The Poconos and The Delaware River

I've been working in New York, The Big Apple.

Cycling had to take a back seat, however, I did manage 83 miles in the gym the first week and 23 miles the second. During the weekend in between I went to the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania with my Friend D and his family.

He won't cycle with me after my last visit to his house 4 years ago when he couldn't wear me down (that was before I though of entering the Etap). We kayaked and cycled that weekend near Princetown New Jersey.

This time we had a great weekend in the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania

My mate D is Head of Risk at a European bank in NY and I went to stay with him and his family at their holiday home. It is beautiful up there in the Poconos mountains.

Friday night I took the train from NY Penn Station out to Princetown Junction where he lives with his family (wife and two kids, boy and girl). We had dinner then drove off to the Poconos. It is about a 2 hour drive from there. His holiday home is a three bedroom house (mansion more like) on a gated community (estate) around a golf course and country club.

Saturday morning it poured with rain (really heavy it was) and so we watched a DVD and played cards with the kids.

Saturday afternoon it cleared up nicely and we went off and walked along the Appalachian trail for about four and a half hours (I've got the insect bites to prove it). Then we went to the country club to go swimming then dinner at the Golf club.

Sunday we went to the Shawnee Resort. This is a hotel / country club/ holiday resort on the Delaware river (look it up on the internet, it is just as you see on the old movies). The US open golf used to be held here (the golf course is on an island in the middle of the Delaware River). We rented a raft and for over four hours and drifted down the Delaware River (the Delaware is the river that supplies drinking water to NY city). It was a lovely warm day and the river is crystal clear and amazingly warm (I did ask if the warm water came from a nuclear power station or factory upstream and was assured it didn't as there wasn't one). We spent the afternoon throwing each other off the raft, swimming and enjoying the sunshine.

My son would have loved it and we will have to go up there with him sometime.

It turns out that this resort used to be a bad debt for my current employers who ended up buying it at the end of the 80's and then selling it on after investing in it. Small world eh!

Sunday night we drove back to New Jersey. Everyone (except my mate who was driving, someone had to) was asleep in the car. We then had dinner (pizza) outside the back of his New Jersey place on his patio before I caught a late train back to the city.

The one downside was that near the end of the rafting trip I was thrown in the water and my mate landed on top of me (his mean kids and wife threw us both in). I lost my glasses and we could not find them on the bottom of the Delaware River (only 5 feet deep and clear). I had to finish the trip blind. Fortunately I had a set of prescription sunglasses in the car so I wore them for the rest of the day.

It was a bit strange coming back to NY at 11 PM Sunday night wearing dark glasses. Fortunately I had an old pair of glasses at the hotel which I wore for the week. My wife ordered a new pair of glasses for me in London. I got them this morning (unusually fast as the glass has to come special order from Germany (Zeiss) as I am a very high prescription). Well done Boots Opticians. At least I will be able to see clearly on our fortcoming Disney Florida holiday.

The Guilford Peloton is proposing a Sportif at Lake Como in October this year and a Pyrenean Raid in 2009. There is also bold talk about the Marmotte but that is something for the young, the bold and the foolish in my current opinion especially as there is talk of combining it with the Etap on the same weekend.