I decided that I would take a bit later start today so that I could attend 8:15 mass before leaving. Father asked me to assist at mass. He made me feel so at home that I could not say no.
This is Paula. She works at the parish and was so helpful to me and gave me a lot of the background about the shrine.
This is Father Ed. I so enjoyed my time with him. He is a wonderful and devoted pastor. I wish I lived closer – I would enjoy spending more time with him.
One last picture before leaving St. Mary’s. Let me introduce this year’s ride mascot: Ms. Bug. My daughter has a knack for crocheting wonderful little critters. Ms. Bug has been with me the whole trip and reminds me of home.
I finally got on the road, or more accurately the trail, about 9:15. I looked back and could still see St. Mary’s as I rode away to the north. I’m sure I’ll be back.
The weather today was nearly perfect. Temperatures were in the mid 60s and lower 70s through my whole day. Skies were blue and clouds were puffy. But unfortunately, I dealt with strong headwinds the entire day.
I saw several deer today. This one was so tame that she just watched me a bit and ate. She did not scare off until I put my phone back away.
From Massillon all the way to the south side of Cleveland I will be riding on the Ohio and Erie Canal path. This path is mostly crushed limestone, with a few paved sections. It iss quite a bit slower to ride on than the pavement of the last few days.
The canal path varies in scenery a bit, but most of my day looked like this:
I arrived in Canal Fulton and went in to town to look around.
This is Mike. As I was passing through one of the trailhead parking lots, he called over to ask me about where I was from and heading to. We talked for a few minutes before I went on.
Mike warned me that there was some construction on the path north of here. He was right. About 2 miles up, the trail was blocked. No detour posted. It looked like work was stopped for lunch, so I went under the caution tape and walked my bike. A worker emerged from his equipment and told me “Path Closed!” I asked if there was a detour. He said no. “Path Closed means Path Closed!” I asked nicely if he could recommend an alternate route and he just sternly said “no”. I decided to continue walking. The construction was less than 100 yards long and then I continued on my way. I usually try to follow the rules but I sized up the situation and did not see any good alternatives.
The canal path passes through some very beautiful wetlands as it makes its way north.
I really needed food and decided that I would look for a good meal when I reached Akron.
Akron was an absolute complete and total mess on Main Street. They have the entire length of Main Street torn up for construction. I was able to navigate the sidewalks for a while then had to find my own way.
I spotted this deli and decided it was worth a look. This picture was after lunch. Before lunch, the line was out the door. I decided that was a good sign! I really enjoy corned beef sandwiches, and theirs was definitely yummy.
Navigating my way out of Akron was tricky but not terrible. The main OTET route was messed up by the construction. I mostly navigated by feel and eventually found my way out of town.
On the north side of Akron, there is a lengthy detour that has been in place for years. It goes around some sort of major construction project. It has some climbing, surface streets, and then descent back down. The climbs are a little steep, but not too bad.
A few miles later the canal enters into the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
This wetlands section is really neat. It is a huge area that was created when beavers dammed up a local waterway which then flooded this area. There is a long boardwalk that goes right down the middle of it to allow the canal path to continue through it.
As I moved on, I was treated to more beautiful scenery.
In the Cuyahoga park, the parks service has a few educational centers where you can learn about the canal, history, and ecology of the park.
I eventually arrived at my stopping point for the day about fifteen miles south of Cleveland. Tomorrow I will finish my bike trek by going to Edgewater Park at the Lake Erie beach in downtown. The canal path ends a few miles south of the lakefront, so I will be taking surface streets for the last few miles.
I decided to stop a few miles short of downtown Cleveland because I wanted to avoid the surface streets during Friday rush hour. So instead I will be leaving very early tomorrow to finish up early Saturday morning. Stephanie and Maura will then meet me at the park to pick me up and we’ll drive back to Lexington.
Overall, today was a great day. I am looking forward to being home and sleeping in my own bed tomorrow!
Peace!
St. Dymphna, pray for us.
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