By the time I got to Phoenixville......

...I'll have ridden 500 miles. Or so. It has been a week since internet access so there is some catching up to do. Overall we have had a great week. This morning I saw Paul off to ride into Philadelphia, find a bike shop, get to the airport to rent a car, pack his bike in a shop supplied box, take it to FedEx to ship home and then collapse in a motel to get his flight back to Tempe tomorrow morning. And he took off from our motel this morning in a steady rain. Such is the life of cycling tourist. Now you can see why we do it!
I am taking a rest day here in Phoenixville, PA across the river from Valley Forge, before riding to Wilmington, DE tomorrow to visit Steve and Kit (bro and partner). I will be there for a few days before the second chapter, riding the Blue Ridge Parkway begins after meeting Jim and Denny.
The highlight of our week's ride came yesterday, on the last full day of the trip with Paul. We were in Intercourse, PA, in the heart of Amish country and we rode a back road that was used almost exclusively by the Amish in their horse drawn carts and buggies. We saw young folks driving a Shetland pony drawn wagon and farmers with huge work horses going down the road to work fields. Most intriguing was a one room school house at a country crossroads with the probably 3-5th graders bustling around the yard before the bell rang to begin the school day. Outdoor toilets in the yard and some play equipment, hand built. The children were surprisingly friendly as we asked if we could take a picture. One of the most charming things we saw many times was children transporting themselves along the roads and highways on large wheeled scooters. They are seen often and several were parked in front yards and in the school yard.
Both Paul and I were somewhat taken aback by the approachability of the children. Not far from where we were is where earlier this year a man had killed five schoolgirls in a school much like the one we had come across. The story of the Amish response, to forgive and embrace the family of the perpetrator, who of course killed himself as well, is at the same time nearly unbeliveable and inspiring. They have raised huge amounts of money to support the family of the murderer and have sought not a bit of retribution. It is a lesson for the world, no doubt. And a testiment to the power of their faith.
This last day was a terrific ride. Nice temperatures, partly cloudy, a bit of a tailwind and riding back to Phoenixville, closer to sea level, mostly down hill. The day before, going the opposite direction out of P'ville, was quite the opposite. We spent the day riding into rolling country that was, in general, higher elevation. So it was uphill and we felt it. We then we reached a point where we needed to turn to go to the campground which we thought we would stay at. Earlier, in an old red schoolhouse, now Mennonite/Amish information center, we were told that the road we were to embark on now was hilly, "but they are not too long". It is a lesson learned over and over that those who do not ride bicycles do not know what steep, or long really mean. We rode over Welsh Mountain and it was long, and in places, steep. I did my usual stop midway and I might have even stopped again, I do not remember. Paul however, steamed right over that sucker. During the course of the week he has definitely found his legs and has been riding strong. My legs, on the other hand had better get stronger fast.
We decided that, after all that, we would not stay in that campground and since we were already over the top and it was down hill to the next one, where we really wanted to be, we would go on. That brought us to Intercourse, PA. And no that is not a typo and no I do not know the story. Maybe some one can Google it and tell me. We then discovered the alternate route, not over the mountain that took us out the next day to witness the heart of Amish country. It was fascinating and since this had been Paul's primary goal for the trip, quite a welcome experience.

Since my last post we rolled through countryside I had seen before, but enjoyed no less the second time around. We rode past the Shawangunk and Kittatinny Mountains and along the Delaware River. We passed through Middletown, Mount Hope, Cuddebackville, Godeffroy, Huguenot, and Port Jervis. We awared the grumpy waitress prize in Delaware Water Gap, and then rode further on down to Riverton, PA, where the motel was booked and thus went on to the other side of the river to Belvidere, NJ. There we found the Belvidere Hotel quite accomodating. It has been recently restored by one Sidney Deutsch, who shares Kelli's maiden name, and, I believe, her grandfather's first name. I am not sure that sweaty bikers are the clientele that Mr. Deutsch is seeking but he is on the Adventure Cycling list of accomodations so I think he will continue to see this crowd roll up to his front porch.
The day we left Belvidere started with a gentle sprinkle that some expert said was to become less through the day. Wrong again. It turned in to a tough day with cold wind and increasing rain. We only did less than 40 miles and got to Frenchtown, NJ where we stayed in the Widow McCrea's B&B, except we were on the cheap so we did not get the &B. The next day was beautiful and we rolled through the NJ side of the Delaware and along the Delaware and Raritan canal to Lambertville, where I had some back pain misadventures in 2005. We got out of there unscathed and crossed to New Hope, PA and Buck's county and some the the most beautiful riding of the trip. And on through Norristown, which got very bad reviews in 2005, and along the Schuylkill River trail to Phoenixville, for the first time.
So there we are. I will be at Steve and Kit's and will relate the trip through Philadelphia to Wilmington at an early date.
Nap time now.