Day Eleven

I've been less than thrilled with the New York State Campgrounds. This is the worst one so far, and the most expensive. I’m at Evangola Campground in Irving, NY. On the plus side, their store was actually open and the last of my gin tastes really good with this Ohana Raspberry Lemonade, Doritos and tuna sandwich with my FREE excellent loaf of Three Cheese bread from Panera. I’m in heaven with that! Thank you Panera!!!!

Today was a good day, don’t get me wrong. I started out at 8:30, with some oatmeal. I had to choke it down a bit because I don’t get too excited about oatmeal. But I know it’s good fuel for me when I’m biking.

I rode up the road a bit and almost went by a terrific find. It was called Fast Teddy’s and their sign said “Cold Coffee and Lousy Food”. I couldn’t resist. I struck up a conversation with the gentleman next to me (whose name I did not get) and he was SO nice. And funny! He had me in hysterics by the end of my meal, which he insisted on paying for, after I told him about my ride. I gave him my card, so I hope to hear from him. He’s a food supplier, and I told him about my catering business. He said he’d send me some samples of his soup mixes. I chatted with a nice man in the parking lot too as he was leaving in his truck. He was fascinated by my ride. I’m so glad I stopped there. Seriously, don’t pass up places that don’t look like much on the outside. They’re usually the best places to eat with the nicest bunch of people you ever met. My eggs, toast and homefries were quite good.

I headed down Route 265 towards Buffalo. Some of the neighborhoods were not the best, as my friend in the pickup had mentioned, but everyone smiled back when I smiled and waved back when I waved. Buffalo was a little confusing, and I had some trouble getting through it, but a nice man in the parking garage booth pointed me in the right direction. Once I got out of Buffalo, I stopped for lunch at, again, a place that didn’t look like much from the outside, but was AWESOME. It was called “Gordy’s Inn Too” and if you’re ever in West Seneca, I highly recommend it. It was a very hot afternoon, so it was so nice to sit in air conditioned comfort, in a nice, clean bar. They had an excellent liquor selection, but of course I was still riding, so I had a cranberry juice and ginger ale. The cook wasn’t there yet, but I was in no rush. I chatted with Dan (the owner) and Kat (the bartender). Hope I got her name right; I’m terrible with names. They were so interested in my story, they almost got on the phone with Channel 2 and told them to come over. They said they would mention me on their Facebook page and gave me my lunch (a yummy veggie quesadilla) as a donation for my ride. The place was really nice with a brand new pool table, internet juke box, large room in the back for parties, and it was definitely the kind of place where I would have liked to hang out for a while.

I headed west with a smile on my face. Orchard Park was a lovely town. It reminded me of Bar Harbor with lots of little interesting shops that were obviously doing well and nice, funky looking restaurants. Very clean and everyone seemed happy to be there. I rode on and got my first glimpse of Lake Erie (shown above). Just incredible (I’m looking at it now too). I’m just speechless when I see these lakes. Riding down the Old Lakeshore Road, I realized many of the houses are in that “Unique Properties” magazine on the coffeetable at work. We’re talking CASTLES. Vastly enormous homes of stone and marble that just go on forever. There’s a lot of money along the shores of Lake Erie!

I kept on riding and eventually made it to Pointe Breeze. The areas before it didn’t really thrill me. Lots of teenagers and very touristy. I was looking for a campground that was not a state campground, but obviously didn’t have any luck.

Well, I enjoyed my dinner and my drink. Think I’ll go to bed. I’m hoping to make it to Pennsylvania tomorrow. I’m ready to move on from New York. The people in this campground are not all that friendly. The girl at the desk told me thunderstorms are predicted tonight. I’ll get everything shut up tight and curl up with my Four Agreements. Chuck’s been trying to call me from his gig, but the cell phones aren’t cooperating. I love you Chuck, wherever you are, and I hope you’re having a good night. You’re a joy in my life, and I can’t wait to see you again. Hugs and kisses.