On to Rickett's Glen State Park in Upstate Pennsylvania

On Memorial Day I said goodbye to Kristen and Steve and headed north to Rickett's Glen with the intention of getting there early enough for a long bike ride but alas, as with all my plans, things morphed. I took forever getting up there and by the time I arrived it was late in the afternoon. The trip up was great though.

The park was very nice on first glance and a long stream of weekenders were leaving as I arrived. I chose an out of the way site on the lake and near the trail that had a nice supply of leftover firewood and a smouldering fire to get me started. After setting up camp I got a bite to eat and put a little wood on the fire and sat down to read about the park. I discovered there were 29 named waterfalls in the park and that 21 of them were accessible by a 3.2 mile loop trail that was only a mile from my camp along the trail at my doorstep. I thought I would take a little stroll before it got dark so at 6:40 I headed out with a light jacket as it was headed to a chilly night and was already south of 60 degrees. I had no intention of doing the whole loop but thought I might check out a bit of it. As I got onto the falls trail there were a few late hikers finishing up and one little girl waited until I got well past before yelling, "don't try it! You'll never make it!" Well I had read that it was a very steep and difficult trail and in Texas that would have meant something but I wasn't sure about the northeast version of such a warning. I was making good time when I passed a few people and one of the ladies asked, "aren't you afraid it will get dark?" to which I replied, "I'm not afraid it will get dark, I know it will!" which got laughs all around. At this point I had seen a few of the falls and checking the time I decided to heck with it so with the little girls voice in my head arguing with the spirit of not saying no to adventure, I set out at a fast but surefooted pace to see the whole shebang, grateful for my fitness and hoping I wouldn't twist my ankle and have to hear the little girls voice as I hobbled home in the cold and the dark. The falls were worth it.

I'm pretty sure blogging it took as long as hiking it. Made it back to camp in time for dinner before it got dark. Nice quiet night by the fire.

More exploring the amish country

I'm having a hard time posting to this blog all of a sudden so I'm trying a new post to complete the amish country ride. If you haven't read that post, you should read it first.

It was beyond Norman Rockwell and into the Amish version of the land of Oz. Most of the Amish were very friendly and waved as I rode past and I especially liked seeing the young people who were out for their day of fun and relaxation. They seemed to be having a great time. I really can't imagine a better wah to explore this part of the country than from the seat of a bicycle. The road conditions are excellenbt and the traffic is light. Except for having to dodge the numerous horse apples, it is the quintessential cycling country. The Garmin 810 made riding those roads amazingly simple. There must have been 50-60 turns on the route and I didn't have to pay attention at all. It just told me when to turn and I followed it's guidance.The only time it failed was when a bridge was out and I had to route around it but the 810 even made that easy. Thank you so much mr. Wilson.

this is for Trey

There was also a heavy hearted side to the day. I won't go into it here but I wish to send my condolences to those most affected by the loss in our family today and I will only express here that the day was surreal to be in such an idyllic setting with the news of todays events weighing heavy on my heart thoughout the day. Love to all.