We woke up early this
final day of cycling the
Erie Canal,
heading to
Lock 7
and into the town of Colonie
before reaching the
Cohoes Falls at
Falls View Park in Cohoes.
Cycling on, we passed a few places in town
 |
Calvary Grace Church,
228 North Mohawk Street
|
 |
Craner Park,
North Mohawk Street and Church Street
|
before heading into Waterford,
 |
| Saratoga Avenue Bridge |
where there were
painted mules all about town,
passing
Lock 2
the
Waterford Harbor Visitor Center
and the Peebles Island Bridge North on Second Street and Front Street.
Next, it was on to the
Peebles Island State Park
 |
| Peebles Island Bridge South, Delaware Avenue |
where there was the last rest stop of the trip.
From here, it was on to the
Van Schaick Island back in Cohoes
and the town of Green Island,
pushing into the village of Menands in Colonie, before finally reaching Albany itself.
 |
| Livingston Avenue Bridge, Quay Street |
We had to go over a pedestrian bridge at the
Corning City Preserve
and bring our bikes down the stairs at the other end.
Finally, it was the last stretch to the finish line, passing a few places along the way.
 |
| Tricentennial Park, 560 Broadway |
 |
Hudson Harbor Steak and Seafood,
351 Broadway
|
 |
| Halve Maen 1609, 140 NY-5 |
 |
| KeyBank Building, 66 South Pearl Street |
 |
UHaul Truck atop building,
139 Broadway
|
 |
Our Lady Help of Christians Church,
66 Second Avenue |
After crossing the finish line at the
Albany Visitors Center, we found our luggage, then it was up to me to cycle back across the
Dunn Memorial Bridge
into Renssalaer
 |
| Herrick Street Bridge |
to get the car from the
Albany Rensselaer Amtrak Train Station.
I took one last picture of the
St. John the Evangelist Church
before finally going to pick my friend up from the finish line, and begin the long drive home. I have to say, this bike trip was very fun, despite being tiring at times.
I arrived home pretty early, and after my friend left, I decided that the rest of the day was not to go to waste, so I decided to head up north to start sightseeing for the rest of the day. I was hungry, so I decided to stop at the
Black Sheep Tavern, a dive bar in Sterling, for a bite, getting the
Thai Peanut Chicken (wings deep fried and dipped in sweet and spicy Thai peanut sauce, served with sweet and sour sauce).
Not too bad, but the peanut and sweet spicy flavors did not stand out very well, so the wings were just alright.
From here, it was on to the town of Ashby,
 |
Fitchburg Reservoir,
495 Rindge Road
|
 |
| Ashby Reservoir, 800 South Road |
where I decided to go for a hike up Blood Hill, located at the end of Luke Road, despite my tired legs. The path I took, the only one available here, is shown below in black.
The views from the top were pretty good, with Ashby Stock Farm in the distance,
and I actually went to the farm next at 1155 Main Street in town, where the far reaching views here were awesome as well.
From here, it was on to Ashburnham,
 |
Stodge Meadow Pond,
20 Stodge Meadow Road
|
 |
| Wallace Pond, 180 Rindge State Road |
then Winchendon,
 |
White's Mill Pond,
Lake View Drive and Beach View Drive
|
 |
Stoddard Pond,
Baldwinville Road and Mill Glen Road
|
before finally heading to the town of Orange for dinner at
Boiler Bar and Grille, a bar restaurant in town.
I wanted to try their BBQ stuff, but as it was their last hour of operation, only the limited pub menu was available, and I was forced to go with the Boiler Room Club (ham, bacon, and turkey triple decker on toast).
It was actually pretty good. I'm seriously considering going back there if I'm ever in the area again. With that, a long and tiring week of non-stop exertion finally came to an end. Glad I survived my biking experience.
