Day 10: Monday, July 3, 2017
35 miles
Essex Junction to Grand Isle State Park, Vermont
It was a cold June morning in 2014 as the rain poured down on us while we stood at the end of a dirt road on South Hero Island looking out over Lake Champlain, hoping to see a ferry boat coming our way. We thought we were in the right place, but there was no one around to ask and we had expected something more than, well, nothing. Except a dock nearby so I guess that meant something.
We could see a point of land about a hundred yards from where we stood, which was surprising because on our map there was no land between us and Burlington, which was where we were going on the ferry, if it ever came.
"What do you suppose that is?" I asked Rob, pointing to the land that would be a stone's throw away, if I had ever mastered the art of throwing a stone.
"I have no idea."
We looked at our map and still couldn't see anything in the blue expanse of water. We were confused.
We had arrived about fifteen minutes early, so we waited. The rain came down and we were the only ones standing there, getting wet. I wondered if the ferry would run on a rainy day. I looked at my watch. Five minutes before the first scheduled ferry. I looked out over the water. Nothing.
Then we noticed some people moving around over on that little point of land, futzing around a boat on a dock. Then the boat came our way and in just a few minutes it pulled up to the dock where we waited.
We walked over with our bikes.
"Is this the bike ferry?" I asked the guy who had lifted a bike off the boat onto the dock, handing it off to the passenger who had already disembarked.
"Sure is."
"How do you get to Burlington?"
He pointed to the land just a stone's throw away. "You ride down that bike path. It'll take you right into the city."
Oh. We thought the ferry took us right into the city.
"How far is it?"
"About ten miles."
We gave the guy five dollars for each of us and he put our bikes on the boat and it took about five minutes to get across to that spit of land. We could have easily swum it, but not with our bikes.
The cycling along the causeway - about three miles of it - was beautiful even in the rain, although we were a little nervous when we saw a pickup truck heading our way. The rain kept up and by the time we arrived in Burlington we were very wet. But the ferry experience and ride along the bike path was unique and fun and definitely worth repeating, hopefully on a sunny day. Which was one of the reasons why we had crossed back into Vermont on this trip, so that we could take the Island Line Bike Ferry to South Hero Island and then work our way north into Quebec.
When the day arrived for that second ferry experience, the sun was shining, not a drop of rain in the forecast.
We slept until almost eight o'clock, a luxurious sleep-in for us. Lingering over breakfast, playing some music with Wendy and Steve, repacking our panniers with clean, dry laundry - oh, how good it felt to put on fresh riding clothes! - checking the air in our tires, by the time we got on our bikes at 11:30 I was already thinking about lunch at an outdoor cafe on Burlington's pedestrian mall.
It was a cold June morning in 2014 as the rain poured down on us while we stood at the end of a dirt road on South Hero Island looking out over Lake Champlain, hoping to see a ferry boat coming our way. We thought we were in the right place, but there was no one around to ask and we had expected something more than, well, nothing. Except a dock nearby so I guess that meant something.
We could see a point of land about a hundred yards from where we stood, which was surprising because on our map there was no land between us and Burlington, which was where we were going on the ferry, if it ever came.
"What do you suppose that is?" I asked Rob, pointing to the land that would be a stone's throw away, if I had ever mastered the art of throwing a stone.
"I have no idea."
We looked at our map and still couldn't see anything in the blue expanse of water. We were confused.
We had arrived about fifteen minutes early, so we waited. The rain came down and we were the only ones standing there, getting wet. I wondered if the ferry would run on a rainy day. I looked at my watch. Five minutes before the first scheduled ferry. I looked out over the water. Nothing.
Then we noticed some people moving around over on that little point of land, futzing around a boat on a dock. Then the boat came our way and in just a few minutes it pulled up to the dock where we waited.
We walked over with our bikes.
"Is this the bike ferry?" I asked the guy who had lifted a bike off the boat onto the dock, handing it off to the passenger who had already disembarked.
"Sure is."
"How do you get to Burlington?"
He pointed to the land just a stone's throw away. "You ride down that bike path. It'll take you right into the city."
Oh. We thought the ferry took us right into the city.
"How far is it?"
"About ten miles."
We gave the guy five dollars for each of us and he put our bikes on the boat and it took about five minutes to get across to that spit of land. We could have easily swum it, but not with our bikes.
The cycling along the causeway - about three miles of it - was beautiful even in the rain, although we were a little nervous when we saw a pickup truck heading our way. The rain kept up and by the time we arrived in Burlington we were very wet. But the ferry experience and ride along the bike path was unique and fun and definitely worth repeating, hopefully on a sunny day. Which was one of the reasons why we had crossed back into Vermont on this trip, so that we could take the Island Line Bike Ferry to South Hero Island and then work our way north into Quebec.
When the day arrived for that second ferry experience, the sun was shining, not a drop of rain in the forecast.
We slept until almost eight o'clock, a luxurious sleep-in for us. Lingering over breakfast, playing some music with Wendy and Steve, repacking our panniers with clean, dry laundry - oh, how good it felt to put on fresh riding clothes! - checking the air in our tires, by the time we got on our bikes at 11:30 I was already thinking about lunch at an outdoor cafe on Burlington's pedestrian mall.
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| We do look clean and refreshed, don't we? |
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| Heading out Steve and Wendy's driveway, another riding day begins. |
Burlington has a downtown pedestrian mall that would be sure to have some outdoor cafes. But when we arrived, we were overwhelmed by the crowds and underwhelmed by the mall itself. Designed by the same person who did the Pearl St. Mall in downtown Boulder, Colorado, it felt like the town forgot about landscaping the center of it. Where Boulder's version has gardens and sculptures and play areas, Burlington's has nothing but empty spaces. But given the crowds of people out walking and sitting outside enjoying lunch at the myriad restaurants, I had to figure that the people of Burlington enjoy their downtown mall just fine, probably not aware of the extra bits of beauty they are missing.
And where did the crowds come from? The town's 4th of July celebration was scheduled for that night and it looked like everyone took the day off from work to enjoy it.
Needing to escape the crowds we went directly to the waterfront, but the restaurants there were crowded as well. We settled for a picnic lunch on the grass.
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| The view from Burlington looking out over Lake Champlain. |
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| We followed the bike path out of Burlington and then, after several miles, came to the causeway that took us out into the lake. |
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| And here's the ferry. It's run by volunteers and costs $5. We didn't have to wait long. It was mid-afternoon and most of the cyclists were going in the other direction, returning to Burlington. |
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| Bikes with gear on them present a bit of a challenge for the ferry workers as they try to cram as many bikes onto the boat as possible. You can see the gap in the causeway in this picture. It's the shortest ferry ride we've ever taken. |
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| Here's another view of the lake where the ferry crosses. You can see the cyclists waiting in line. |
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| And another. |
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| Many riders take the ferry for a day ride on the islands. These folks were waiting for the return trip. Looked like they'd be there a while. |
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| Once on South Hero Island we stayed off the main highway, riding on a dirt road that ran along the lake shore. And we passed hundreds of brightly colored bird houses. |
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| Here's a closeup and the story I found on the internet: https://lakechamplainlife.com/south-hero-bird-house-forest/ |
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| We camped that night at Grand Isle State Park. Most Vermont state parks are on a lake, but the campsites are tucked in the woods with the mosquitoes and not much of a view. We discovered that we can have a more pleasant dining experience on the waterfront, at the swimming area. Tonight it was pleasant enough for a swim. |
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| As you can imagine from this hill profile, the day's riding was quite pleasant. |
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