Omaha to NYC Day 39
Animated map: https://www.relive.com/view/vwq1KrMoYBO
It's nice to begin the day in a familiar place. I woke up shortly after Sarah. Heading the sound of someone getting ready for work reminded me that I'll be back at work soon. I've been proud to explain what I do when it comes up and will be happy to return.
Sarah was kind enough to make waffles and bacon. We chatted over breakfast and coffee. Soon she was out the door to her preschoolers. I petted her dog Bello when he wasn't going outside to chase away deer from Sarah's rural home. When Kisho woke her got two waffles for a young, growing young man. While he packed, I cleaned up. We said goodbye to Sharon, Sarah’s mom who lives downstairs. We were out the door shortly after 8:00.
The skies were gray and the weather misty. It wasn't raining, but it was damp. It was a couple of miles back to the Empire State Trail. I marveled at riding in a place I'd been to many times before, but always in a car. I saw it all with new eyes. At Kinderhook, home of President Martin Van Buren, we got on the trail.
It was pleasant trail riding through increasingly fall foliage. We stopped at Stuyvesant Falls to admire their beauty and role in created industry and power. They turned the turbines that made the electric railway whose alignment we were riding on.
My rear tire had developed a wobble. The next town, Hudson, had a bike shop that opened at 10:00. I decided to have it looked at even though the problem was just in the annoying category. We made it by 10:15. I enjoyed riding with Kisho. It was nice to have a partner. He has been climbing and becoming a really good boulderer, but he hasn't been cycling so we took it slow. I liked the relaxed pace.
At the bike shop, I discovered my tire was shot. The wobble was caused by the sidewall starting to come apart. If it broke we'd be stuck. I got a new tire. The shop, Berkshire Bike and Board, was run by a couple, an older guy, and the couple's little intern, their 4 month old son who lay in an infant carrier on the work bench. Kisho and I hung out, but when we realized it would take awhile to get the tire set up tubeless, we went to get an early lunch at a sub shop a couple of doors down. I really appreciated the service. It was 11:45 when we were back on the road.
At Hudson, you run out of dedicated bike trail and ride the road until Kingston. I liked the up and down but not the traffic out of Hudson. Thankfully, it wasn't long before we were back on secondary country roads. We headed for Tivoli. I'd been there once before in 2022 on a road trip with Kishi after I cut the first long cross country bike trip short. Jesse and Lize were renting a home there that summer. Kisho and I stayed with them. I enjoyed the stay, but I was dealing with feelings of failure. Naturally, it was going to be great to come back on my bike, but when we got there, the town felt different. The summer people were gone. The town felt asleep. It was an anti-climax. We stopped for a quick bite but didn't linger.
It was more road to Kingston, including a major bridge crossing. The bridge was busy with traffic. I have gotten used to the trail riding. It was a bit stressful, but the view of the Hudson was amazing! I stopped to get a picture.
On the west side we turned south to Kingston. We got on a trail briefly on the way in. I loved it. We had a small adventure riding through a flooded street that was officially closed. We passed the restaurant that Kisho, Abby, and I ate at last year when they drove me down to meet up with Lize. Then we had a big climb up the Kingston bluff.
It was getting late in the afternoon. We were aiming for a friend of Life's place south of New Paltz. They were gone, but offered to let us crash there. We decided to cook dinner because we'd need arriving at our just after dark. The stop in Hudson delayed is nearly two hours. We deviated a bit from the route to get to a grocery. I shopped as quickly as I could, but navigating a new grocery always takes time. I bought ramen, bars, carrots, apples, and canned fish. It was close to 5:00 when we left.
Shortly south of town you are back on trail, but it is gravel. It's beautiful, but the long day on legs that hadn't been biking finally got to Kisho. We'd been riding over 65 miles. We realized we'd be arriving very late and Kisho would be utterly exhausted. I realized I should have made shorter days for this part of the trip but wasn't thinking. We considered a couple of options including getting an Uber for Kisho, but when the Uber driver wanted extra under-the-table money for the bike we decided to look for lodging nearby. We were standing on a trestle over Rosendale. I googled and found a cool looking old inn. It was perfect and it was 5 minutes from where we were standing. We rolled down the hill and here we are. Kisho rallied with a hot shower and snacks. The manager was fantastic. The walkable restaurants were all closed. He said he was getting take out a short drive away and offered to get us dinner. What I didn't realize was that he was getting us dinner. He didn't accept my attempts to pay him. I feel a little bad, but what a nice person.
Kisho and I had a great dinner and a story. Tomorrow, we'll have to do some thinking about how to reach NYC, but we have options. Poughkeepsie is 17 miles away. It has a train station. If a good night's sleep doesn't do it for Kisho, he can take the train into New York, or we can take an extra day. We'll play it by ear.
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