owner of a restaurant came out and said they close at 8, but will stay open for us. We had a nice dinner and then retired for the night at the campground.

Mentally, today is our last day. We have to make it back tomorrow and it's a long, long ride back, especially for Al & Jamie who must get back to the Sault as Jamie has to work. I have to get to St. Catharines and Al & Lori will be going to Manitoulin. We had a very good ride today and the scenery was spectacular. What a way to sort of end the ride. Tomorrows ride will be long and without stops to take in anything, so hopefully we can look back at this day and smile!

Day 12 - 2013 East Coast Trip - Saint John, New Brunswick to Farmington, Maine

Start: Saint John, New Brunswick
End: Farmington, Maine
Distance: 540 km Total to Date: 4996 km
Gas: St. John, NB: 13.9 litres @ $1.349/l; Total $18.75
Ellsworth, Maine: 10.75 litres @ $3.729/gal; Total $9.25 US
Newport, Maine: 2.72 Gal @ $3.729/gal; Total $10.15 US
Baileyville, Maine: Total $15.00 US

Weather: The morning started off a a bit overcast, but at least it was not raining. By the time we got to the U.S. border, the weather was improving. The sky was clear, very blue and there were just a few clouds. The temperature started at about 57 degrees and got to a high of 72 degrees for the day. It was a comfortable day for riding

Today, we want to go thru Bar Harbour. We had heard a lot about it, so we thought we would check it out. After that, we will head towards the Lake Placid area.

As we headed out of St. John, we stopped by the bridge to see the Reversing Falls. The Reversing Falls are a series of rapids on the Saint John River where the river runs through a narrow gorge before emptying into the Bay of Fundy. The tides of the bay force the flow of water to reverse against the prevailing current when the tide is high.

We headed down Hwy 1 towards the Maine border. The road was in perfect condition with no bumps, tar snakes or cracks. Overall, the terrain was relatively flat with with small trees and scrubby vegetation. There were a few nice lakes with small islands along the way, but overall, there was not a lot to see.

Once we got thru the border, we talked with a few people and decided to take a quicker route that was supposed to be more scenic. The route was quicker, but it was a bit rough, off the beaten path and not as nice as we had anticipated. However, we quickly found ourselves in the Bar Harbor frenzy area. Bar Harbor is a town on Mount Desert Island in Maine and is home to the largest parts of Acadia National Park. The city area was crazy with cars and tourists. It seemed like a Niagara on the Lake on steroids. In talking with a local, we found ourselves in Bar Harbor on what seemed to be the very busiest day of the year because the weather was so nice. People come from the Boston and New York areas for a day visit.

It was a bit too hectic for us, so we snapped a few photos and then went to a restaurant for lobster. While there, we toyed with the idea of touring the Acadia National Park as we heard great things about it, but once again, time was not on our sides and we thought we needed to put on a few more miles versus seeing more of the area. It's a bummer not being able to see everything, but with our schedule, some things have to be passed by. We needed to get closer to New Hampshire so we could make it back home for the weekend.

After our supper, we started riding north towards Bangor, Maine. Just riding thru it, it looked like an interesting place. We then took Hwy 2 towards Newport and then went along Hwy 2 to Farmington, Maine. Once again, in taking with people along the way, Hwy 2 was supposed to be a very scenic route, but to Farmington, we saw mostly farm fields and not a lot more.

It was starting to get a bit late, so we stopped at the Troll Campsite, just outside of Farmington. This campsite was nothing to write home about, except it was a place to sleep overnight. Al and Jamie stayed in a cabin while Al & Lori and I tented it. Laughing about the place in the morning, we thought that the only highlight was the quality of the toilet paper. Oh well, it's only for a night.

Tomorrow, we're off to New Hampshire, thru the Appalachian Mountains and then towards the Lake Placid area.