Friday was scheduled to be a rest day, but our friends Paul and Lori Whitstock from DC were at their summer place just a short ride away, so we converted our rest day into a “rolling rest day” and I rode down to their place on Cayuga Lake.
Our route started out through Seneca Falls, where we had driven for dinner the night before. Seneca Falls is the home of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the 1848 Women’s Rights Convention. This is her restored home just across the river from downtown.
The town itself is beautiful, with Trinity Church on the shores of Van Cleef Lake looking for all the world like a castle on the shores of a European river or lake.
Many beautiful houses in Seneca Falls have been maintained in their 19th century grandeur.
I left Seneca Falls along a busy stretch of, you guessed it, US 20, but shortly turned south along the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake on a quieter road. The 20 or so miles down the lake gave me regular views of the lake and the agricultural land in the area, including vineyards, both recently established (the blue flags indicate new vines) and old.
About halfway down the lake, we passed through the village of Aurora, home of Wells College. Paul and Lori told us that Pleasant Rowland, the creator of the American Girl dolls collection, has used the proceeds of the sale of her business to Mattel to fund substantial restoration of historic buildings in Aurora, including at the college, and the tourism business seems to be thriving in the small village.
We reached a winery near Paul and Lori’s in time for lunch and tasting with them before relaxing at their lakeshore house in the afternoon.
Here are Friday’s barns.
Seneca Falls, NY. Yes, that is the tail of a model airplane sticking out the right side. The barn is the home of a model aircraft club.
Cayuga, NY
Aurora, NY
King Ferry, NY
The technical stuff:
Seneca Falls, NY to Aurora, NY
37.7 miles
1,500 feet of climbing.
Average speed 13.5 miles per hour
Weather: Bright sunshine. Mid 60s to start and high 80s at the end. Winds light and variable.
You can see the entire route to date here.