Brattleboro, Vermont to Burlington, Massachusetts

Wow! Today really was hard!

Two really hard days in a row. Yesterday was really difficult, that due to the intense climbing and the associated humidity. Today was even more difficult. We did 91 miles today (96 miles, by my bike computer) and the elevations were even more challenging than they were yesterday.

Way back even before this trip actually began, I had looked carefully at the schedule and itinerary. I had noted that these last two days of the trip would probably be quite difficult. Based upon my understanding of the topography involved, I had expected that there would be very challenging elevations on both the Albany to Brattleboro and Brattleboro to Burlington days.

I see that I was correct.

Today we managed to cross two state lines, not just one! That is rather exciting.

We left Brattleboro this morning and continued east. In literally only 2.4 miles we were crossing the Connecticut River and entering into New Hampshire! That was neat for me. It is just a few months short of 40 years ago now that I first saw the Connecticut River, then when I was going to Hanover, New Hampshire, for the very first time. It was impressive to view that river again now, this time a bit further south than before. It is still an impressive waterway. Many memories are associated with the state of New Hampshire.

We were in New Hampshire for roughly 40 miles today, that almost all on route 119. This was a very difficult road on which to ride. The hills were shorter than those of yesterday, but far more steep. My legs were just about at their limit.

Soon after making it into Massachusetts, the hills continued but became far less impressive. That was merciful. We had a relatively non-strenuous ride into Burlington. Getting into the Burlington region however did pose problems with navigation. This is now again far more urban. The traffic is more challenging and the roads are quite confusing. Even following our detailed cue sheet as best possible, we became quite lost before finally getting into our destination.

Marsha arrived here now also. She was detained by bad weather and the airline's difficulties with that. Ulimately she did arrive. It was so great to see her. We had never been apart this long before. She has now met many of my companions of the past seven weeks. That means a lot to me. I am really glad that she is here.

It is difficult to put in words how well I feel now. I have effectively completed the task that I set out to do. I have ridden a bicycle across the entire United States, from Los Angeles to Boston. I was far from confident that I would be able to really do that, when I made the decision to try. Now I have difficulty believing that I have succeeded.

Tomorrow we have the last ride of the entire trip. Today's ride was the last real ride of the trip, as tomorrow's is just a short 18 mile ride to the beach only. Still, that will really be important. I already feel great, effectively now having completed this huge cross-country trip. Still, tomorrow's ride will be the final step. That needs to be accomplished.

I have a small vial of sand from the beach at the Pacific Ocean. I will take that with me on the bike tomorrow. It will be scattered at the Atlantic Ocean beach.