… and the cranky knee

Today ended the way it began — icing down my cranky knee —although, admittedly, it was less cranky this morning before I biked 49.12 miles on it. But the knee abides.

My choice of routing for today was twofold: 1. to stay out of the 92 degree sunny weather as long as possible, and 2. the least taxing ride toward New York City. 

My only scheduling oversight was scheduling the longer of the two rides on the first day back for my cranky knee. Tomorrow’s ride to my lodgings in Manhattan is only 26 miles, that’s the distance I should have gone today and left the longer for tomorrow. But the ice and ibuprofen will get the job done.

Today I routed myself on the East Coast Greenway, specifically over 20 miles on the Delaware & Raritan Canal Towpath Trail. What the towpath affords is a cooler microclimate, shade, breezes, and interesting flora and fauna. And I Got all of those in abundance. It was a very pleasant ride from Princeton, NJ to South Bound Brook on the D & R Canal Trail.

Once off the trail the heat, especially the radiated heat coming off the pavement was oppressive. Even though the highest temperature was 94, it felt warmer. And those temps really sap one’s energy through the day, especially the afternoon.

I stopped often for shade breaks, water (I drank over 2 gallons today), pictures, and an hour long lunch and had a bit of energy to spare at the end of the ride — but not much. Just enough to ice my knee down first thing and then get all the dark fine gravel dust off in the shower. The knee looked a bit angry, but I know how to treat it. (The perils of college football, ca. 1983).

As I said tomorrow is a short day and ferry ride to Battery Park Landing from Jersey City, NJ — and I leave New Jersey behind.

I’d like to go to the Whitney Museum or the MOMA, and maybe catch the Yankees at home against the Blue Jays. Then again, a concert or some sort of sit down tour to treat the knee right is a possibility. We’ll see. I’m coming back to NYC in July for a week so I can be very selective about my two days now.

On Saturday I’ll ride the length of the island and cut across the northern half into Connecticut, where I’ll spend five days before riding home into Massachusetts and a few days off with Pattie.

Then the plan is to head up to Lubec and Calais, Maine, dipping into Canada, and turning for home sometime in mid-June.

Day 21:
Start: East Windsor, NJ
Finish: Clark, NJ
Miles: 49.12

Ice, ice, ice — it’s all about the ice and the cranky knee.

What I’m Reading:

I was fifteen when I started filling tanks,
wiping dead moths off the windows,
watching the Chevron across the street
blink its blue fire into the broken sidewalks.

— Molly Thapviwat / “Cherry Coke and Chevron Lights”