First Day: Cape Cod Trek

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2020, 2021

Nine anxious Trekkers and their two Trip Leaders met early this morning outside South Station in Boston to begin a 10 day ride through southeast Massachusetts and Cape Cod. The group will take a train to the outskirts of Boston and start biking today to Wompatuck State Park. Over the next week and a half they will visit Plymouth Rock, bike along the scenic Cape Cod Canal, ferry to Martha’s Vineyard, bike the length of Cape Cod through Hyannis, Wellfleet, Truro, and Provincetown, and end with a ferry to Boston. Stay tuned for daily stories and pics of their adventures.

GAP Trekkers Winding Their Way Along the C&O Canal Trail

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

After waking up in the chicken coop (Bike Shop Bunks), we went to get breakfast at a Sheetz and went grocery shopping. We were amazed by all the off-brand products available at save-lot. Anshuman made us reconsider some things when he continued to make questionable food choices by having a spinach wrap with fruit snacks, Chick-fil-A sauce, gold fish, pretzels, and lettuce. We stopped at a hydroelectric plant to take 5 and then returned to camp to make s’mores over the best propane fire any of us will ever experience. Looking forward to tomorrow’s hostel stay with showers and laundry!

1000 Mile Trekkers Enter NYS

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Leaving Erie, PA early this morning, the group was excited to see the sun burst through the clouds for a day of riding without any rain! The route was beautiful along 5 East, tracing the scenic Erie coastline. We got a few miles under our wheels before stopping to cook an oatmeal breakfast in a Target parking lot and then shop for groceries for the day. We had a little more hills today than usual and passed through scenic vineyards and stopped at a farm stand for fresh peaches and blueberries. With more biking, we worked up a hunger before we stopped at a marina to sit on the beach and make delicious turkey, avocado and hummus sandwiches. Shortly after we passed in to New York, passed over green rolling hills, then stopped for an ice cream break! We arrived in Dunkirk, NY and found a cozy beach camping spot to settle for the night, where we cooked rice and bean bowls and fell asleep outside our tents and under the stars. Tomorrow we will arrive in Buffalo and we’re looking forward to meeting up with some of the Teen Treks staff and stay in a hostel for two days!

Soggy Maine Coast Trekkers Make it to Portland

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Today started off wet! It had rained all night, and even though we tried to rain proof everything before bed, rain still found it’s way into some of the corners of our tents. In the rain, it was tough to pack everything up, but we did it! We biked in the rain for about for an hour before things started to clear up. Our things were damp, but luckily we had a hotel to look forward to! Also, after the weather cleared, we rode on some nice and relaxing paths with beautiful views. We also had a small speaker with music at the back of the pack. We all underestimated how much we missed music. Once we got to the hotel, we enjoyed a nice luxurious pizza dinner (and chicken wings for Seth) and we’re all excited to use nice showers and bathrooms. Now some shout outs: – Ben helped us pack in the rain and stay alert for upcoming drivers – Peter kept us on track as time keeper – Sonia hyped us up when we were tired and wet – Jacob led us to our destination– Caroline made sure things that were dropped got back to owners – Denney made awesome music recommendations – Martha played music in the back – Jasper bought us sodas – Seth worked on recovery from yesterday – I (Mimi) am currently writing the blog (with the help of Ben, Peter, and Caroline) – Tessa cut it was the gap between middle and front – Max pushed hard today
It ended up being a really good day. Tomorrow we’re off to explore Portland, Maine and have a (mostly) rest day from our bikes! 
– The Maine Coast Crew

Wet 1000 Mile Trekkers Enter Pennsylvania

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

“Rain, rain go away, come again another day!“ The rain clouds have had no mercy on us today, from showers while we slept to a wet morning breaking out of camp, to a day full of chilly drizzle, we’ve all been a bit over the rain. But, it’s had its redeeming moments. Like when we took shelter in a diner for a late breakfast and had cups of coffee with omelettes and pancakes. And then we met two different touring cyclists on the road who were traveling cross country and doing about 80-90 miles per day, reminding us that we are not alone out in the rain. Finally, we arrived at our campground right outside Erie, Pennsylvania and everyone screamed with excitement when they saw a 24-hour laundromat connected to the campground. Not only that, but it was connected to a game room and a snack shop, so we ordered pizza, grabbed snacks, played games and had more fun than any humans should ever have doing laundry! You never realize how great it feels to be warm and dry until you spend time out in the elements being chilly and wet. Perspective is everything!

