Weedsport.

The weather is just about perfect. Since Buffalo it has been getting a little cooler everyday.. Todays high was 64 which to me was great. It was pretty cloudy until 1 or so but no rain.

Farther north has gotten a lot of rain over the past few days and because of that, some of the locks are not operating until the water level goes down. I talked to a man who was from Wisconsin and he had been stuck for 3 days waiting to lock through. He wasn’t upset about it. He and his wife were in a 42 foot boat and were headed to Florida for the winter. 7 years earlier they sold their house and now live on the boat and travel the waterways. In Rochester the canal intersected and flowed through the Genesee River. The canal was clean, the Genesee high and muddy.

Since this section of the Canal is fed by the Genesee it is pretty dirty here as well. Im not sure if the state is cleaning up from the recent storms and high water or if this is an every day job.

Even muddy its still beautiful. This lady was painting a picture for an upcoming art show.

Lock 28, Lyons is a busy place. It was pretty cool seeing all the tug boats and barges in dry dock. There was no sign saying do not enter so I was able to walk around them.

In a gas station I got my much needed caffeine boost for the afternoon.

In the town of Port Byron the road ride ends and the Erie Canal trail becomes a bike path once more. I stopped at visitor center there to fill my water bottles. The two ladies that run the place are very nice. They are also really proud of everything there that they have on display.. One of them showed me around and talked about the artifacts and explained to me how locks worked. I politely listened and acted interested. With my bottles full I tried to leave but I was stopped by the door and told it would be a shame to leave without seeing their lock which was a short walk down a paved path. I explained I have been seeing locks every since I left D.C. and that I have seen a lot of locks this past month. Very seriously she said ” you might of seen one thousand locks but you never saw Port Byron’s lock did you? I said no I hadn’t but I didn’t chain up my bike and I was uncomfortable leaving while I walked to the lock. She said go see the lock, I will watch your bike. And so I did. When I returned she was still outside standing guard over my bike. If you’re ever in Port Byron’s stop in and visit.

I’m stealthed camped a little past the townof Weedsport. I cooked some rice and black beans for dinner and wrapped it up in tortillas.