Miles to date: 3,462.8
The Rivers Crossing Campground was about 1/2 mile from the middle of nowhere, so after the last rain shower quit last night, we boiled water in the dark, ate our freeze dried dinners (fettuccini Alfredo for Geeto, pad Thai with peanut sauce for me), then had a very early bedtime. Unfortunately I was awoken by the late arriving camper next door who invited a couple of neighbors over to enjoy a campfire and cocktails. One of the women sounded like Janice from “Friends”. This morning Geeto wondered: why does God grant some people some awful sounding laughs? If I were married to that laugh I would hope for a very somber household, or a very early Earthly departure. At midnight last night when her hyena-like cries were still going, I was hoping for something worse. At some point I dozed off; what should’ve been a long night of rest was very abbreviated.
We awoke to 45 degrees and a heavy dew on everything this morning. It was another fully wet tent breakdown and a chilly start to the day. Geeto had no trouble sleeping through the neighbors’ ruckus, and he was up and ready to go while I was still moving slowly. But, we were underway around 8:00 for a short 40 miles to Syracuse.
Since we didn’t have far to go and weren’t sure how early we could get into the Collegian Inn in Syracuse, we dawdled at a few stops along the route. Geeto stopped at a gas station in Montezuma to get some fresh water; despite the suggestion from the campground hosts, and him having slept through a drawn out conversation from our campground neighbors about the amount of goose poop in the campground water (which brought forth plenty of hyena whoops from “Janice”), Geeto filled his Camelback with the well water from the bathroom sink. One taste on the road this morning suggested he was better to resupply in Montezuma than risk Montezuma’s revenge with a week to go in our journey.
Speaking of risks… the riding everywhere so far has been super safe. But… apparently there was a shooting in South Buffalo Tuesday on the street we rode up hours earlier. Yesterday we had a near scare from a farmer pulling onto the highway out of his field on a tractor. Today we crossed less than 50’ in front of a train as we rolled into Syracuse (there were 5 seconds left on the crosswalk sign and the train was traveling 2 mph). I almost wish these had been closer calls to have something exciting to tell; imagine being a week from the finish and getting run over by a John Deere… that would be a great story to tell.
A mile outside of Montezuma, population ~1,200 with zero restaurants (one less than Clyde) and zero bars (equivalent to Clyde), there was a crosswalk with a ped x-ing sign that went from a cornfield on one side to a barren prairie on the other. Preparations from an optimistic city planner? A practical joke for guys like us? A highway construction contractor getting paid by the sign? Once again… we should’ve stopped for a photo; another oddity on our journey.
In Weedsport we stopped at the White Rabbit Roasting Company for a coffee. Owner Amelia recommended the pistachio latte, which we enjoyed while reflecting on the most foul, vicious rodent you could ever imagine. We had several laughs and enjoyed Amelia’s coffee so much I wished I’d ordered a large.
Somewhere between Jordan and Peru, Geeto saw a driveway with Halloween decorations that he wanted to explore. After his complaints about the scale and early installations of people’s displays, I was surprised to see his interest. He didn’t stay long.
With 10 miles to go we took a final saddle break at a historic park on the site that was once Lock #50. We wondered as we travelled today why towns like Port Byron, Weedsport, Newport… all had “port” names while there was no waterway to be seen. We discovered that the canal was rerouted and the former port towns have been stranded. But, the canal is still operational through Clyde, so we remain perplexed why 80% of that town was shuttered.
As we arrived in Syracuse, we passed the Tipperary Hill neighborhood, home to many Irish immigrant families. We learned later that the top of Tipperary Hill holds the only stoplight in the US where green is on the top. Apparently decades ago the young Irish hooligans used to break the red light with rocks, so the local authorities thought they’d outsmart them by reversing the customary installation. It seems a bit far fetched, but the current installation is indeed upside down, so I have no argument.
