Day 34 Friday, June 11, 2010 Distance 81.35 km. Time 4 hrs. 52 min. Total so far 2397.74 km. Elevation climb 8659 ft. After two waffles each, we started off and passed Mendon. I stopped to take photos of a bunch of fan lawn decorations but it was so damp that my glasses fogged up and I could hardly see. Then we started climbing but we don't find that too bad early in the morning and the grade was manageable. To the cars it probably looks like we're not moving. We made it to the top of Pico Mountain at Killington and took a break and some photos at the sign and the ski chalet. Shortly after, we passed Skyeship. Then the descent-SWEET! and FAST! After that the rest of the day was cool. We cruised along pretty flat for awhile. Highway 4 followed along the Ottauquechee River here. We passed Bridgewater Center and went on to Woodstock. I did have trouble with my front gears the last two days. It would shift from small to big ring and skip the middle on the way up and on the way down the chain would stick to the middle ring and not go down which was dangerous as I then had to unclip my foot quickly because it was all stuck. This was disappointing because it shifted fine during the test drive. When Dave saw Start Bicycle store, he said we should have Silver looked at. I thought it should just be a minor adjustment but Andrew put more space between the front rings, raised the front derailleur and chiseled off some pieces that were making the chain catch. We had lunch, had a talk with Barb, 62, at the grocery store and then took a safer back road that they suggested. It was pretty but had three good hills. There was a nice covered bridge along it. Due to the bike store stop, we were on the road a little longer then normal and finally made it to White River Crossing where there was a hill with a grade worse than the mountain. We didn't go into town as it was way down in the valley from the road. We merged onto Hwy 5 and continued until we saw the Hub bike shop where we filled up with water. Later, we talked to Betsy, their female mechanic and she gave us lots of good information about local places. I also looked behind their building for camping possibilities. There was a canopy by a soccer field but it had flags all over for a game and there was also the Norwich Racquet Club gazebo by the four tennis courts. No one was there so we set up there because it was supposed to storm tonight. So from the dump two nights ago we now had a gazebo with tables and chairs and flowers, and a frog pond, and washrooms and showers in the bike shop mini mall that were open all night. Yes, the Lord is watching over us.
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