T2 Day 52 (Maura)

 Schenectady, NY to Lee, MA

In Schenectady, we woke up at Eric’s (our amazing warm shower host) beautiful old home. It was basically a mansion from the 1700s that has been since converted into apartment units. From the front it looks like a tall brick town house, but from the back windows it overlooks the original yard, ivy-covered shed, large stone walls, patio garden, and greenhouse. The 6th mayor of New York apparently lived here! You can feel the rich history not only in this house but in the town as a whole. We had homemade yogurt parfaits by the kitchen balcony before we set off to a nearby coffee shop that Eric recommended called Arthur’s market. It was so cute! We got some great coffee and sandwiches to go. I also bought a tote bag that has prints of different shapes of pasta on it so that’s gonna be a wardrobe staple for sure when I get back. Eventually we hit the road for real and headed on towards Lee, Mass. Unfortunately we had been low key dreading this day because it was going to be brutally HILLY. As in over 3,000 feet of elevation, with steep grades, right into the Berkshires. But we had good weather and were running on adrenaline to get home, so there’s nothing we could do but just keep pushing forward. Also, this day was especially exciting because Claire’s dad, Dan, and his friend Tim were going to meet us at the New York/Mass border and ride to camp with us! Claire’s mom, Elaine, was then going to meet us all at camp for dinner. Claire and I were excited to see her parents, of course, but I think we were all extra thankful to see them this day because the past week had been very challenging for all of us and they felt like a little bit of home. We rode mostly on the Erie Canal trail until the Mass border and didn’t stop much, just pushing up and flying down those steep, steep hills. 60-something miles later we stop at a gas station to meet up with Dan and Tim!!!! It was so cool to see Dan. After practically 2 whole months, a familiar face. Also we have been so thankful to Dan this whole trip because he has been our on-call bike mechanic! No matter the time or place, he’d answer the phone within one ring and know exactly how to fix whatever’s going on with our bikes. So that’s saved our butts a few times. Smiling and chatting, we rode the last 13ish miles to camp. Although this was not the easiest setting to catch up in due to the cruelly steep elevation gain through Tanglewood, Lenox, and Lee, we soon got to camp (October Mountain State Park), met Elaine, and were able to enjoy a nice dinner together courtesy of the Surkis’s. We also were reunited with Olivia and Rogan after we had to split up for a short amount of time due to bike issues, so that was exciting! We said goodbye to the Surkis’s and set up camp as fast as possible in an effort to avoid the brutal mosquitoes attacking us from every angle. But that didn’t even matter because we were all so excited to get home. Tomorrow we were headed to Farmington!!!! Such a bittersweet feeling. I didn’t even know how to process it. Laying in my tent at the end of the day, all I could feel was really really proud of us for pushing through the difficult day. I thought back to the first few days of the trip, how even a small hill would leave me breathless. We have grown so strong, mentally and physically. I’m so incredibly proud of myself and this group for what we’ve accomplished this summer. I’ve learned a lot about myself, my friends, how to handle obstacles, and how to work together. We were at each other’s sides on our worst days and our best days, always showing up as a team and moving forward together - whatever that entailed. This has definitely been the most challenging and exhilarating endeavor I’ve ever taken on, and I am so glad I got to do it with my friends. This trip will really be a bond and a memory for life.