Day 38, Wednesday, August 6.
Warren, PA to Galeton, PA
Daily Mileage: 91.48 miles
Total Mileage: 3,409.1 miles
Daily Time on Bike: 6:15 hours
Average Speed: 14.5 mph
Maximum Speed: 40.7 mph
Today started like yesterday. We woke up in a baseball dugout, cold. Without changing into our riding gear, we mounted the bikes and rolled toward town for the Peppermill restaurant. On the way, we passed one of the guys from the Church of the Nazarene who helped us find our camping spot last night. We stopped to talk for a while and then moved on. After a nice, big and hearty breakfast, with pancakes that once again were actually the size of our plate, we stopped at the local bike shop (for what, I’m not quite sure, maybe more inner tubes).
We crossed the Kinuza Dam and then began our first big climb of the day. The scenery was beautiful, the terrain wasn't too difficult, yet. We only climbed two really big hills today, and the way people talk we shouldn't run into too many more like them. We rolled into Port Allegheny around 1PM for lunch and ate at their local café, a quaint little place with reasonable prices and food. It was here that I first realized that I didn't want to return to "real life" just yet. There was a table of two women and a man behind us that sat there and complained about everyone and everything the entire lunch time. I love the freedom of the road, the ability to be a hundred miles further each day then where we were the day before, and going through so many towns you're lucky to remember where you started. I like not having a real schedule besides get up, eat and ride. I love just sitting on the bike and pedaling, even though the seat seems to gets smaller and harder each time I sit on it.
We stopped for a 4PM snack in Coupersport at another gas station. After leaving, we hit the big hill of the Allegheny Mountains. We “summited” it at 2,424 feet. On our way down, the lady at the AAA office said that we would run into the Nine Mile Motel and could find topographical maps of the state there. [Now, even though we really can't take anything besides U.S. 6, we still like concerning ourselves with the route, not that we can change the elevation, surface type or the width of the road’s shoulder. The Adventure Cycling maps only took us just into Pennsylvania. After that, their route leads north to Maine while we were continuing east to Cape Cod, a destination that still was debated late into the trip. From Pennsylvania on we had the control of our own route, deciding which road we would take next. By the end of the trip we were experts at telling directions as well as figuring out how far distances really are on the maps.] The people at Nine Mile were very friendly, and even more so when they found out we were biking cross-country. Their daughter did a trip before, and they gave us a few tips of where to stay once we reached our stopping point for the day.
The road into Galeton was all down hill and very nice change. As we rode into town the sun was setting and lighting up the sky above the town. There was an amazing rainbow that sat over this town with a trickling stream and old buildings. (I’m still disappointed that I didn’t take a picture of it.) Our first stop was Fox Pizza. We had the mega 36-slice pizza while playing tunes on the jukebox such as "On Broadway," the Drifters (fitting isn't it), Alanis, the Beatles, Eric Clapton, and No Doubt; writing postcards, and looking at our new U.S. map from AAA. After quite a long time, we set off to locate camping for the night. We stopped at the Baptist church that we heard was very kind. It was weird at first with the pastor and trustees saying that they had to have a meeting about it, but eventually they were all outside offering us a place to camp and discussing our trip. Suddenly, after realizing how cold it was going to get tonight, the pastor suggested that we stay in one of the classrooms—fantastic! Next, he offered to let us use the restrooms and the showers in the gym locker room, amazing! They were preparing for a memorial service tomorrow, so we sat in the sanctuary while they rehearsed singing. It was quite an experience. Eventually everyone left, allowing us shower, shave, brush our teeth and sleep.
(Photo: David by the sign marking our highest point in the Allegheny Mountains.)
Daily Mileage: 91.48 miles
Total Mileage: 3,409.1 miles
Daily Time on Bike: 6:15 hours
Average Speed: 14.5 mph
Maximum Speed: 40.7 mph
Today started like yesterday. We woke up in a baseball dugout, cold. Without changing into our riding gear, we mounted the bikes and rolled toward town for the Peppermill restaurant. On the way, we passed one of the guys from the Church of the Nazarene who helped us find our camping spot last night. We stopped to talk for a while and then moved on. After a nice, big and hearty breakfast, with pancakes that once again were actually the size of our plate, we stopped at the local bike shop (for what, I’m not quite sure, maybe more inner tubes).
We crossed the Kinuza Dam and then began our first big climb of the day. The scenery was beautiful, the terrain wasn't too difficult, yet. We only climbed two really big hills today, and the way people talk we shouldn't run into too many more like them. We rolled into Port Allegheny around 1PM for lunch and ate at their local café, a quaint little place with reasonable prices and food. It was here that I first realized that I didn't want to return to "real life" just yet. There was a table of two women and a man behind us that sat there and complained about everyone and everything the entire lunch time. I love the freedom of the road, the ability to be a hundred miles further each day then where we were the day before, and going through so many towns you're lucky to remember where you started. I like not having a real schedule besides get up, eat and ride. I love just sitting on the bike and pedaling, even though the seat seems to gets smaller and harder each time I sit on it.
We stopped for a 4PM snack in Coupersport at another gas station. After leaving, we hit the big hill of the Allegheny Mountains. We “summited” it at 2,424 feet. On our way down, the lady at the AAA office said that we would run into the Nine Mile Motel and could find topographical maps of the state there. [Now, even though we really can't take anything besides U.S. 6, we still like concerning ourselves with the route, not that we can change the elevation, surface type or the width of the road’s shoulder. The Adventure Cycling maps only took us just into Pennsylvania. After that, their route leads north to Maine while we were continuing east to Cape Cod, a destination that still was debated late into the trip. From Pennsylvania on we had the control of our own route, deciding which road we would take next. By the end of the trip we were experts at telling directions as well as figuring out how far distances really are on the maps.] The people at Nine Mile were very friendly, and even more so when they found out we were biking cross-country. Their daughter did a trip before, and they gave us a few tips of where to stay once we reached our stopping point for the day.
The road into Galeton was all down hill and very nice change. As we rode into town the sun was setting and lighting up the sky above the town. There was an amazing rainbow that sat over this town with a trickling stream and old buildings. (I’m still disappointed that I didn’t take a picture of it.) Our first stop was Fox Pizza. We had the mega 36-slice pizza while playing tunes on the jukebox such as "On Broadway," the Drifters (fitting isn't it), Alanis, the Beatles, Eric Clapton, and No Doubt; writing postcards, and looking at our new U.S. map from AAA. After quite a long time, we set off to locate camping for the night. We stopped at the Baptist church that we heard was very kind. It was weird at first with the pastor and trustees saying that they had to have a meeting about it, but eventually they were all outside offering us a place to camp and discussing our trip. Suddenly, after realizing how cold it was going to get tonight, the pastor suggested that we stay in one of the classrooms—fantastic! Next, he offered to let us use the restrooms and the showers in the gym locker room, amazing! They were preparing for a memorial service tomorrow, so we sat in the sanctuary while they rehearsed singing. It was quite an experience. Eventually everyone left, allowing us shower, shave, brush our teeth and sleep.
(Photo: David by the sign marking our highest point in the Allegheny Mountains.)