Paw Paw Tunnel is Highlight for GAP Trekkers

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We woke up early in the morning. I was cooking pancakes while Gabby, Cooper, and Noah went for a morning swim. After we were all packed up we made our way to the trail. We went through the 3/4 mile Paw Paw Tunnel. We had to turn on our headlights to see and go slow. We also used a lot of communication for puddles or bumps in the tunnel and stayed spread far apart. For lunch we stopped by the river and dipped our feet in while we had our sandwiches. Anshuman tried Cocoa Puffs dipped in Chik-Fil-A sauce and thought it was good but no one else was willing to try. After biking on the C&O Trail we were able to get off onto the Western Maryland Trail which is paved and we could bike a lot faster which was awesome. Leo and I led the way to our destination. Tonight we are sleeping at the C&O Bike Shop Bunks. Here we were able to get some souvenirs, bike repairs, and warm showers (which we all needed). Another family is staying here too and they are riding solar powered tricycles which looked really cool to ride and they let Justin and Gabby try them. We also got to call home today and I enjoyed getting to talk to my family. We are looking forward to another good day tomorrow. Written by Jason

Maine Coast Trekkers Adjust to Life on the Road

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We woke up at 6:30 this morning and all learned how to take down our tents! We had a bit of a late start because of it, but we made it out on time! It was a pretty good start, and we fell into our roles easily. Our first stop was to fix Max’s bike out in front of a church, and Ben helped out a lot! We kept riding to find the nearest bike shop, when Martha got a flat! Denney stayed to help her while the rest of us rode into town to get Max’s bike to a bike shop, and to pick up lunch. Mimi, Seth, and Max bought food for the group and we ate outside the store. We got back on the road and biked over a super cool bridge. Our next stop was the border of Maine for a group pic! We kept going with Peter and Jacob in the lead. We took the long and scenic route along the coast, and stopped on the beach for a snack and a swim. Caroline, Martha, and Denney were the only ones brave enough to dunk into the frigid water. We headed on, with Ben hyping us up–he truly kept our wheels spinning. After biking through three coastal towns, we found our campsite and Sonia helped the cook crew make our dinner

The End of an Amazing Journey for the Pacific Northwest Trekkers

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

Thoughts fill our head at 4:30a.m. about our last day biking, 55 miles. We boogie out of camp at 6 after bagels for breakfast. Of course, you need a coffee and pastry break from the Albertson’s Starbucks before hitting the road again. We bike on a path to our lunch of wraps before our home stretch of 18 miles! We finally make it to the big city, our whole bodies sore, to have some rest time before going out to get ice cream, gelato and a dinner of Mexican food including churros. After, we get ready to go home and prepare for our safe and exciting journeys tomorrow with one last circle of highs and lows to recap the trip! –written by Zori, our feature documentarian!

1000 Mile Trekkers Reach the End of Ohio

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021

We left Cleveland this morning and started our journey north along Lake Erie. Rain was projected for entire day, but luckily there was only a light drizzle for half the day until the sun came out in the late afternoon. We stopped for quick lunches at Dairy Queen and Arby’s then headed next door to a bike shop to address some of the group’s bike needs. While waiting, we started a game amongst the group with secret challenges written on cards, and the challenges you draw out of a hat are your assignment for the next few days, the first to accomplish their three challenges wins. We’ve played one round of this and it was quite entertaining seeing what everyone anonymously wrote on their cards. Meanwhile, we biked on, following the Western Reserve Greenway eventually finding our campground in Ashtabula, Ohio. Once we set up our tents, the rain finally came and lasted throughout the night. We cooked macaroni in the rain and quickly retreated to our tents where we crashed immediately. Tomorrow, we will cross into another state and find ourselves in Erie, PA!

Maine Coast Trekkers Ended a Great First Day with a Pool & Campfire

Posted Teen TreksPosted in 2021
Hi there! Martha and Tessa here 🙂 We’re writing in the voice of a Trekker, because that’s who will be writing these blogs from now on! Day one was a huge success. We have an awesome group of kids. Thank you!

After we left our parents, we headed out to the train station. While Tessa went inside to buy our tickets, we stayed with Martha outside in the shade and played some name games and ice breakers. As it got closer to our departure time, we went into the subway station to wait. Inside we munched on donut holes while we learn how to properly stack our bikes. When our train arrived, we had to scurry to fit all of our bikes into the train and to get ourselves seated. When to train took off, we had a whole cabin to ourselves and we took that time to get to know each other. When we got to Newburyport, we got off the train and biked over to a nearby park. At the park, we went over the rules and expectations for the trip. Then, after walking around the park a little bit, we had a picnic lunch prepared for us by the leaders. We had sandwiches, chips, carrots, pickles, cherries, and grapes. Then, before we headed out again, we went over all of the biking safety measures that we need to take in order to have a safe Teen Treks trip. After our safety talk, we headed over to the nearby public restrooms to fill our water bottles before our 15 mile bike ride to Hampton, NH. After a quick walk across a walk-only bridge, we headed off on our bikes. About five miles in, we took a break to have Tessa teach us how to fix a flat tire. She was assisted by Ben who has a real skill for pumping up tires! About 2 miles out from our campsite we stopped at Hampton Beach to look at the ocean, go to the bathroom, and enjoy some popsicles. While we were discussing if we should go into the ocean, we found out that our campsite has a pool. So we rushed off to get to camp. When we got to camp, we set up our tents and had campsite orientation. Then headed straight to the pool. After we got out of the pool, we went back to our campsite and played some UNO. Tessa and Martha with the help of Denney made us a dinner of cold pasta salad with turkey, cheese, and lots of veggies. Just what we needed after a hot day like today! After dinner we cleaned up and we all took showers. Then we did our nightly meeting which included sharing our personal goals for coming on this trip. Then after a bit more hanging out we got into our tents and went to bed. Big day tomorrow! Denney will be our first Leader of the Day and tomorrow’s blog will be written by our first historian, Jasper!