Day 34: Camden to Bar Harbor

Unless you just started following , this is it, the last day of riding. Unfortunately, Wes and Will were not greeted with great weather, as it was a bit chilly and overcast at the start of the day. After a few hours, the conditions worsened. A fog rolled in off the shore. In some areas, visibility was not far at all, even less than a mile in some places.

Once the afternoon rolled around, weather patterns improved. The sun was out, temperature mild, and the roads were still dry. I met Will and Wes in the town of Stockton Springs for a break. But it was short as they wanted to get to the final destination as quickly as possible.

I didn't hear much from them for the next few hours, assuming they were doing quick rests and self support, which would expedite their travel time. By the time I reached them at Ellsworth, they were half way done. The weather was turning again. Rain looked imminent as the cloud cover thickened, but what's a small sprinkle at this point in the trip?

After the short break I drove into Acadia to squeeze in a run. I trotted around Eagle lake for a while while observing the low hanging cloud cover. At some points, the entire lake was visible, but by the end, it was impossible to see through the clouds that had settled on the water.

The rain had picked up by the end of the run, so I dashed back and went to check on the bikers. About 10 miles back up the road, I located them, now in complete rain gear. I expected a longer break before their final ride, but they just stopped to say hi before taking off.

Bar Harbor was pretty neat. A bit touristy, but overall a pretty cool town. Large boats were docked in the harbor taking people to go wildlife watching along the coast. I stopped by a local joint for lunch and grabbed a lobster roll. It was good, but I just don't think I'm a huge lobster fan.

After a few hours of walking around, I got a call from Wes. They arrived earlier than expected and were already at the car. I scurried over and found them settled in, ready for the ride back. Will had the whole back bench to himself, loaded with a blanket, pillows and computer. I hopped in and we took off towards the Midwest.

(There will be a post in about a week with more photograph of the journey, but for now enjoy what is here. -Connor)

Day 33: Naples to Camden

Overcast, 68º and no wind. This was the weather the bikers were treated to this morning. If Will and Wes were tired, it was no longer showing as their excitement and desire to get to the end was overwhelming any other feelings they may have.

Having gotten behind on my journal entries, I zoomed on over to the nearest Dunkin Donuts. While I was typing away basically the entire police force of Naples showed up for coffee and doughnuts. If anyone was gonna drag race, the best time would be 9:30am.

Just 100 miles to the coast. That's it that's all they needed. For going so far, sometimes just 100 more miles can seem all the more easier, but in fact it was not.

In the town of Bath, I checked in with the riders for the first time. I found the bikers at Dot's ice cream (of course). Wes' water bottles were getting gross from the lack of washing. They tossed 3 bottles and replaced them with gatorade bottles and a spare clean one. After chucking some morning layers in the trunk, they set off again on route 1.

The next town of meeting was Waldoboro. I got there early and decided to get lunch at the local pub. Because I'd been in the car a long time, I had a bathroom emergency and rushed in right away. As I was leaving to get my wallet in the car, the bartender gave me a snarky "Why don't you come back for lunch sometime."  clearly a little mad I only walked in to use the bathroom. Within the next 30 seconds, the bar was chuckling, saying "Hey look, it worked!"

Will and Wes rolled up about an hour later. The riding was much more difficult than expected. With 20 miles to go, they were exhausted but determined to see the Atlantic ocean. We started talking about the ride back and how we were gonna rig the back to be like a bed for Will. After a long rest, the cyclist set off to the coast to complete their final century of the ride.

Unfortunately, I wasn't there to capture the excitement of the cyclists seeing the coastline, but I was assured they got there. It was getting late and I had to get my run in. There will be more photos in the days to come.

At dinner, there were more cheers and hand shakes than any dinner prior. The century streak has officially come to an end, with a distance of only 82 miles left to Bar Harbor, the objective was simply to complete the Northern Tier route.

Day 32: North Haverhill, NH to Naples, ME

The morning was a cool one, but thankfully there was no rain to accommodate the slightly weary bikers. After dropping them in North Haverhill, I went back to the motel to grab a small nap before hitting Wal-Mart for the last time (hopefully) of the trip.

Upon return to my vehicle, I remembered that I had forgotten my towel in the room. I glanced quickly at my phone, which I had left in the car, and saw an urgent text from Wes to meet them with dry clothing. I guess the towel was going to find a new home in Woodfeild.

As I was driving on route, I was a bit confused about the text I had received from Wes. Besides a slightly wet road, there had not been a drop of rain all day. Once I went over the first pass, it was quite apparent a storm had rolled through. Clouds were swooping low through the pass and blocked the view of the mountains on the other side.

