Day 2 - Chalfont - Pennsylvania - 51.3 miles - Total 81.8 miles

Road Rat with New Friend
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It rained heavily last night, and i was up at 6.30, went for breakfast, it was a self service affair, at a couple of tables in the Motel reception, along the lines that Paul and i used to do in the hotel, but slightly better, not hard to do really. Back to the room to repack yet again, to try and distribute the weight more evenly. Finally got away at 9.30, but first i had to find a battery for the sender of my bike computer (one of the things i forgot about in my preparations). Goose had suggested that i follow highway 202 to get to Norristown in a more direct way than the Cycling Association maps, but i thought that it would go against the whole principle of the maps, which was to see the countryside, so i set along the route heading for Nashanic Station, then on to Lambertville to cross into Pennsylvania. On a trip like this, you don't get ''lost'', you ''deviate'' from your chosen path to ''explore''....well i went ''exploring'' in a northerly direction when i should have been going south west....i hate that when I'm on a bike, its such a waste of effort. So with lots of head scratching and turning of maps, i managed to get myself to the 202, which i followed to Lambertville, but it was not a pleasurable experience because, you really have to ride way over to the side on the shoulder, except some times there isn't one, and in spite on the repacking, the trailer was still wobbling, and it was a bit unnerving. I do seem to have a lot of stuff, but i just cant think what else i could discard, perhaps i could bin my second pair of underpants!

Bridge at Good Hope
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I feel i need to justify myself about the navigation:- The Association maps are so specific for t e route, that if you go ''exploring'', they show very little of the surrounding countryside, and it is difficult to find the route again, and without a decent second map, near on impossible!

Dont put your Socks in the Microwave!

A short bridge crossing at Lambertville gets me across the border into the quaint, any picturesque town of New Hope, and into Pennsylvania. The instructions on the maps are to walk the bike across, using the pedestrian walkway to one side, i considered them to be for the over cautious, so rode across anyway, and got stopped by a 'jobsworth' at the other end, who reprimanded with a smile and lots of 'Sirs', explaining that people have been injured riding across in the past, probably because the thoughtless cyclists had flung themselves into the path of the oncoming vehicle, thereby causing the driver to take his eyes off of the surrounding senary, or drop his super-sized polystyrene cup of coke!

Good Hope Station
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New Hope was a nice place, with lots of old buildings, and a rail station, where you can catch a real old steam train for a tour of the countryside if you've' a mind to. I didn't, so after grabbing a few shots moved onwards, and upwards, as the road climbed out of the valley, for a few more miles before the heavens opened with a terrific thunder storm, that forced me to take shelter at a Dairy Queen, eating ice cream, and watching as the storm got closer, until it was right overhead, and the rain fell so heavily that the road turned into a stream, that was picked up and flung two meters in my direction as the trucks ploughed through at great speed. It would not be wise to share the road with them in those conditions, so there was nothing for it, but to eat ice cream, look up to the sky now and then , and watch the back wheel of my bike gradually disappear in a brown puddle of water.

Bike in Puddle
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It was getting late as i rolled into Chalfont, and even later as i rolled out of it again, without seeing a Motel. As i struggled up quite a steep hill, i passed an old sprightly looking gent, who offered me some words of encouragement, and also told me that there was a Motel just over the ridge of the hill, 'in about a mile'. The rooms were set out in an 'L' shape, with the Office in a small house sat at the front just of the road, there was no one in the office, so i stood there for a while wondering what i should do now, as the light was fading, due partly to the fact that the sun was setting, but also because of the dirty great black clouds, that were gathering right above me. I walked around the building looking for some sign of life, but preferably not of the canine type, when up pulled a pickup, thankfully containing the owner, who was just on his way out, another couple of minutes, and i would have both missed him, and been homeless for the night. I got the bike stowed in his garage, the bags of, and myself installed in the room, before the heavens opened. The room was clean and adequate, getting over the fact that there was no breakfast included by being equipped with a fridge and a microwave, which, after due consideration, i put to good use to dry my socks, only to find out three minutes later, that it was not such a good idea, as it had melted the elastic in them and filled the room with a rather unusual smell!

Bits and Bobs:- Breakfast:- Two Muffins, dry donut, orange juice and coffee

Lunch:- Apple

Evening:- Spinach and Mozzarella Calzone and garlic Bread

51miles in 90% humidity