18 June (No Bicycle Miles)

Back to Port Henry to Hague / Forward to Final Thoughts

In the morning I was greeted by some welcomed sunshine over Lake George. Everything that I had was adequately protected from the rain. I even remembered to cover my Brooks saddle.

Taking everything apart and breaking camp was sad because I was headed to the campground gate with my gear to wait for a taxi. I wasn’t particularly hungry either. After gathering all of my stuff, I surveyed the site to be sure that I had everything, and pushed my bicycle up the hill to the gate.

Some guy who was camping with his family last night stopped at the gate on the way out to breakfast. He said that it rained for three hours and his tent got soaked. He didn’t know if it would dry out. He didn’t know what he was going to do. What was the weather going to be like today? Chance of rain. Oh, oh! That prediction from the caretaker further validated my decision to head home.

The taxi, an old Ford van, showed up on time and we loaded the bicycle and gear without delay. Once on the road, I learned some things about Tony, my driver, and his father, the owner of the taxi business. Tony himself is a person who earns his living in the Adirondacks using a variety of skills, including construction labor of various kinds. His father not only owns the taxi business, but also works for the state fish and game department. This is another pair of people who make it in the Adirondacks by using their flexibility.

We arrived at Lions Park at about 10:30 AM and transferred my things from the Ford to my equally old Honda van. I stopped for some food before heading to Interstate 90. I was on my way home.

At home I showed my toe to Marne and shared my thought of waiting until tomorrow before going to a doctor. When she saw it she suggested calling the doctor immediately to be sure that I could get an appointment. The operator suggested that I go in to the walk-in center that was open until 8 PM. We drove to the office and I was in the waiting room by about 5:30.

The doctor looked at it and drained it to relieve the pressure under the nail. It was not infected. It was a hematoma, a pooling of blood under the toenail. After draining, the toe felt a lot better and it was easier to walk. I spent the next three days relaxing and soaking the toe three times a day and wearing sandals to avoid irritating it further.