The final stretch

Well.....we're done! As it turns out Maine wasn't the perfectly idyllic finish we both had imagined, as the roads were some of the worst of the whole ride. For the most part when we weren't riding along 3-4 lane expressway type roads we were on curvy, tourist busy, shoulder less roads with weather beaten chunky edges. More horn honking in three days than the prior three and a half months combined. Never at us, but one driver at another when a considerate person was thought to slow down too much or take to long to go around us. Pretty interesting that the person honking was always a tourist; California, New York, Florida, etc, and the person being honked at always a local or at least a Maine resident. Definitely gave us a better understanding of one of the popular Vermont slogans, "Welcome to Vermont, now go home!" which originally seemed a bit blunt and crude. Hurried drivers aside we still felt blessed to be riding through the beautiful Maine countryside and coastline....humorously realizing  we've become pretty comfortable with life on the road as we spread our stuff out and enjoyed a lunch break and naps in the middle of a grocery store parking lot.

 

 

 

Eventually we cruised into Bar Harbor and the end of our ride. Honestly the day felt like any of the other one hundred and some odd prior days, however, this day ended on the Atlantic coast. Rather than the feeling of a feat accomplished, or anything of the sort, it was more the simple feeling of, What a great way to spend the summer! What a great and true way to see this country. The diversity.....from the mountains to the plains, the wealthy tourist towns to the poor dust blown villages (and believe us there's more in this country than you would ever believe), the cold rainy headwinds to the warm sunny tailwinds, the Pacific to the Atlantic and everything in between. There's something to be said for taking a couple steps back to experience life on simpler terms every now and again. A reminder. A refresher. A thankfulness gained, or I suppose unforgotten, for the little things in life it can be so easy to take for granted. When I proposed the idea to Sarah her first initial reaction was, "We can't do that, we're not even cyclists!" Well......we did, and now we are. A good lesson. To best sum up the whole deal in a few words....a simply beautiful, and beautifully simple bicycle ride. Now, on to new ventures.

 

 

 

Vermont, New Hampshire, and into Maine

We left off last after our century through the rain. We awoke the next morning with tight and tired leg muscles. We shuffled around our little cabin drinking many stovetop coffees, neither of us having the motivation to open the door to the cold and wet conditions awaiting us.  After procrastinating as long as possible we pushed off into the heavy mist and mid 40s temperature. We decided to spend a lazy first half of the day around town and get a late breakfast. Unknowingly we both got the specials for the day. Sarah got the "order what you'd like and we'll make something similar" and I enjoyed the "breakfast burrito with egg shells". Both came with a side of salt disguised as home fries.  Leaving town late in the afternoon, our blood pressures soaring, we pedaled a short 25 miles through the light rain and cold to our campground for the night. Arriving just as it was getting dark we discovered the campground was closed for the season. However, we made our camp for the night, having no other choice, and luckily just as we crawled into the tent for the night the heavy mist turned into rain. We braved the next two days of a cold front; lows in the 30's along with heavy mist and dew in the mornings soaking everything. However, the daytime hours were comfortable, in the 50's, and the scenery was pretty spectacular.

 

 

 

It was a cold handful of days, but soon enough the weather turned around, we regained feeling in our fingers and toes, and jumped aboard a ferry to cross Lake Champlain and pass into Vermont. 

 

 

 

Vermont marked the start of the handful of days we'd spend cycling through, up, and over the Appalachian Mountains, which meant the biggest steepest climbs since the Cascades and Rockies of the West.  

 

Our second day in Vermont we were excited to meet a group of touring cyclists, as it had been ages since, and chat a bit after lunch. Realizing the expected low was only 28 degrees that night, and all our stuff being soaked from the previous nights rain, we decided it'd be best to abandon our camping plans and stay indoors. It was fairly easy to choose where we'd stay as there was only one place in a 40 mile radius, a B&B. Turned out to be one of the most interesting nights of the trip. A man in his 60's opened the garage to greet us; big hook nose hanging over his stubbly mustache, thin mutton chops framing his round face, a crooked gait giving the illusion of one slightly longer leg. His first question was "are you guys going to the pizza place uptown" to which Sarah replied "we hadn't really thought about it". After two more minutes of conversation he asked the exact same question to which I replied "actually I think we'll cook in". After one more minute of conversation he says, "okay so you guys are going to the pizza place uptown for dinner then". Things got weirder from there which included him asking me to do him a "solid" by getting him cigarettes on the down low when we're in town, while putting a finger up to his lips (to signify being quiet), as I guess he didn't want the owner to know.....she lives above the garage out back.....who we never did meet the whole time we were there. We were informed to just stand in the kitchen and yell out to her if we needed anything. It was a rather awkward, curious, and interesting experience to say the least. The following morning he started the breakfast conversation, over runny eggs and banana bread Sarah and I were daring each other to eat, with "so are you gonna leave right after breakfast"? We spent the first half of the day recounting all the oddities and busted on through to New Hampshire. 

 

 

Vermont was but a warm up to the two days we'd spend in New Hampshire going up and over the last couple big passes of our trip. When compared to the Cascades and Rockies, for what the Appalacians lack in length of climb or total elevation gained they surely make up for in sheer steepness....in your granny gear (the easiest gear on your bike) pedaling hard and just inching uphill at times. 

 

As we worked our way up the very last big climb of the trip, crossing the Appalacian Trail along the way, it really started to set in that this was the last actual mountain standing between us and the coast and the end of our little adventure is drawing near.

 

 

It was pretty bittersweet coming down off our last pass with 22 miles of downhill into town and celebrating with a tall beer....unfortunately Mexican food in New Hampshire is no bueno. If there's one part of the country that's awarded the "worst food of the ride award" it's Vermont and New Hampshire. We're hoping things turn around in Maine with the chowdah and lobstah. 

 

Which brings us to today. This morning we crossed into Maine, our sixteenth and final State! The daytime weather has been absolutely perfect for cycling....high 60's, with that crisp Fall air, and the sun warming you just enough. However, the nights are getting cold. Three and a half days and we'll be to the coast. We're both ready for it....tired with the change of seasons upon us.....