Unbridled Tourism

As many of you already know, we reached Niagara Falls today. Hundreds of tourists, and tourist trinkets everywhere, but the town gets props for not being too tacky. We only had to wait about half an hour to catch a ride on the "Maid of the Mist." Everyone lined up and went through a shed, then emerged on the other side wrapped in a disposable blue plastic poncho. Across the river, Canadian tourists were wrapped in red for their voyage into the mists of Horseshoe and American Falls.

Here, you can just see the minions boarding the Maid of the Mist. We would soon join them for a spectacular view of the falls. If you ever visit, the Maid of the Mist is an absolute must-do.

On the way to Niagara Falls, we ventured through Buffalo after a hearty breakfast send-off from Hamburg. Did you know that there are wild Capuchin monkeys in the trees of Hamburg?

On closer examination, I believe that is Jonathan warming up for the morning ride by climbing to the top of a tree. Incredible!

The ride was not without adventure. At one point, the bike trail we were fo)owing turned into a costruction zone, and we had to portage our bikes over cocrete barriers, across train tracks and up a steep embankment, then hoik them over a high fence in order to follow our preferred route. At another point, we had to ride across one long and narrow bridge, and walk across another in order to reach our destination. A lot of adventure for a short day in the saddle!

Tomorrow  we continue our way across upper New York, heading for the Finger Lakes area. It will be my first visit to that part of NY and I'm looking  forward to it.