Day 33 - Leaving the Lakes - next up: Mountains

Stops & starts the past couple days with rain, bike repairs, and a great Palmyra visit; we have seen beautiful New York farming & lake shore country.  We spent exactly one week following Lake Erie & Lake Ontario through 3 states & 2 countries.  I like the lighthouses, beaches, orchards, barns, vineyards, boats, park like lawns, hardwood forests, big cities & small towns along the lakes.  Thoughts for the day:

1. We have just completed one of the longest basically FLAT bike rides you can do in the country (as far as I know).  From the bridge over the Mississippi at Ft Madison, IA to the eastern shore of Lake Ontario near Pulaski we have cycled nearly 1,000 flat (relatively) miles.  I am getting psyched for mountains again as we enter the Adirondacks & Green Mountains the next couple days.
2. Seeing where history happened helps aid understanding.  The only thing I had remembered about the War of 1812 is the Star Spangled Banner history at Ft McHenry.  Reading the roadside history along Lakes Erie, Ontario & the Niagara River has helped me realize this area was a key war theater, and Canada/Britain were able to repel American invasion attempts.

 Lake Ontario

 Oswego River entering Lake Ontario

Hint of what's coming