T-mobile – Dennis' Cross-Country Bike Trip

Today’s goal was to cross over the border, back into the USA and then visit my cousin Bill in Amherst, NY. The ride was uneventful.

I did run into Ken Smith again. He is the fellow that is doing a coast-to-coast bike ride as a fund raiser for his grandson, who has serious medical issues. Ken is full of life and excited about his ride, even after all these miles. I took a short video of him as we approached the Peace Bridge, which is where one crosses to the US in Fort Eire. I’ll send him the video, maybe he will post it. A local fellow, Chris, guided through the area. We had our own personal GPS.

Ken Smith, riding coast-to-coast to help out his grandson.

Normally, bicyclists are required to walk their bikes across the Peace Bridge. The bridge is about 2/3 of a mile (1 km). I had heard from Ken that they are providing a shuttle for bikes because they are doing construction on the bridge. He was correct.

I rode around for almost an hour before I finally found where the shuttle pick-up was. It wasn’t obvious. My GPS started to work and it too was confused…”turn left, turn right, turn ?” I gave up on it. I finally found a border worker and he told me to stay put and the shuttle would come and get me where I was.

True to his word, in just a few minutes the shuttle did arrive. The fellow was all set to put the bike on a bike rack on the back of the van but realized that it was WAY too heavy for that, so we put it in the back of the van. He drove me across and now we had to go through the US border crossing. The van driver was holding my passport and I was sitting in a back seat. There is a cage between the driver and passengers. The border guard and the driver talked about me for quite a time. Finally, the guard left the booth, walked around the van and opened the van door to have a look at me. He stared for a few seconds, shook his head and closed the door. After a long day’s ride I must have presented quite a sight. I could see he was thinking, “Wow, they’ll let anybody into this country, wait ’til I tell Trump.”

In any case, I was dropped off at a park in the US. I still had about 16 miles (25 km) to go. My GPS was working! I did Fred Astaire dance moves for the next two hours navigating from Buffalo, NY to East Amherst. Some of the roads were crowded with traffic, but everyone behaved themselves. About half-way to my destination I started getting a GPS voice telling me, “GPS signal lost.” Thanks T-Mobile. When it was lost I would just use my pigeon senses and head in the correct direction. Eventually, the signal would return and would confirm I was still going in the correct direction.

When I was within a few blocks of Bill’s place, I called him to warn him. He was out in his truck but headed back to meet me. It was fantastic to see him again. We have a very storied past and maybe someday I’ll convince Bill he should write his memoirs, it would be quite a read. Bill was in the submarine service in the Navy and had some exciting experiences there. Get started Bill, the world awaits.

Bill and I trying to outdo each other with our lies and stories.

A day of “rest” was planned for day two. We volunteered to go help Bill’s son, Adam, to go help move some crushed stone. We managed to procrastinate long enough that by the time we arrived, he only need two more wheelbarrows loaded, out of maybe 30-40? Good timing on our part.

We then loaded up Bill’s truck with some firewood for his lake cottage and went up there to deliver the wood. It was another fine opportunity to lie to each other for a few hours. It was great fun and I was thrilled to see Bill and some of his youngsters again. Too bad we live so far apart, then again, maybe that is a good thing, we’d probably drive each other nuts.

I owe a lot to my cousin. He was there for me when I needed help many years ago and I can never repay that. He played a big part in helping us build our first home, a log cabin in the woods.

There are all sorts of fascinating farm machines here. My grandkids would love to play with this.

41.36 Miles for the day. Tonight would be my first night to camp in my tent. I arose early enough, but before I knew it, the morning was wasting away. Such is the pleasure of having an air-conditioned room and relaxing seating and beds. At long last, I dragged myself from the creature comforts of the modern world and went out into the sunlight.

It actually was sunny. Lately, at least most mornings, it has been overcast, dreary and chilly. As usual, with poor Internet service, thanks to T-Mobile, my GPS was hopeless. At some point, as someone suggested in the comments, I need to look at changing that.

After making several wrong turns, I finally was underway. Usually, I avoid a large, “Lumberjack,” breakfast. Three eggs, bacon, ham, home fries, four slices of toast, tea, orange juice, etc. make one too full to actually go out and do work, and riding is work.

Approaching noontime I was getting anxious to find a place to stop for lunch. I was also curious about my surroundings. As I was riding the Harger Line Trail (bike/pedestrian trail), I stopped to chat with a rider going the other way. Gordie was a wealth of information. My first question was about a root plant that I saw them harvesting a few miles back. See photo below:

Next, I asked him why so much corn had not been harvested, the cobs were drying up on the stalks. I love corn, I would never let it get to that state! Gordie told me that the corn was “industrial corn.” I thought about that and concluded that it could be used for ethanol product, or perhaps for clothing fiber. Curious about my travels, he then asked me a few questions about my ride. It was a nice encounter, but I was hungry and wanted to move on. Sorry, Gordie.

