Day 49: Little Falls to Latham NY

We are in Revolutionary War territory.

Today's ride followed the Mohawk river though a valley in the Adirondacks east into Latham, a suburb of Albany.

The valley has been a hot spot in history as a major route between the Hudson River in Albany and the Great Lakes. Conflicts with the British in the Revolutionary war and the French Indian War and with the Mohawks and other tribes of the Iroquois Federation.

One random thing I learned I want to research more is that the Tuscarora Indians, who were originally in North Carolina near where I grew up and where my family was along the Pamlico river in North Carolina, have a reservation in New York and were active in the conflicts. There was a war with the Tuscaroras in the early 1700s and the colonists - included my family - fled to Garrison point to defend themselves which is about one half mile from the family homestead on the river. The colony government sent troops in to defeat the Tuscaroras. They must have moved north to this area of New York after that and joined the Iroquois federation. That must be a fascinating story.

There were signs lining the road pointing out where there were Inns, pubs, river crossings and homesteads of noteworthy folks. This area was hopping and a source of contention.

We passed a fortified farmhouse called Fort Klock that was not open that early but was the site of a revolutionary war battle. It was built of stone up to the second story and had rifle slots at it's base. It was built this way to defend against the tribes in the area who were opposing westward expansion.

We passed a shrine to an Indian woman who was elevated to sainthood which was pretty interesting and set near the site of a major Mohawk village that was excavated in the 1940s.

We passed Fort Johnson which was a large home owned by a Johnson who was a Torey during the Revolutionary war and had to flee to Canada after the British lost.

It was also fascinating to follow the Erie Canal and its expansions.

We followed a bike path alongside the River and saw the locks at work as well as the dry locks from the original canal. The original hand dug canal was ultimately replaced by using existing waterways like the Mohawk instead.

It all made me more interested to learn more about the history of this area. And maybe come back for a couple of weeks to ride through the northeast and Eastern Canada ...

We were in a gentle part of the Adirondacks and they rose on either side of the valley in mottled greens and gentle rolling slopes. Wildflowers were everywhere. It was a beautiful day.

But best today was meeting up with my friend Zoe who was a roommate in Washington, DC and her husband Dale and unbelievably cute son Owen. They met me beside the bike trail with a picnic. Hans joined us for a tasty lunch complete with homemade oatmeal muffins that Owen helped make and cheese brought back from Ireland.

Then I walked back with Zoe for a tour of her neighborhood and house. She's in Schenectady which was a Dutch outpost in the late 1600s. The first settlement was attacked and massacred - their house was built in the stockade of the rebuilt community in the early 1700s. It's very cool - huge old board floors in the old part of the house that tilt and slant with age, a rock basement wall - no mortar, beautiful woodwork. And very homey and livable despite being a home that's nearly 300 years old.

I biked on in to Latham and cleaned up and they came and picked me up for dinner. Which (besides the good company and tasty meal at a pub overlooking the Hudson River) spared me from a meal at the Old Country Buffet (a place with tables you can extend out so obese folks can fit). Fast food gets blamed for the obesity epidemic but I think these buffet feed houses have a big share of the responsibility.

We went to some beautiful falls in an old mill town outside albany at sunset after dinner ... Lovely. Lots of water from all the rain. The town had old factories that were abandoned - some converted into condos and apartments. And run down mill worker housing that had seen better days. They were not recovering easily from the outsourcing that killed their economy.

A great day.

Tomorrow I go to Vermont for the first time ever for a healthy climbing day. Looking forward to it.