Thursday, August 22, Albany to Hyde Park, NY

August 22, Thursday

65.4 miles: Albany to Hyde Park                  

Sleep until 5:40!  Call Julie at Amtrak to find out about Cathy’s overnight progress.   Very heavy dew and pack up a soaking wet tent, but it is sunny, humid and warming quickly.   Call Cathy before I leave and ready to leave at 7:10.  Peter and Elly are ready to go too, so I ride with them.   Lovely quiet early ride southward along very deeply wooded and hilly roads.  First sag at 8:30 and then more hills.  

Around 9:50 outside of Hudson (mile 28) we stop at a Dunkin Donuts for coffee and the obligatory Boston Crème.   These are particularly good for fueling biker thighs.  Lots of riders are already here.    There are several more DD along the route – is this a great state or what?   Sag at 31 miles at a farm stand where the farmer has donated a bushel of peaches for the riders!   Excellent fruit.  We see loads of apple orchards, vineyards, blueberries, etc and farm stands selling all kinds of local fruits and vegetables.   We ride the hills until we get to Redhook (12:15, mile 48) where I go off route to have lunch with Bob and Angie Haan at their house.  Paul and his family is there too, as is Beth. 

Nice visit and back on the road at 1:30 for the last 17 miles.  Riding by myself into headwinds there is a little thundershower that I ride in for about 10 miles through Rhinebeck.  I stop in Hyde Park at the iconic Beekman Arms for a picture (the oldest operating Inn in America -- since 1766)

and at the Vanderbilt Estate for a view over the Hudson Valley. 

I make it to the camp at Hackett Hill park (a city park, not a campground) at 2:50 all dried out from the rain, but with a cramped right calf again – it tightened up after the lunch stop.  Pretty warm, sunny and humid – mid 80’s.  When you arrive in camp, it is a good idea to not arrive too early lest you gain the responsibility of helping to unload the gear truck.  Arriving after the truck is unloaded you find a scene such as this where you must find your gear to setting up you camp: 

Call Cathy on the train for a progress report, set up camp.

I smell that the kitchen crew is baking us fresh cinnamon rolls for the afternoon snack.  No wonder all of our cooks are already happily married. 

Cold lemonade and the rolls are just what I needed.  Very cold showers are also very helpful (and of course the only option).  Again there is no wifi but there is a picnic shelter to eat under.  Call Cathy, who should be arriving in Poughkeepsie around 5:40 and R&K will pick her up and come up to the camp around 6.  We go out for dinner at the Hyde Park Brewery and I have a very good lamb burger.  Back at camp at 9:30 with some lightning to the west.  I put my bike in my tent to keep it dry and it does rain a few times during the night.