Interestingly, as we came into downtown Syracuse, it seemed several city streets on route to our hotel were closed to ease our arrival; the Collegian Hotel must’ve phoned ahead to advise of our historic arrival. But alas, the police presence and restricted traffic was not for us, apparently POTUS was planned to be in town, apparently for no other reason than to steal our thunder. As we later walked by the venue where he planned to perform, we worried that the secret service detail had knowledge of Geeto’s POTUS greeting in Brockport 2 days ago. We passed through the city unmolested by agents, though I was sorry there weren’t any blog followers in this group.
We got into our hotel room just after 1:00pm; after a few slices of pizza across the street, we had a long day to fill. On a rare event… we separated: Geeto looked for a barber for a haircut while I went for a self-guided tour of Syracuse University.
After walking around the campus, I stopped in to the Orange Crate Brewery to capture some blog thoughts over a pilsner. The 70’s classics on the stereo were uplifting, but the staff and clientele seemed depraved and dull. When the guy at the bar closest to me said, “Whoever invents something to turn people’s hoses into boats in case of a hurricane is going to make billions!” and the bartender said, “I know, right?” I knew it was time for me to go.
It was strange for Geeto and I to be apart for a few hours. When he texted me after his haircut to say he was back at the hotel, I was happy to end my solitude. It seems with only 7 days to go, we’ve become more reliant and accustomed to one another; I’m sure we’ll make it through with one of us killing the other.
We went out to Kitty Hoyne’s Irish pub for dinner; we knew they had live music and we thought this could energize us before bedtime. We sat at the bar and covered all sorts of topics with locals Dave and Tim. It was great to have a long dialogue with local strangers to reinforce the significance of magnitude and bravery of our journey. Before they departed, Dave bought us a token for a free pint. We truly enjoyed some good Syracuse craic with these guys.
When they departed, the band started to arrive. We had lengthy conversations with The drummer (Dan) and the bandleader (Chris). They were intelligent and were also interested in our adventure, so we decided to stick around and watch their opening set. At one point, Dan educated us that Ben Franklin got the idea for democracy from the Onondaga nation. Geeto wrongly thought Dan said Thomas Jefferson, and we had a minor disagreement. Then later on the way home, Geeto took the lead walking from the pub to the hotel… in the wrong direction; he headed north where I steered us east. After a few blocks, I asserted my will over his and righted our course. On both of these occasions, as in others over the past weeks, I recognized that Geeto is physically incapable of saying, “I was wrong.” I have now vowed to myself to get him to say these words in the next week, though I’m sure my odds on Kalshi are slim.
Later in the evening the Syracuse fire department responded to an alarm next door to the Irish pub. Geeto could not restrain himself from going outside to check things out, offer help, then offer some organization views. Since we rolled into town, he’s seen a few private contract ambulances and he wanted to let the city know of the error in their ways, hiring third party contractors for services they should supply. I don’t think any of them cared as much as Geeto on this topic.
We had a great evening out in Syracuse, but as we talked about heading back to the hotel, the American English band played a Goo Goo Dolls song… I’ve had my fill of Goo Goo for one year… time to go!
Tomorrow, we plan to ride 83 miles to Little Falls – we’re hoping for more trails and quiet backroads: Day 49: Syracuse to Little Falls
I’m at a bit of a loss on songs for tonight. Bill Rohde suggested I put the old Erie Canal folk song on, but 1) I don’t usually listen to suggestions and 2) this is a really stupid suggestion. One thing on my mind… as Geeto and I usually agree, but occasionally don’t, our Ride w/GPS apps are similar: when we plot a route they often differ slightly. My app seems to guide us towards roads where Geeto’s always opts for trail (even when appreciably longer). So, for tonight here’s a song aligned with my app’s preferences: Highways
Though I had a long day to write, once again I found myself half asleep with my right thumb suspended in limbo as I attempted to finish this post. I don’t have time to reread as I need to get some rest for our 83 miles tomorrow. Hopefully it’s not worded too badly and the typos are minimal.
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