Late August is, by far, the best way to experience summer in Western New York. Saturday’s ride (August 27, 2022) was a perfect example of this – a cool, clear morning progressing into a warm sunny day, and a wonderful way to experience a bicycle ride around Grand Island.
Starting just off of East River with an informal breakfast with our awesome hosts, Margery and Tom Burkman, we rode counter-clockwise to our first quick stop at Buckhorn Island State Park. If you’re a kayak enthusiast, note that there’s a new launch there, so check it out – no more muddy feet getting into Woods Creek! Proceeding along East-West Park Road, we began to make good time (and great conversation) riding two abreast along the recently converted West River Parkway. We had the wind at our back, and sped along until we reached Beaver Island State Park. Lots of things to see here – starting with checking out the Purple Martin Houses, then a bathroom break at the Nature Center, and then on along the paths and roads in the Park. No one racing cross country today, so we followed the trail past the River Lea house to one of their two Kayak Launches, this one located just by Ferry Village. A final push along East River Road with a quick break near the bridge finished off our 24 mile morning ride.
Many thanks to Paul for organizing the event, and to Pam for taking photos (and posting to the FB page for the group – check out the page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/291178878475/). A fun ride for Paul, Karen, Jonathan, Pam, Peter, and Todd, and again thanks so much to Tom and Margery for hosting the ride’s “base camp” for the day.
– Jonathan Coupal