Biking - Indian Ladder Farms and Lunch

Almost 70 degrees. Sunny. October 28. Wow! Despite feeling kinda biked out for this season, this was not a day to be wasted. So I saddled up and headed for lunch at Indian Ladder Farms, a local orchard near Voorheesville. They have a nice cafe with some interesting menu choices, and I can make a fairly easy 30-mile loop stopping there for lunch. The only problem today was the wind, gusting to near 40 mph.



Fortunately, the wind was mostly from the south, and my route took me to the south at first, then west and then north, before turning east for home. So I got the southbound part done just as the wind was picking up, and had the SW winds on the return trip.

I like to route my loops through French's Hollow if I'm headed that way, since it's a very scenic spot. The Normanskill was running high today after all of the rain over the past few days. The dam here is the outlet of Watervliet Reservoir, best seen along US20, and trains are often seen here crossing the trestle.



Continuing south to Voorheesville, I turned west to my lunch spot, where I had a very good wrap and some fresh apple cider. Leaving the farm, the route turned north toward Altamont, with great views of the colorful Helderberg Escarpment towering above.



By now, I'd worked out some of the kinks of this past lazy week, and was feeling pretty good. So I extended the ride just a bit and finally came in with a little over 35 miles. The wind was now blowing hard, and every which way, so it was a good time to be finished. But we may not see another day like this for quite a while, and I was glad I took advantage of it.