I’ve learned that a bowl of raisin bran or Cheerios, some fruit and an orange juice and a cup of tea is plenty. However, this means that by noon, I’m getting hungry. At about 25 miles (42 km) I came into Frankenmuth, Michigan. I had never heard of the place but it is very European themed, especially Germany and Austria. The first establishment I encountered was The Old Christmas Station Restaurant (Currently, as of 2021, The Station 100 Restaurant). The menu was pricey, but I didn’t want to eat too much anyway, so I ordered a house salad and a curry chicken sandwich from the appetizer menu.

The salad was ample and excellent. It had all sorts of vegetables in it and a nice dressing. The sandwich was actually about as long as a sub sandwich, but open-faced and covered in chicken and curry sauce. It too was excellent and a very sufficient lunch, and not too pricey. The place was really ritzy and I thought perhaps they would throw me out on my ear, but they were very gracious and welcoming and I went away a very happy diner.

I learned later that the town was having a special event weekend, starting the next day, and it draws on the order of 80,000 people and has all sorts of parades and celebrations. It would be worth checking on if you’re in the region in early September. I don’t know where they would put all the people, the village isn’t that large.

Satisfied with lunch, I headed east. As the afternoon dragged on I had to decide on where to stay for the evening. The GPS (while I was in the restaurant and had WiFi) showed there was one motel in Vassar, MI. After Vassar, there wasn’t much for at least 30-40 miles. It would be a gamble to try and make it to 70 miles (110 km) for the day and beat sunset, so I opted for Vassar. I found the Vassar Inn Motel, which was about a mile from the bicycle route.

I was tempted to call ahead for a room, but I didn’t have any T-Mobile phone service, so I just had to chance it. When I arrived the woman that manages the place told me they were full. She offered that I could camp behind the motel and I jumped at the offer, there wasn’t much else I could do.

When I rode around back she came out the door with a nice big glass of ice water…I must have looked the part. Sue was a wonderful host and warned me that I couldn’t pay for camping there, it was her gift.

I set up the tent and threw in the sleeping bag and rode off to find something to eat. It was a choice between a Subway shop and a McDonalds. I’m not a big fan of McDonalds, but they have fantastic WiFi and, if it is only once in a while, it won’t kill me. The manager of this McDonalds talked to me after I had my meal and I was complimenting him on having installed electrical outlets at a bunch of the customer seats so one could charge a phone. He proudly said it was his idea and it worked great for me. I do carry backup charging gear, but McDonalds made it so convenient that I was beholding to them. It really did make my life easier. Not only that, I had an excellent connection to call home.

A number of years ago NPR did a series on McDonalds and how they were trying to improve their image with the public in respect to animal care. They hired Temple Grandin, a Ph.D. in animal behavior and worked with her to improve the lot of the animals involved in their products, such as chickens, pigs, and cattle. The series changed my view of McDonalds to where I will stop in once in a while. It had been at least 25 years since I had been in one of their stores. There was a movie about Temple Grandin and it is worth a watch if you haven’t seen it.

My campsite at Vassar, MI. I put a wire into the tree at the far right for my antenna.

I returned to the motel and finished unpacking the bike. I took a short nap and shortly after sunset I threw a wire into a tree and set up my ham radio station on two folding chairs. Just as I was ready to settle down for some radio fun, the skies opened up and it started to pour. The stars were out only a few minutes earlier.

I hurriedly dragged everything into the tent and set everything up again. I managed to operate for a while and then my legs were getting cramps, so I shut down for the night.

It poured all night long, intensely at times. I awoke about 7 am and it was still pouring, so I turned on the radio and, using Morse code, connected with Henry, K1PUG, in Harwinton, Connecticut. He lives near the high school that I graduated from back in 1965, Lewis S. Mills. People are often surprised to hear that I actually talk with Morse code these days. In the world of amateur radio, it is still a very popular way to communicate. It is my favorite, even with all the newer digital modes that have come along over the years. It is always a good skill to have.

Anyway, we’re into the next day here and I’ll close this out for now. The rain has finally stopped and I will be on the road again by 10 am or so.

Category: T-mobile

Day 21, 22 – Part 2, East Amherst, NY

Day 13 – Part 2, Vassar Michigan