I caught the bikers in Lincoln at the base of White Mountain national forest. The duo had grabbed a quick breakfast and dried off a tad, but still elected to swap out some clothing. The next 32 miles would not have any towns, so the duo packed in the cliff bars, gu shots and other nutritional foods. After the pit stop I stopped back in Lincoln to grab a bagel and mail a post card before heading up the pass.

About an hour after the first checkpoint, I rallied up the pass at a somewhat leisurely speed, stopping to take pictures of the cool scenery here and there. Eventually I caught the crew about 20 miles from the first stop. They grabbed some water, shed the rain gear and plowed on. I stuck behind to hit up one the state forest trails before heading out myself. I found a cool little 9 mile trail to the Rocky Gorge and back. Like the last state park I visited, my shoes got swallowed in mud, but alas I made it out alive.

As I crossed the border into Maine, I got an urgent text from Wes saying they needed to be picked up to make the 4pm closing of the post office. A package with supplies was shipped from home, medication supposedly, that had to be picked up by Wes. just 18 miles short of the destination, I grabbed the bikers and make it to the post office in the nick of time. Finally, relieved the made the drop, they got a quick lunch before heading back to the drop point.

In Naples, I found a motel on route and Wes elected to simply bike in and out to make it easy for departure the next morning. At dinner, the excitement was apparent. After 32 centuries in a row, the next would be special, because it would be the last. Tomorrow, they will ride to the Atlantic, coast to coast. Just 2 days, TWO DAYS until the riders take their final dismount on the Northern Tier trail.

Day 31: Middlebury, VT to North Haverhill, NH

I wish I could say the weather was good today, but it was far from it. It's not easy to start a ride in the pouring rain. It's also not easy to start a ride when you know today may be the most difficult century yet. But with no fear, Wes and Will started on time at 7am.

While I had been to Vermont before, I really hadn't seen the part of the state that makes it famous. After stopping at Middlebury College for a run around their cross country course and a sneak peak an their new field house, I caught an urgent text from Wes which prompted me to get on my horse and head up route.


As I headed up into the mountains, the weather changed drastically. Ran came sideways, the winds swirled around and the road was easily the steepest of the trip. After 30 minutes on the road, I arrived in Hancock at a homey cafe that reminded me much of a ski lodge. Soaked completely, but now warm, Will and Wes changed out of everything. After an hour of rest and breakfast, Wes was again eager to hit the road.

The storm had calmed and the rain subsided. The road itself was quite beautiful from then on out. Much of the route followed a stream and was surrounded on either sides by mountains. I could see why people liked to stay in these parts come winter time.

Because of the wet riding conditions, Wes determined that it would be better if there was no pause in the day for lunch, fearing that the century would be in jeopardy if the ride were to stop for too long. Therefore, I stuck close by at all times, not allowing myself more than 10 miles in front of behind them. In the town of Hartford, the route turned northward once again and crossed the Connecticut river into New Hampshire.

Much like the entrance into Montana earlier in the trip, after crossing into New Hampshire everything went very quite. The roads were quiet. The towns along the river were small farm towns with a small two lane road connecting them. I suppose it also helped that it was a Sunday. 15 miles out from North Haverhill, I connected one last time with the bikers before taking off to scout out a spot.

The main roadway I took to the hotel was called Dartmouth College highway. I followed it until the town of Woodsville, a town north of North Haverhill. I quickly booked the room and zipped back south to pick up the tired wet bikers. They hit 100 miles just as I approached them on the road.

At the motel, Wes made the realization that they were basically out of clean riding gear because of the clothing change in the middle of the day. I talked to the motel manager who directed me to the local laundry mat just a quarter mile down the road and, thankfully, still open this late. While Wes and Will cleaned up for dinner, I started what I hoped would be the last load of laundry I'd have to do on the trip. During dinner, I had to switch the clothes to the dryer before returning to by food being ready just in time. Finally, after a quick dessert, I dropped Wes and Will at the hotel before grabbing the clean and dry clothes. At that point in the day, my body could no longer physically be awake and I fell asleep while Wes and Will talked about the final days ahead.

Day 30: Inlet, NY to Middlebury, VT

The weather was a bit chilly this morning. The layers were on when I dropped off Wes and Will about 7 miles down from the motel. Upon return, I grabbed some free continental breakfast, at a MOTEL! It fantastic to get something in the system right away in the morning. When I walked back to my room, I saw what had to be the largest dog I've ever encountered. His name was Memphis and he was over 200 pounds.

