Saturday, September 18, 2010

New photos and Garmin trip data now available!

Wedding photos have been added to the wedding album.

The Garmin data is now linked into the Trip Log. Click on any day in the trip log to see a map of our route as well as speed and elevation information. One very interesting feature of the Garmin website is Google Earth, which enables you to zoom in and see in more detail just where we have been!

Trip photos for 8/1 to 8/17 and 8/18 to 9/1 are now available.

Enjoy and thanks for encouraging us along the way!

Monday, September 6, 2010

Bishop Bike Adventure Post-Trip Thoughts

After 3,500 miles, 2 months, and travels into 14 states and Canada, we thought we would share some of our thoughts about our fabulous adventure. Check out the separate blog page entitled Post-Trip Thoughts.

We’ve also added two other new pages to the blog. One lists the gear that we took on our trip, which we thought may be of interest to some and helpful to others who may consider such a trip in the future. There is a new page for trip photos taken in the second half of July. We plan to add photos for August as we are able. Who knows, we might even publish a few more wedding photos as they become available!

Thanks for riding along on this extraordinary journey.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Bishop Bike Adventure Day 63 September 1, 2010

As our bike trip drew to a close today, it seemed appropriate that we were faced with weather in the 90‘s, unseasonably hot for Maine this time of year. We rode east across the Maine/New Hampshire border and diverted off the Adventure Cycling map to begin our bee-line to the ocean. We found ourselves on newly paved road for the first chunk of our day, a welcome sight for sore buns as the climbs of the past several days and many consecutive days of riding have taken their toll on our behinds.

We enjoyed a ride through forests interrupted by intermittent farmland and water. The views were lovely, albeit with the somewhat familiar look of home turf. Wild turkeys by the roadside scurried into the woods and fluttered to nearby branches as past them our gears clicked and wheels ticked. Some unexpectedly long hills helped transition us from the rural to the more suburban setting. With about 20 miles to go, the indexed shifting on Tim's bike lost its click. Despite a rear wheel out of true, the constant rubbing sound that seems to emanate from the crank, and brake pads pretty well toasted on both bikes, these bikes have worn well and will be up to their task of completing the journey today.

As the afternoon wore on toward rush hour and we approached the coastline, the traffic thickened on what we discovered to be shoulderless and somewhat beaten up roadways. We both felt that the heavy traffic on these narrow roads posed one of the more challenging sections in this respect on our whole trip, serving as one last reminder of how God has protected us all along our journey. We carefully worked our way through the congested areas onto the more aesthetic shoreline drive. A few miles later we arrived at our much anticipated destination, the Atlantic Ocean with well wishers Dick, Patti, Lauren, and Richard awaiting us. After pictures, warm conversation, and a satisfying meal, Richard transported us to Massachusetts. The adjacent photography helps capture the joy of the closing moments of our adventure. Special thanks to all of these individuals who are now uniquely sealed in the memory of our final day of an awesome experience.