Biking - Mohawk River Loop

After being off the bike for a week, and expecting rain later today, I decided to squeeze in a ride this morning between getting life back to normal and the onset of the rain. When I went to put air in the tires of my Trek, I found the front tire flat with a nail in it. Not wanting to waste the time fixing it, and possibly getting wet, I grabbed the old 10-speed and headed out. From SCCC westbound was literally a breeze, with a strong southeast tailwind. I decided to head for Lock 9 and return via NY5, knowing the return trip would be a struggle. On NY5, I was pushing into a 20-30 mph headwind, riding in the drops, and using almost every gear. I decided not to cross the Western Gateway Bridge with a crossing headwind, the biking shoulder being narrow and traffic usually heavy. So, I crossed back over to the bike path on the Exit 26 bridge (see map below) and slogged back to the car. For only a little under 16 miles, this had turned into a tough ride.