Adirondack Loop - Day 6

Port Henry to Warrensburg. 59 miles.

The penultimate day of my bike tour was truly something. It all started last night. Over the last few days, the East coast has been in the grip of a record heat wave. Upstate New York has been no exception. In anticipation of this tour, I've been watching the weather for this area of the country and was anticipating highs in the upper 70s during the day with low humidity and lows in the 50s at night.

Last night at 10:00 PM, I was laying on top of my sleeping bag in my tent and was soaking wet in sweat. I fell asleep drenched in sweat and when I awoke this morning, I was still damp. By the time I broke camp and climbed on my bike at 7:00 AM this morning, I was already sweating profusely.

Today's ride was long and hot. I reached Hague at mile 26 and was feeling pretty good. I stopped to top off my bottles with water and pedaled off for the last big climb of the day. It was a brute. For 5+ solid miles I pedaled at a pace of 4 mph. I reached the top spent, but encouraged that the remainder of the day was mostly downhill. After another 13 miles I reached the next town, Brant Lake. I was down to 1 bottle of water, so you can imagine my dismay when I couldn't find any services in the town to replenish my supply. I had at least 1-1/2 hours left to ride, with temps in the mid 90s and I only hade 20 oz of warm water. I rationed the water in small sips and savored it in my mouth for a few seconds before swallowing. By the time I reached Warrensburg, I was on the edge of a heat stroke.

Last night, I decided that I had enough of roughing it and made reservations in a small motel. It is a hole in the wall. They only have 12 rooms. However, the room is clean, it has AC, I have my own bathroom and a comfortable bed. Plus, I have 3G service for my IPAD and Blackberry. Who can ask for anything more?