1000 Mile Trekkers Are Stoked for NYC

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We are so close to NYC we can almost feel it in the air! Today, we left our  campsite in Milford, PA and somewhere crossed back into New York but we were way too distracted by the ginormous hills we were climbing. Luckily today we had sunshine and no rain in sight, but our legs were put to the test with a 75 mile route (make that 81 with an accidental detour) all the way to Nyack, NY! Early this morning, we followed a rail trail and found a well-paved pump track and met a kid with a bmx bike and the boys had fun taking his bike on some jumps. This was when the day was young and spry and we still had a lot of energy. Then came a giant hill that lasted for nearly an hour of biking. It felt like we were moving in slow motion until we capped the top of the hill and made up for lost time at a speedy pace downhill. We had lots of quick roadside rests today next to some beautiful scenery, that’s one benefit of incline! We stopped for snacks at a local market, kept biking, ate lunch at a sandwich shop and shortly after faced a big climb up the Bear Mountain Bridge. As we wound through the hills, the views were incredible and there was also a car show happening and most of the guys were freaking out about the rare Lamborghinis and corvettes passing them. At the bottom of a hill, we met up with the Lamborghini owner and asked for a ride, but he gracefully denied. We followed a beach trail along the Hudson River all the way to our hotel, where we now reside, huddled in a room and devouring well-earned pizzas and ice cream. Tomorrow, we only have 25 miles left of our final day of biking to New York City. We’re stoked

Cape Cod Trekkers’ Journey Ends In Boston

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We had a wonderful last day eyeing each other in suspicion and feeling out the quarantine squared isolation zone. We made our ferry, where we all had a nap with the salt spraying in our faces. Getting to Boston felt bittersweet, but what was sweeter and not so bitter was celebrating the end of the trip with some mocktails. Not the trip we expected to have but the trip that we were fated to have. Thanks to all the kids for making it a joy and pleasure to ride with them. Keep biking!

SHOUT OUTS:

Otto: always cheesin’, slightly queasin’

Paulotta: dancing queen

Jaya: a baby sparrow spreading her wings

Sasha: Sagittarius mama bear

Jack: ready to defend us against raccoons

Josh: stomach of steel

Lachlan: channeled the will not to succumb to the sickness

Roman: have limbs? Will climb

Jasper: can do a front flip, danger man

Jenna: outshone a little girl by popping a split in response to her split in the middle of the Martha’s Vineyard Family Campground dance party

Sam: believes that life is tough but so are you

D&R Canal Trekkers Reach Frenchtown

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Today we woke up and went down to eat breakfast in the main lobby of our hotel. We started our bike ride at about 10. At lunch we ate hot dogs and fries. Some of us got cheese fries. It was good. We biked on the trail until we found a big waterfall and the girls swam while the boys went shopping for drinks and stuff. When the boys came back we saw people jumping off a bridge right next to a sign that said DON’T jump off. For dinner, we ate at a Mexican restaurant and me and Aidan were arguing how to say Jarrito, which was a drink they served. At the end of the day the boys watched The Olympics!

–Written by Nolan

The Walkway and RDR House were Highlights for NY-Burlington Trekkers

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Today we started off our day with a luxurious breakfast at the Hampton Inn, eating everything from waffles and oatmeal to bananas. We got out on the road at around 9:15, and were quickly off to a good start, with Navarro and Gabe leading the way (our ‘points’ for the day). The road was pretty flat throughout, which was a great reprieve from yesterday’s hills and mountains. An hour or two into the day, we crossed the Hudson Walkway, which had really nice views. After that, we visited Hannafords to pick up lunch (Turkey, cheese, and lettuce wraps), and we had a very specific debate about whether Lays Dill Pickle chips were better, or Cape Cod Cracked Pepper with a Hint of Lemon chips were better. Cape Cod won in the end 5 votes to 3. 

Finally, our last stop on today’s ride was the FDR museum, where we learned about how Vermont and Maine absolutely ‘adored’ FDR, and about how Eleanor Roosevelt was an incredible First Lady. 2 hours and few hills later, we had all of our tents set up, and had a pasta dinner, and now we are about to finish our day with our highs, lows, grows, and shoutouts!

–Written by today’s historian Suraj 

D&R Canal Trekkers Bike Princeton, Trenton, and Yardley

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We took off from our Crowne Plaza hotel and after breakfast we went by Princeton University and decided to explore the campus. After exploring for a little while we got back on the road. We passed a canoeing place and decided that the half of us that wanted to go canoeing would canoe for a bit while the others found a place for lunch. From what was heard, canoeing was great. Then after some lunch we got back on the trail. We biked for a few hours and passed through Trenton on our way to Yardley. The trail was very pretty and Yardley was surprisingly nice. We ate dinner, and after, we rode to the Hampton Inn and went to sleep.
Written by Larsen

Maine Coast Trekkers Leave Acadia NP and Head North

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We woke up and had a very good morning with pop tarts and fruit for breakfast. We left bright and early, biked through Acadia and Bar Harbor and made it to the Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound for lunch! We had a high mileage bike ride day, but we got through it very efficiently so that we could get to the campsite early! We had time to swim, play at the arcade, and set up dinner with the sun still out. We had stir fry for dinner with chicken tofu noodles and vegetables. Then we celebrated Jaspers sweet 16 (despite the slight drizzle) with s’mores, sparklers, and a campfire. It was nice to end our final camping night with a party and treats.

