Canandaigua Lake Loop

Posted by jodycb on June 26, 2010

Yes I live in the Finger Lakes but I’d never ridden around Canandaigua Lake before yesterday.

Elevation Profile

Canandaigua Lake Loop Terrain map

So yesterday I decided to take it on. I figured being a Friday there wouldn’t be too many cars or too many other cyclists to mock my slow pace. And oh was it ever a slow pace. I was doing pretty well coming down the east side of the lake. There was a very long but manageable climb before the road dropped in to Middlesex. It was one of those hills that you really don’t notice in a car but on a bike you notice every foot of it.

Just past Middlesex I stopped for a rest and a snack and to check my directions. I felt like I was all alone in the middle of nowhere and suddenly stealth cyclist pops out of nowhere and startled me with a friendly greeting. He rode past and I started up again following at a distance. At Caward Cross Rd. he went straight and I turned left to find 245.

I had thoughts of stopping in Naples for some food but thought that would just bog me down and add miles when I was already wondering if I’d bitten off more than I could chew. I knew there were some substantial hills on the west side of the lake.

When I actually started climbing them I realized just how substantial. Steep and endless and steep and endless. The scenery was beautiful but I kept having to stop and stand on the hill gasping for breath until I could find another little pocket of energy to keep going. I would look for puddles of shade on the side of the road. ‘I just need to get to that shady spot and then I’ll stop for a minute’. It was a steady uphill climb for half of the west side of the lake.

On one these hills where I was resting, stealth cyclist passed me again and this time I was even more startled. He just kept steadily climbing and vanished from view.

By the time I got past the big climb my climbing muscles were toast. Overall I seemed to have energy left for the flattish areas but as soon as any uphill presented itself my legs were just uninterested in participating.

When I got on to West Lake rd. the elevation dropped dramatically. I’m pretty sure I was speeding when I hit the 35mph zone. My droid says my top speed was 40mph and it must have been right around here. It was kind of crazy. I was half exhilarated and half scared.

About five miles from where I had parked two small but steep hills were in my way. The legs weren’t going along with it so I stopped to eat my apple in a tiny shade puddle. This time I actually saw the other cyclist coming. Somehow he’d gotten behind me again. He stopped. We chatted. It turned out he had made a few wrong turns, including going down Bopple Hill Rd. which was how he kept getting behind me. I figured he had stopped somewhere for lunch but he had no food so I gave him a granola bar. I may carry too much stuff with me but I’m well supplied for things like this.

Somehow I made it back to my car and stopped at Wegmans for a mango smoothie. Nothing’s ever tasted better than that did at that moment. And so cold.