50 States, Day 129

50 States Day 129, Mt. Pleasant, PA to Gowanda, NY   238 Miles

"If you don't build your dream, someone will hire you to help build theirs."

~Tony Gaskins

The theme for today was, "Should we put on the rain gear or not?" Perhaps we've gotten good at peering at the sky and predicting the future weather, because twice we decided to don the suits, and both times paid off. The weather proved to be schizophrenic today.

We headed north, determined to reach New York, state 20, before nightfall.

Running up Highway 62, we again rode the roller coaster between forests, and

occasionally skirted placid rivers. Small towns with deep histories interrupted the flow, with houses, big and small, in good repair. A few little vacation zones featured tiny boxes with little upkeep.

Because we had-seriously-a fine continental breakfast at the Holiday Inn (did you know they have pancake makers that poop out two flapjacks in a minute? Just push the button.) we stopped for 'lunner' around two-thirty at Bob Evans, a chain similar to Denny's in the east. This one provided great service, good food and prices. Imagine a cup of chili, banana bread, steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, with a dessert of hot fudge sundae for less than ten bucks. And QG enjoyed a hamburger (boring!) that she claimed was the best she'd eaten in...quite awhile. Thanks, Bob! Er, Cassie.

The skies looked dire, but we believed we would outrun the dark clouds, so we launched without rain gear. After twenty miles or so it seemed a good time to gear up again. 

We put on the gear and the rain progressed from a few drips to a light drizzle to rain to heavy rain. With less than thirty miles to Buffalo, QG said, "Let's stop at the next motel." So we found the Bates Motel. Okay, it wasn't so bad, and wonderfully dry. We checked in and the walk from the office to the room, with helmets on, was the wettest of the day. There were no puddles in the parking lot-it was one big puddle! And the rain ran down our backs as it hammered the area, splattering off the ground eight inches upward. We got inside and left everything in the bike.

Have you ever sat in a motel room with nothing? Weird. After forty-five minutes or so it relented and we got our junk into the room.

With summer over (very apparently!) you may want one last shot of hot weather. So today, I present '50 Stories in 50 States; Iowa.' See the previous blog.

Enjoy.