Great Finger Lakes Bicycle Tour

June 9-11, 2006



Jane and I have done the "Great Finger Lakes Bicycle Tour" every year starting with 1999. It occurs the second weekend in June and starts Friday afternoon when you arrive at the Watkins Glen State Park Hidden Valley Group Camp and set up your tent. (Or, you can put your sleeping bag on a bunk in one of the cabins.)

Late Friday is a dinner and Saturday morning there is breakfast. There was a plan for a short ride Friday night but that was shelved due to the rain. Saturday there are different rides to choose from followed by dinner Saturday night. Sunday there is a breakfast followed by a choice of rides, breaking camp and departure.

The rest of the story is in the pictures below.


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GFLBT 2006 Our van and trailer ready to go Friday morning. GFLBT 2006 The trailer has both the recumbent tandem tricycle and my regular diamond frame bike on it.
GFLBT 2006 At the campground, I gave some rides to people and there was a lot of discussion of the trike. Note that everyone is dressed warmly. The weather on Friday and Saturday was chilly and rainy. GFLBT 2006 Sam took this photo of Tim getting a ride on the trike. Would you trust your son with that guy?
GFLBT 2006 The dining hall at the camp during Friday night's dinner. GFLBT 2006 Another shot of the dining hall.
GFLBT 2006 Dick, Wilf, Ellen and Bob at dinner Friday night. GFLBT 2006 Jane, Marge and Regina at Friday night dinner.
GFLBT 2006 Don at the left and Dottie in the center. GFLBT 2006 Karen and Paul.
GFLBT 2006 Ellen and Dick. GFLBT 2006 Jane and Marge fool around at Friday night dinner.
GFLBT 2006 On Saturday, I did the "Four Falls Ride." Basically the same ride as last year which defeated me due to the melting tar from the roads getting all over my bike. This year, the conditions were completely different. Instead of scorching heat, we had rain and cold. Here is the first of the four: Aunt Sarah's Falls. With all the rain, there is lots of water coming over the falls. GFLBT 2006 Residents of Montour Falls get this view of Shequaga Falls every time they come down Main Street.
GFLBT 2006 Shequaga Falls with the pool it fills. GFLBT 2006 According to the sign, "Shequaga" means tumbling waters.
GFLBT 2006 A short history lesson. GFLBT 2006 While I was cycling between Lakes Seneca and Cayuga, Jane took a drive between Lakes Seneca and Keuka. She went through the picturesque town of Dundee.
GFLBT 2006 Jane wanted to visit the "Windmill," an Amish Arts and Crafts center. Apparently, one of the signs needed repair. GFLBT 2006 Although it's a popular destination for cyclists (Augie led a ride that went there), it's not really very accessible, so Jane wasn't able to do very much at the Windmill.
GFLBT 2006 The rolling countryside in the Finger Lakes region. GFLBT 2006 Another view of Finger Lakes country.
GFLBT 2006 Jane found an old cemetery with graves of people born before the Civil War. GFLBT 2006 The third falls of the four: Taughannock Falls from the overlook somewhat higher than the falls.
GFLBT 2006 Some of the other riders at the overlook for Taughannock Falls. They are still bundled up because it's still cold and wet. In fact on the way over from Shequaga Falls, my hands went numb from the cold. I'd brought my winter gloves but left them back at camp! GFLBT 2006 A shot across Lake Cayuga.
GFLBT 2006 In interesting house overlooking the lake. GFLBT 2006 A dock on the lake. I believe the contraption is used to store boats out of the water during winter when the lake might freeze.
GFLBT 2006 A nice place for a patio: overlooking Lake Cayuga to the north! GFLBT 2006 Our route took us from Lake Cayuga through Ovid, where I had lunch, towards Lake Seneca. At the town of Lodi, I took 414 to Hector, cutting off a few miles, and a few 100 feet of climbing. The reason for my detour was to stop at the Wagner Winery and Micro-brew. There were two wineries on the part I omitted, but no obvious place to get a couple of beers. Here's a view of vineyards and Lake Seneca from Wagner's deck where I'm enjoying a brew.
GFLBT 2006 I'm not the only one who likes a beer! By this time the sun had come out and the weather was pleasant. GFLBT 2006 Number Four: Hector Falls.
GFLBT 2006 Tim and Sam and their tandem being photographed by another cyclist at the Hector Falls overlook. GFLBT 2006 Saturday evening, we played with the trike some more. Here Marge and I take it for a spin.
GFLBT 2006 Debbie and I go for a test ride. She thought it was like an amusement park ride! GFLBT 2006 Marge, Jane, and Jane in the food line for Saturday dinner.
GFLBT 2006 Tim and Sam at dinner. GFLBT 2006 Dinner Saturday night. Marge and Karen standing, Bill nearest the camera and Paul sitting at the table behind Karen.
GFLBT 2006 After dinner, there was a lecture on dogs which we skipped. While that was going on I took this photo of our van, tent, and fly at the Watkins Glen Hidden Valley Group Camp. The fly is set up in rain mode: two low corners and two high corners, so the water runs off at the low corners rather than pooling on the top. GFLBT 2006 After the dog lecture, Paul gave a cycling fashion show. You have to see it to believe it.
GFLBT 2006 After the fashion show, Paul gave a slide show of some past rides. Here, I'm helping him set up. GFLBT 2006 On Sunday, Karen and I rode the trike to the fire tower. It's a short loop but has a fair amount of climbing. Part of the way up is a dirt road and we could feel the rear wheel slipping in spots. Anyway, around the fire tower is a camp ground known as the Sugar Hill Recreation Area.
GFLBT 2006 The recreation area is popular with horse back riders. They seem to do the same thing we do except on horses: get together and go for rides. The event seemed to be breaking up as we arrived as quite a few horse trailers pulled out while we were there. GFLBT 2006 The trike parked at the top.
GFLBT 2006 The trike as seen from the top of the tower. (You can't actually get to the observation deck, but you can climb the stairs up to the trap door just below it.) GFLBT 2006 Some of the recreation area around the tower.
GFLBT 2006 Towards Lake Seneca which is down between the ridges somewhere. GFLBT 2006 Towards Lake Keuka. The lake you see is just a small lake, not an official Finger Lake!
GFLBT 2006 Oh no! I told her not to jump! GFLBT 2006 The tower. What's that at the bottom?
GFLBT 2006 When we leave the camp on Sunday, we drive to Clifton Park near Albany and take our son out for a birthday dinner. Here's Jeff at dinner. GFLBT 2006 Jane at dinner.
GFLBT 2006 Me at dinner. GFLBT 2006 Jane and I at dinner. It's also a bit of an anniversary dinner. The GFLBT is always the second weekend in June. Jeff's Birthday is June 14 and our anniversary is June 15, so all three events happen around the same time!
GFLBT 2006 The tracks recorded by my GPS overlaid on a USGS topo map by GPSVisualizer.com. Saturday's ride is the loop between Lakes Seneca and Cayuga. Sunday's ride is the short loop to the west. Both loops were traversed counterclockwise. GFLBT 2006 The altitude and total climb profiles from data recorded by my GPS receiver for Saturday's Four Falls ride.
GFLBT 2006 The altitude and total climb profiles from data recorded by my GPS receiver for Sunday's Fire Tower ride.