by Pamela
Blalock with photos by Steve Frechette
Ludlow
 The
rain had eased back into a mist by the time we reached the hostel
in Ludlow which served as the next checkpoint. This reprieve
was short lived, and by the time we were ready to leave, a steady
hard rain was falling again. I changed into tights, lightweight
long sleeve top and a light jacket, and we headed out. The route
climbs gently for a few miles to the base of Killington, where
we then began the steady climb up to Sherburne Pass. We were
rewarded for this climb with a fast curvy descent down into
Rochester, and then a flat to gently rolling trip through a
valley before the turn up the infamous Middlebury Gap. It was
along this section that we caught Jean, Kenny and Bruce, who
took full advantage of drafting a tandem into the wind. Somewhere
along this section, the rain stopped and patches of blue sky
could be seen amongst the clouds. We tried not to get our hopes
up that the rain had truly subsided, but it looked promising.
We took a quick break at the Hancock Inn, a hotel, restaurant,
and country store, with delicious pancake breakfasts, assorted
pastries, and all sorts of other delicacies that we had no time
to enjoy on this visit. We did take the time to change clothes
in preparation for the climb ahead. Some say the climb up Middlebury
isn't that tough, that it's the 200+ miles in one's legs that
make it seem difficult, but I've done it with fresh legs and
it's hard then too. Mercifully it is the easiest of the 4 gaps
that cross this range. From the inn, it's about 7 miles to the
top, with the first 3 or so deceptively gradual, the next 2
steeper and the final 2 painful. We had hoped to get over the
climb before dark, so we could enjoy the descent in daylight,
but alas we did not make it and we reached the top as darkness
fell, when we flipped our headlights on. Reaching the summit
in the dark was a blessing in disguise. The descent was spectacular.
The clouds completely broke up, and our way down was illuminated
by a full moon so bright that I kept thinking were we being
followed by a car. It was so bright I could practically read
the cue sheet and computer by it. It was exactly the type of
night time conditions I love. It was warm enough for me to wear
only shorts and jersey, and absolutely crystal clear.
Middlebury
 We
took a long break at the checkpoint in Middlebury, enjoying
a bit of dinner and conversation there, before pressing onto
our evenings destination in South Burlington. We headed back
out for what was supposed to be a 30 mile ride to our hotel.
The sky was still clear and that moon was bright and beautiful.
The section of road between Middlebury and Burlington is a very
difficult part of the route. The route is often referred to
as flat after Middlebury, but that's the farthest thing from
the truth. (It flattens out after Burlington ! ) This
30 mile section is full of short wicked steep climbs, which
can really be discouraging if one is expecting flat land. At
least we knew better. We caught up to Mike on these hills and
stayed together all the way to our motel. Mike was planning
to push onto the Canadian border before sleeping. Talking certainly
helped pass the miles, but unfortunately the mile marker I was
seeking came and went with no signs of civilization or motels
in site. We eventually reached the Susse Chalet, 5 miles beyond
the indicated distance on our motel list, and checked in for
the night.
After a shower, 5 hours of sleep, a healthy serving of muffins,
pastries, juice and coffee from the lobby, we were on the road
again. We left a few supplies at the motel, since we planned
to return there for our next night's sleep. We saw a few riders
here and there, but many more had passed us early in the morning
while we enjoyed our sleep. These riders encountered a great
deal of fog on the way to Burlington in the early morning, where
we had enjoyed such beautiful clear moonlit scenery the night
before.
Rouses Point
 Once
through the traffic around Burlington, we again began to enjoy
nice scenery as we crossed over to the island on Lake Champlain.
The terrain here is rolling, and can be quite fun on a tandem.
We rolled along happily until shortly before reaching the checkpoint
in Rouses Point, NY, when John experienced a sharp pain in his
left thigh. We took a break for him to stretch, but the pain
persisted. We took it easy for the final 5 miles into the checkpoint,
and John headed directly to the massage table when we got in,
while I took care of restocking supplies for the next leg of
our journey.
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