Riding Day 3- Spencerport, NY- via Rochester- Lock 30, Macedon, NY ( 43 miles!)

We are leaving Spencerport- and plan to head down the Erie Canal trail towards Rochester- Outside of the city, we will pick up the Genesee River Trail which will take us to the High Falls in Rochester- then we will come back along the Genesee River and pick up the Erie Canalway Trail to Pittsford for lunch. Lyle will be driving the van today.  Here is a group photo before we left the hotel in Spencerport in the morning:

Here are our NY Trail signs we look for everyday!

Jonathan and Catherine on the trail- photos courtesy of Betsy!

Emma, Abby and Jack, on the trail
Just outside Rochester, the Erie Canalway meets up with the Genesee Riverway Trail.  The GRT heads into Rochester along the river and heads to the High Falls.

A view of the Canal heading into Rochester.

Contemplating the route into Rochester

Our first glimpse of Rochester- a city that became a boom town due to the Erie Canal.  It was the 19th century flour capital of the world and later became home to Kodak film.

We stop for a short break before navigating to the High Falls.

Jack catches a quick rest.

The kids heading into Rochester.  Sadly we are missing our Rosy, who is home working at the pool.  I've been calling her every night-  Next time she is coming too!

Greg and Liz- heading into Rochester.

Margie and Catherine ( Lyle's driving the van)

Joe and Betsy

View of the Lower Falls

And here it is: The High Falls on the Genesee River

A close-up view
We take a break at the High Falls

Jack and Jonathan 

Taking a break on the bridge

We r riding on- Now to navigate the streets of Rochester back to the Canal path!

Joe- on the bridge.  Everyone in our group has strengths to share.  Joe is the best rider of the group and the designated "Scout".  He often does extra mileage and scouts out the terrain for us when we are making a decision about which route to take, as he is so fast he can scout then catch up with everyone!

Navigating the streets of Rochester with thirteen cyclists can create quite the spectacle- it does in this case and in no time we have met up with some of Rochester's finest who offer to give us a police escort through the city streets.  Bravo!

Our police escort through the city streets of Rochester.

Group photo with Rochester's finest.

Joe says Thank you and goodbye.

On the road again to Macedon.

Greg enroute-  Greg is the map guy of our group- He checks out the route everyday and determines if we need to make changes- Then in the morning he goes over the route with everyone.  In addition, he keeps everyone in the group laughing and stopping for coffee and ice cream!

David - the youngest member of our group- He has become a strong rider, riding 35-40 miles/day! When you are twelve

, you stop for ducks and other sights on the road!

We are here!  Here is our campsite at Macedon, Lock 30.  It is a free campsite on the Erie Canal.  No showers, but not bad at all for free.
We are enjoying camp after an eventful day!

Catherine the lounge lizard.

Great smile.

Hanging out before dinner.

Christopher and Jack- beat, after a long day!

The Regan tent- otherwise known as the Taj Mahal.

The guys sitting at the lock.

After dinner, we discuss plans for tomorrow- The forecast has remained constant for Thursday all week- torrential downpour- After much discussion, we decide that we will change our plans to camp- tomorrow night and get a motel if the rain does indeed come.  Everyone will start the day riding and we will stop at lunch time and re- assess.  Constant need for re-assessment on a bike trip.

Riding Day 2 Lakeside Beach- Spencerport, NY
Getting together before leaving Lakeside Beach State Park. Joe is van driver today with Jonathan as assistant ( as his leg has been bothering him) 

We left our camp at Lakeside Beach and headed down the roads back to the Erie Canal Bike Path.  It is a beautiful morning and we are riding on back country roads with little traffic- really nice!

Lyle and Betsy

So we are riding along these farm roads and we come upon a sign for "Butts Road".  This has special significance for us as Greg is constantly offering everyone butt cream for their butt which often becomes sore when riding a bike for a long time. Thus,

Betsy and Lyle stopping for a minute on the road.

After mid-morning, we are back on the Erie Canal bike path.  Here is a good
idea of what that looks like nearing Holley, NY.  Nice thing about the bike
path is that you can ride two abreast without worrying about cars, and you
\can stop to take photos wherever and whenever you want- Love that freedom!

A pleasure boat coming up the Canal.

Coming into a village.

Quick break before Holley, NY

We are in village of Hulberton, NY

Catherine on the bridge.
Liz and Betsy heading into lunch.  This is Liz's first cycling trip.  Liz is Greg's better half and I have heard stories about her for years.  It was so good to finally meet her-  Liz pitched right in at camp and on the road and was a fantastic addition to our group. 

We stop for lunch at the Holley Canal Park.  We were originally going to camp here- Sadly there is no more camping here- I guess someone tried to overstay their welcome so they closed the camping down.  It is a beautiful park with a fountain, picnic tables and right on the canal.

The Gazebo in Holley

The bridge in Holley

Jack, Jonathan and David.  Jonathan is assisting Joe in the van today and I noticed a change in him, where he has begun to be more of a team player, helping set up lunch, packing up the van  and interacting more frequently.  Joe said he was a great assistant.

The boys in Holley.

Fountain in Holley Canal Park

Greg, Joe and Margie planning out the afternoon's ride.

Jonathan and David near the Erie Canal in Holley.

The Regan girls!  Not sure if this photo is from the Holley Canal Park but it is awesome- just like the girls in it!  The more time I spend with Emma and Abby, the more I like them.  They have very different personalities but are both helpful, fun, teamplayers, and up for adventure.

On the road again. We are heading toward the Friendly
Hotel in Spencerport, NY.

We arrive at the Friendly Hotel- Joe is not sure how great it will be and cajoles the owner into cleaning up the grill and picnic table area for us- He is using his CFO skills.  The Friendly Hotel turns out to be a great place for us-  The best part of it all is that it has a pool that is full and open- albeit- freezing!  But we are hot, so the ice cold water is a welcome respite.  Everyone goes in!

We are getting ready for dinner

The Grillmasters, Joe, Lyle and Greg

Cooking in the kitchen at the Friendly Hotel.

After dinner fun 

Jack and Jonathan wearing his homemade Egyptian headscarf

Tomorrow we head through Rochester to Lock 30 in Macedon, NY
Good nights rest everyone!