Following my departure from the motel, I found Wes and Will further up the road in the town of Blue Ridge. They got a small snack and we set our plan for the rest of the day. I needed a few hours to get my workout in for the day, and the amount of trails were running out as we were nearly out of Adirondack Park. So I cruzed up ahead and found a nice trail, expecting to meet in Ticonderoga at 3. I drove up and found a nice trail. Unfortunately it was a bit muddier than I thought.

After my run I sped down to Ticonderoga. Many people might recognize the name from the #2 pencil you're forced to use throughout most of middle school. Anyways, there was something unique about the ride through Ticonderoga. At the end of the highway, instead of taking a bridge across the river, there's a ferry across. Of course, fearing that I was behind schedule, I took the ferry across before they did, receiving word as I was on the ferry that they were still behind me.

At last, the bikers were on the ferry and were bussed across Champlain Lake to the state of Vermont. The ride was nearly over for the day. I quickly went up to Middlebury to find accommodations for the night. As I got to the motel, the rain began to pour down. I zipped back up the road to retrieve them.

It was at dinner when Will and Wes made the incredible realization that they had ridden 30 centuries in 30 days. The phrase "I can't believe it" and "That's insane!" were uttered more times than I could remember. Wes stated it was a record that he would never seen broken by either of them in their lifetimes, but Will was insistent that he could do 35 centuries in a row one day. Just for the record, Wes said he'd bet $1000 dollars that he wouldn't.

Day 29: Port Ontario to Inlet

After a night of deep restful sleep, Will and Wes hit the road on another stellar morning. Meanwhile, I got to stay back and enjoy Selkik Shores state forest via foot trails.  Even though I only planned to run for 45 minutes I couldn't help but extend the run to an hour just because of the soft trails.

The first stop of the day was in Boonville. Will was really tired and didn't seem to have gotten much sleep after a night in the tent. He took a 10 minute nap in the car after lunch before setting off again.

After waiting around Boonville for a while I sped up ahead to find them once again. In the process I entered Adirondack State park. There were campsites every 4/5 miles it seemed. Campfire wood being sold at every bend and lakes practically every mile. Taken aback by the change in scenery, I missed the bikers who had taken a stop at a gas station. I ended up in Old Forge, a bustling town at the base of a large lake. Eventually they caught up to me.

Will was still tired and lacking energy. As a solution Wes offered to buy him all the candy he wanted. We walked out with two grocery bags of calorie packed goods. Will chomped down on some gummy worms while Wes downed an energy shake. Refueled they hit the road for the final stretch of the day.

Finally we reached the town of Inlet, Will and Wes took a quick rest before pounding out the last 7 miles of the century. I drove up and brought them back the the Marina Motel, an upscale establishment to the other motels we stayed at. I performed some minor maintenance on the each of the bikes front tires as Will had developed a small crack and Wes had a slow leak. After a tiring day, they decided to feel things out tomorrow morning to determine if they wanted to ride or take a day off.

Day 28: Fairport to Port Ontario

The morning, much like the previous few, had been nearly perfect weather conditions. After 14 more miles on the Erie Canal, Will and Wes took of north towards Lake Ontario and stopped in Sodus Point for breakfast.

Meanwhile, I talked to Wes and got permission to drive into Syracuse to run with my college running teammate, Patrick. We hit up the trails in Green Lake State park. It was hands down the most beautiful running spot I had found yet. I wish I had brought a GoPro or something to take a picture of two, because it was picturesque off the wah-zoo. But alas, if you want to see visit for yourself.

After a quick brunch and goodbye, I drove to Fulton to meet up with Wes and Will. Arriving early, I found the local laundry mat and did a much needed load of laundry. Following that, I met up at Wendy's and put together a plan for this evening.

Port Ontario was exactly 100 miles for the day. I scouted out the region and found a quaint camping spot/state park on Lake Ontario. It had a shower, camp store, bathrooms plus a cool view. I drove back out of the park to look for a grocery store and give Wes and Will the good news.

On my drive back, I spotted the holy grail of post biking activities: Go-Karts. Within 10 minutes, I had picked up the bikers and driven straight back to the go-kart track. I opted to sit this one out and take some sick race pictures instead. Following the half hour racetrack session, we took a quick stop at ALDI for groceries before hitting up the campsite.

For dinner, we used a butane fueled stovetop to boil macaroni, pasta, potatoes, and fry up a bean & cheese quesadilla. This time we had a challenge. A flock of seagulls also inhabited the campground. They were not shy and often flew a few feet from the food. If I went so far as the car to grab a paper towel, the food was swarmed and eaten by the birds. At one point a garbage bag with discarded macaroni disappeared. As always we had an array of salts and spices to make the otherwise bland tasting dinner somewhat tasty. Without any access to tv or internet, bedtime was 10pm, but I was out by 9:45.