2inTandem

Monday, September 26, 2016

LONG ISLAND LOOP AROUND PECONIC BAY

I have been wanting to do this ride for over a year now. Figured we would wait for a nice Saturday weather wise then hop the ferry out of New London, CT to Orient Point, Long Island, NY. Of course, nice Saturday's came and went and we always seemed to have something else to do. Finally, a few weeks ago we committed that if it was going to be a reasonable weather day on September 24, then we would go. It was, so we went.

Leaving New London, CT on the 6:30 am ferry.

Enjoying coffee and a muffin.

Arrival at Orient Point, Long Island, NY.


Getting ready to disembark.

The ride was planned as a loop around Peconic Bay, first going west along the North Fork of Long Iisland, then turning at Riverhead, NY and heading east along the South Fork of Long Island, then taking the ferry across to Shelter Island then another ferry back to the North Fork and return to Orient Point. About 81 miles total, which is our longest single day ride to date. Terrain was mostly flat, so made for an easy ride.

Our route around Peconic Bay, Long Island.

Heading out from Orient Point, NY.

Lavender Farm. Missed the blooms by a couple of weeks.

Lavender Farm.

Greenport, NY. Setting up for Maritime Festival.

Along the route.

Lots of vineyards on the North Fork.

Taking a break at Harbes Farm.

Cider donuts and coffee, a good combination.

Outside the Big Duck.

Eating lunch behind the Big Duck.

Receiving a history lesson about the area.

Laura went to college in Southampton at Southampton College, so we took a tour of her old campus. It is now owned by Stony Brook University which is working to fix it up.

Laura's freshman dorm.

Laura's sophomore dorm.

On campus.


Windmill on campus.

Streets of Southampton, NY

More Southampton, NY.

Getting some ice cream at Sip'n Soda in Southampton. I tried their famous Lime Richey. Good, but not my thing.

Outside Sip'n Soda.

South ferry to Shelter Island.

On route on Shelter Island.

North ferry from Shelter Island.

Sunset at Truman Beach.

Made it back to Orient Point for the 8:00 ferry back to New London, CT. We had a nice ride, but found Long Island to be very congested with traffic, due mostly to the limited number of roads in the east and west directions. When we ere able to get off the main routes, it was certainly more enjoyable. It is a beautiful place, however, with lots of deer, picturesque views, and quaint towns.

Click HERE to see more photos on Flickr.

Sunday, August 14, 2016

DAY 14 - ON THE ROAD - THE END IS HERE

Simply put, it was hot. It was hot, it was humid, and there was not a breeze to be found, especially in among the trees at the campsite in Allaire State Park. We climbed into the tent as darkness fell. We find we lack any energy to stay up later. Inside the tent it continued to be hot, and humid, and no breeze, in addition to be quite smelly even following a sufficient cleaning in the shower.It must have been the stinky clothes sharing the tent with us. I tried to come up with a fan solution by folding one of our used cue sheets into a fan shape and waving it back and forth. Laura and I debated the merits of waving the fan and whether it used up more energy than it was worth, and as such making you more sweaty than you already were. I felt the fanning was worth it, Laura did not. I fanned away and even shared some of the breeze with her. But what I found most beneficial was the fanning away of some of the stink so it wasn't as noticeable. Worked for awhile until my arm got too tired. It made for a long and restless night.

By morning we were up and packed and ready to move on with the day, that is to get away from the stale, heavy air. At least moving on a bike you get a bit of a breeze, and on this, our last day, we decided to treat ourselves to a hefty breakfast. After eating we continued on our way through the back roads of New Jersey where we met our ride in North Brunswick, NJ to take us the rest of the way home. Thus comes to an end our summer 2016 bike tour. 685 miles completed!