Canastota to Utica
33 miles / ft climb
Breakfast had been a pretty poor offering from the hotel we were staying in, so 20 miles into our ride it was lovely to find a busy pub serving good food. We stopped, enjoyed and rested for a while and the last few miles were easy after this. Because it was a short day today, we arrived at our accommodation with plenty of time to service and clean the bikes which were filthy with dust from the trail.
The cleaning and repairs took us a couple of hours but we are confident our bikes will ride better tomorrow because of it.
We’re staying in a very quaint old hotel tonight and walked through the back streets to May’s Kitchen where we had read good reviews about her Haitian cuisine. We were so disappointed to find May’s Kitchen shut. Regardless, May invited us in, sat us down and served us an assortment of her dishes. The food was delicious and the welcome warm and genuine. When we prepared to leave, May would not let us pay. We have met so many kind and generous people along our journey. It is truly quite humbling.
In preparation for tomorrow, we have checked the route and the weather. I wish I hadn’t. It looks like we have 52 fairly hilly miles to do in what looks like 100% chance of rain all day! No doubt I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow.
Challenging Times 
What a lovely lady May is.
You’ve met some very special people ❤️xx
Sounds like a thoroughly good day.
What a beautiful person May must be!
I must admit, I rather enjoyed the rain while I was out today, after the weeks of extraordinary heat. I hope tomorrow is nothing worse than a slight cooling drizzle.
Have fun!
Hopefully it will be lightish showers🤞the idea of torrential rain is just revolting 😥 !! good luck with those hills – nearly there 🙌🙌
I’m hoping you reminded yourself of your earlier Michael J Fox quote.
“Don’t spend a lot of time imagining the worst-case scenario. It rarely goes down as you imagine it will, and if by some fluke it does, you will have lived it twice.”
I look forward to reading about how you conquered the climbs despite the weather.
It is so heartening to hear of the wholesome generosity and kindness you have received on your adventure. It certainly restores faith in humanity which in other ways seem darker currently.
You’re doing so brilliantly. Keep strong. Sending love and positive vibes for the hills and beyond. Xxxx