Dalton to Sussex —82 mi, 132 km
Today would be a difficult day. The map and gps graph showed that we had to climb more feet than we had ever done in this trip before. Yes, we climbed impressive passes in the western United States with 4000 feet climbing, but this would be different. Many short hills would add up to more feet of climbing than the Steven's pass in Washington State, for instance. It turned out that it was true. Nearly the whole day we went up and down hills. Some were shorter and others were longer. The result was that one moment I got to 70 km per hour speed (a record for me) and the other moment I was slowly going in my "granny gear" with a speed of 8 kilometers per hour.
The terrain was beautiful. Hills covered with Pennsylvanian forests and from time to time a small town, village, or farm. I passed a row of windmills on the top of a mountain range, but the weather was a bit foggy at that moment.
I also passed a beautiful lake where the trees reflected in the water.
During a SAG stop, I saw one of the young bikers with a Dutch soccer shirt - and the name of the country was even written in Spanish.
I biked through Milford, a busy town with too many cars and tourists, and decided to continue. In Port Jervis, we passed the Delaware river over an old steel bridge.
I saw a huge hill coming and decided to first buy some lunch. I had already eaten most of my food from the camp during the hills. Before the real climb started, I saw other young bikers eating ice cream.
A minute or so later, I passed the border of Pennsylvania with New Jersey. This was special, the last state in the Sea-to-Sea tour.
The climb to "High Point" (really the highest point in New Jersey) was hard, especially at the end of the day. Eventually, I got to the top and raced down the other side into Sussex. And, of course, just before the Sussex Christian School was another steep hill.
Supper was prepared by the CRChurches of Sussex and Goshen - it was good food. I am not sleeping in camp tonight. I am enjoying the hospitality of Bouwe and Jane Leenstra, a couple that came to Haiti in January 2008 with a group from the Goshen CRC. They invited me to their home. A real bed and working internet. What a blessing!
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