Leaving Evangola and Finding Angels

We decided last night to make this a short day, but after we’d sauntered up six miles from our stay at Evangola State Park to Irving, NY, we weren’t quite ready to stop

Leaving Evangola

The next logical place to stop was about thirteen miles up the road, but we were feeling strong and the day was still young.

We stopped at the Seneca Hawk for some brunch and then popped on up to Silver Creek, NY to visit the skew arch masonry bridge that a good friend recommended we visit.  The bridge, built in 1869, is still in active use as a railroad bridge. It is a marvel of engineering and craftsmanship that has stood the test of time.

Masonry Skew Arch Bridge - Silver Creek, NY

After the visit we decided to take the route up the lakeshore on NY Route 5.  It was a long hard slog. Just as things were getting tough and angel named Angel appeared outside her house and offered us water and a lift into town.  The water was just what we needed, but we explained that our pilgrimage required us to walk every step. Undeterred, Angel insisted she’d feel better giving us the ride.  We finally convinced her to let us go about our foolishness. She was warm and generous and kind. We’ve made it this far through the help of people like her, and we are truly grateful.

Angel, The Angel

Once again, making new friends and meeting the generous and kind people we’ve been blessed to meet along the way has been the most fulfilling part of the trip.  We are truly grateful.

Finding a Restroom....Just in Time

I’m not gonna fib to you.  I’m glad we’re in a hotel in Syracuse, and we don’t have to think about getting up tomorrow morning and putting in some miles.  I’m tired. Dad’s tired, and today’s fifteen mile slog into Syracuse wrapped up eight days in a row where we averaged just over sixteen miles a day.  We arrived a day early, and tomorow they are predicting rain. I’m glad we’re not walking in it.

Dad outside the Cross Creek Nursery...These fine folks saved his bacon when he found himself in dire need of dropping a deuce.

Though it was a challenging final push into Syracuse, more things went right than wrong.

- We had plenty of rest and sleep last night.

- We had plenty to eat this morning and all day.

- We were able to carry light water loads.

- Dad found a restroom just in time to avoid...well, a mess frankly.

- We’ve got an extra day of rest because we pushed hard enough to get here early.

- Dad’s Amazon order, new shoes being the most important part, arrived on time and intact.

- We’re making progress toward hitting the required pace to finish the N2N-TCP.  We’re not there yet, but we’re getting better.

Every day out here on the road has proven to me that there are definitely more good things than bad in the world.  Even the tough days have so many things going right it’s impossible not to be grateful.

I’m looking forward to a rest, but I’m also looking forward to getting back out there and seeing what the Universe has in store and we make our way west on this incredible journey.

More Trail Angels on the March to Syracuse

Another long day where we covered almost seventeen miles from our campsite at the Duanesburg NY Airport to an undisclosed location near Carlisle, NY.  

Trail Angels: Bonnie, Susan, Brianna, Jeremiah, and Alec….We couldn't do it without you!

Once again, it is the people we met that have made all the steps worth it.  The lovely people on top met us with most welcome and cold bottles of water at the top of a two and a half mile hill coming up out of the valley at Sloansville, NY.  Brianna's brother Vince had bailed Dad out of an awkward restroom situation earlier, and he'd called ahead to his sister to make sure they were watching out for us. They did!  Incredible!

The ladies in the bottom of the photo met us outside the Esperance, NY Town Hall and later chased us down on our way out of town to get a photo and delivered some homemade Scott Shortbread.  I saved mine till the top of the previously mentioned hill, and then let the buttery sweetness just melt in my mouth and rejuvenate me as advertised. Thank you Susan and Bonnie. You made a challenging afternoon  a great deal more enjoyable.

I'm so grateful that I'm getting the opportunity to experience the people who have gone out of their way to make a couple strangers feel welcome!

Trail Angels and Magic West of Albany, NY

Today was such a great day.  We left Albany, NY and covered just a little less than nineteen miles on our trek to our camping spot at the Duanesburg, NY Airport.  Don’t worry….it’s a grass strip municipal airport, and I think we have permission to camp there. More on that later, but we have the Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 3 set up well off the grass landing strip and apron, so I think we’re safe from any incoming flights.

Big Agnes at the Duanesburg, NY Airport….the best camping spot we’ve had to date.

The reason we’re at the airport is we met some great folks at the Chuck Wagon Diner in Altamont, NY who called ahead and secured permission for us to use a small strip of grass for our nightly accommodations.  If you ever find yourself on US-20 between Altamont and Duanesburg, NY you MUST stop and visit the Chuck Wagon Diner.

Chuck Wagon Diner...Old School Diner that’s run with love, great coffee, and great food in between Altamont and Duanesburg, NY.

We came into the diner fifteen minutes before closing and left fifteen minutes after closing with five new friends and a place to stay at the Duanesburg Airport.  True trail angels hang out at this place. The diner itself was transported to New York from Detroit, Michigan and restored with love. The sign came from California, and is also restored to its full functional glory.  This is the kind of spiritual place that Neil Gaiman described so eloquently in his novel American Gods.  Go.  Visit.  It will be magical, and you won’t regret the trip.  I walked over two hundred and twenty miles to get to the diner, and every step leading up to the experience was worth it.

We also met Elliott, another true trail angel at Cumberland Farms (a convenience store and gas station) between Altamont and Guilderland (no, not the sworn enemy of Florin from Princess Bride), NY.  He encouraged our trip, gave us his phone number, and told us to call if we needed anything between here and Syracuse. This walk is restoring my faith in humanity, my faith in the greatness of America, and mostly my faith in the wonderful people who are sharing our journey.  We are well and truly blessed.