NY-Burlington Trekkers Biking up the Scenic Hudson Valley

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

This morning our ‘Leader of the Day’ woke us up, we got out of our dew-covered tents to eat cereal with almond milk, packed up our gear and left the campsite. Our ‘Points’ led the way as we biked through the hills and over a mountain towards our first stop: the grocery store. After buying ingredients for lunch (along with a tub of coffee ice cream), we stopped in the town of Cold Spring. There, we sat along the river eating wraps, and then walked around town buying smoothies and books. We also fixed one flat on the road from Gabby’s bike, but luckily we had a few experts willing to help. After another hour or so of biking we reached the very comfortable Hampton Inn in Fishkill, where after putting our bikes in our rooms, we headed out to Chipotle and Five Guys for dinner. We finished our second day with some fun pool games, and of course our highs, lows, grows and shoutouts. Looking forward to a flatter day of biking tomorrow! –written by Simon, today’s documentarian! 

1000 Mile Trekkers are One Day Away from New York City!

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

With NYC in site, we woke from our trail side campground this morning ready to tackle 69 of our 169 miles left until Manhattan. It was a rough start on a very gravelly trail with lots of incline, causing our tires to skid a lot. We decided to reroute after a morning stop for coffee and muffins at a local market. Our new route was much smoother, but still very hilly. The heat was rising and we were taking many grassy stops under the shade, we were hoping to find somewhere to swim, but with no luck we settled for a car wash. We put all our quarters together for three minutes of hose time and sprayed each other down for a nice cool-off. After that, we found a local family restaurant and filled up on bread and pasta. We still had 38 miles until our campground, and of course just as we pull out of the restaurant it started to rain. The next couple hours we pushed through the cold rain, uncomfortable but encouraging each other under sheltered stops. Jake has this thing where he gets everyone to chant “Teen Treks” collectively to pump people up. We had many hills to cross but we finally made it to Milford, PA to Kittatinny Campground. Once we arrived, we saw the campground had a laundromat and really wanted to dry our wet clothes and sleeping bags and then instantly regretted using all of our quarters on a car wash hose earlier in the day. Oh well! Here’s to our journey tomorrow inching closer to NYC!

NY-Burlington Trekkers Begin their Journey up the Hudson Valley

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2020, 2021

This morning we met half our trekkers bright and early at Bryant Park in NYC! We headed to Grand Central after saying goodbye to families and took the train with our bikes and gear to Irvington Station where we met up with the other half of the group. We got to know each other over fresh authentic NYC bagels and cream cheese. After further goodbyes to families we started our journey! We had a relatively short ride today with some fun climbs. We stopped for lunch right outside of Croton Park where we had delicious bagel sandwiches. Then we headed to our campsite and set up our tents. We explored the park desperately looking for a place to swim and wash off the grime of the day. We stumbled upon an awesome beach and had a great swim and talked about our favorite movies and tv shows. After cooling off we started preparing our dinner of nachos over the campfire. With full bellies we each shared our favorite moments of the day and what we are looking forward to on the trip moving forward! 

1000 Mile Trekkers Biking in Scenic Pennsylvania and New York

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Today we woke up in a beautiful Chenango Valley State Park and ate our staple breakfast: oatmeal and Nutella sandwiches. After looking at the map, we realized it was going to be our hilliest day yet, but all of us were in good spirits and ready for the challenge. Later that day, we stopped at a gas station to fuel ourselves with junk food for the massive mountains ahead. Soon after, we crossed back into Pennsylvania and had piggy-back races next to the state sign that said, “Pennsylvania: Pursue Your Happiness.” After about 30 miles, we stopped for lunch at Subway and shopped at the local grocery store to shop for dinner. About 15 miles later, a nice man who owned a racetrack gave us cold water and Gatorade, and told us about a great swimming spot. We went down to the river on a trail and found that the river banks were full of mud. What followed was a huge mud wrestling tournament (I beat Katie but Oscar won the whole thing) and then we swam in the river to wash the mud away. Up the hill from the swim was an ice cream shop in the town of Susquehanna. We weren’t making great timing, but everyone felt like getting ice cream to top off a fun day, so we all went in and got massive cones. While there, someone told us that the worst was still yet to come, with us having to climb almost 2000 feet of elevation in under 17 miles. It was definitely a struggle, especially with a belly full of ice cream. We didn’t make it as far as we’d like for the day but did crest the mountain. Ready for a great day tomorrow!  –Written by Trekker Grace