Day 43 - N. Woodstock NH to Hiram ME

Hi from the driver :)  Can't believe we are a day away.  The past six weeks have been filled with chuckles, laughs, ah ha's, and some 'ok, now what' moments.  Motels that made us chuckle, the great restaurants we found (or the ones we did not find)  The nights we have spent around the computer remembering the events of the day for the blog.  We've traveled through wide open prarie land and tree lined country roads.  We've seen the bad lands and the wet lands.  It has been very fun.  I will miss getting up at 5:15 every morning (ha).
Tomorrow is our last day on the road.  My treat awaits me in Maine - a lobster dinner (hopefully near the water).
Patty on the road

Notes from Tom:  WOW!! Today was our next to the last day, and we have less than 40 miles to ride tomorrow--that's not even a respectable training ride.

Today was little a disjointed due to the bike problems from yesterday.  This morning Jerry went back and rode the 20 or so miles he missed yesterday.  I joined him in North Woodstock and together we rode another 59 miles.  We had our last big climb today--it was about 2300 feet of elevation gain in 14 miles--called Kancamagus Pass. There was a great scenic overlook just below the top of the pass.

The picture below shows our enthusiasum for completing the serious climbs--I just hope my shoulder doctor doesn't check the blog--he said I wasn't allowed to lift much weight. 

The climb was fun and it had a couple of places where the grade was around 9%, but I'll stand by my earlier comment about the mountains in CO.  After a long gentle downhill, we crossed into Maine--our 11th and LAST state.

With only one day left, it's interesting to think about the whole trip--we've been focused on each day with not much time to worry about yesterday or the next day.  As Patty said, lots of memories.  One thing that surprises me is that we never woke up on a riding day and wished we didn't have to ride.  I will admit that on the rest days I woke up and thought how nice it was not to ride, but the riding never got to be a chore.

As I mentioned yesterday, my bike has some random noises, and the freaking creaking seems like it will make it to Portland along with me.  I made one more attempt this morning, but the creak won and Tom didn't.

Notes from Jerry:  I was a little worried about today because I had to make up the last 21 miles from yesterday when my bike died, and that meant two climbs, plus what was on todays plate which was the big ride up the pass.  Well I learned quickly how to shift the rental bike which had the same dumb shifters that I had on a rental bike last summer in France.  I nearly crashed in a ditch last year, this year I only had to do one circle in the road while trying to get into the lowest chainring.  I must be improving. 

The ride I was dreading up the "Kanc" was actually fun - especially the downhill.  Afterwards I picked up my bike at the bike shop in North Conway and the mechanic had done a great job of modifying a replacement part to fit - only one problem, he couldn't put the three screws that hold it on the frame back in, so the axle bolt is holding the whole  thing together!  One more day - it will work.  Maybe I need to get my trusty duct tape into action.  Anyhow it held together just fine for the afternoon session.

We had tailwinds again for the next segment of the ride and after lunch we took advantage of the wind and added some more miles - 21 to be exact, which gave me 80 for the day.   Tomorrow should be short and sweet.  I can't believe it is almost over and that I was able to get around the broken bike problem.

I really like New Hampshire.  The mountains are very striking if not high, and are heavily forrested with pines and firs.  The town of Conway has a river with rafting, tubing, kayaking etc, plus a ski resort called Loon Mountain? We really lucked out with a little motel our bike shop owner recommended, not only because it is a great one, but because we were able to find a room.  This place is a real vacation destination and is hopping!