Crisis!
My camera is missing!
I have torn the hotel room upside down
and no camera!
How can I bike
without
a
camera?
Well, luckily I have a spare.
When I bought the G11 for this trip, I kept my old G9 and brought it with me.
But my G11 has all my photos I've taken since Astoria!
And I haven't downloaded all of them yet.
I must have left it at dinner last night - and the steak house won't open
till 11.
Must go.
Worry about it later.
Flummoxed,
I hit the road, G9 around my neck.
It's hard to get started on today's photos.
The sky dull gray, featureless.
The camera feels odd.
The small towns
look foreign
through
a
different
viewfinder.
Even the garden decor
takes on
a sinister look
in my altered
state
of
mind.
Tell me...
Don't you think
this is
a little bit
creepy?
OK.
Barns.
What could be
more normal
than a barn
with a bright blue
steel
roof?
I'm calming down...
...getting into the groove.
Talk to farmer John...
He's bringing in his squash from the roadside stand.
-We have rain coming, he warns.
Better get to the SAG...
Turn right at the castle...
Get to the SAG wagon
just as
the heavens
let
loose!
I duck
under a nearby awning
and wait
for the deluge
to
slow
down.
By the time the rain
begins to let up,
we have a deluge
of cyclists
at the SAG.
Come on, Rod.
Let's get going.
As soon as we get started,
the rain starts
to come down
in
buckets
again.
The next time I see Rod
he has stopped to help
New Jersey Mark
with a flat tire.
Is Rod a great guy or what?
Smallest church in the world?
Barely big enough for a door.
I was going to skip this photo-op,
but when
I saw Todd
stopping
for this picture
I decided
it was worth
the
soaking.
Another 10 miles
of cold drizzle
down
our
backs....
Finally we find a gas station
where we can stop
to wring out
our
frazzled
hair.
Bikers love adversity, yes?
Margo looks
like she's having
a great time.
And Dan always has a smile on his face.
My route sheet is falling apart.
Even my diet coke got wet!
The next SAG is only 12 miles away.
By the time I get there the rain is letting up.
And I find my Alex.
She, too, had a flat in the pouring rain.
Changed it herself.
What a girl!
I leave quickly from the SAG.
I try to keep ahead of the group.
But when I stop to take my last picture of the Erie Canal...
...Al and Canada Jeff whoosh by me.
The rain turns to sun.
I'm in a hurry now
to get to Little Falls -
check on my
lost
camera.
This is no time for a flat.
Little Falls looks scenic...
Interesting signs distract my eye...
But I'm on a mission.
I make a quick phone call....
Yes! The steak house back in Liverpool has my camera!
I grab a taxi -
I won't tell you what it cost
- and book it
back to Liverpool
to rescue my wayward pixilator.
Pete, my taxi driver, says he can't use the a/c - he's allergic.
So I pay an arm and a leg for a two hour drive to retrieve my camera in a sweltering hot van.
Am I dedicated?
Or just crazy?
But I'm thrilled to get my camera back.
And we only have 4 more days to bike.
I'm beginning
to think
I
will
make it!
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