Photos: Astride a bicycle from York to Ephrata on a 100-degree day

"Upon exiting said HRT I made a right onto Market Street and proceeded thusly eastward. Traffic on Market Street was light and the riding was easy. Corner of Market and Beaver in York City (or is it New Orleans?)"

"Once beyond the city your guide exited Market onto Eastern Blvd. A shaded Eastern Blvd. Very little traffic."

"The next major road was Rt 462 East. Nice road with wide shoulder."

"A highlight (no pun intended) is a section of the road (Route 462) I call The Steps. This series of hills looks more daunting than it is in reality. Nevertheless one wonders as the approach nears."

"Approaching the Susquehanna River at Wrightsville, a keen observer will note the old bridge spanning said river."

"Upon arriving on the bridge I stepped up onto the sidewalk to take some photos."

"The bridge is about a mile long and feels longer when one is cycling across it. One rider was riding on the sidewalk but not me. The walkway is elevated about 8 - 10" from the road. Riding on it makes me a bit dizzy, so safety first."

"Kayakers on the river."

"After exiting the bridge, I made my way over to the Northwest River Trail. This paved trail is flat, well shaded, and parallels the river, mostly."

"Not far from the start of the trail is Chickies Rock."

"Fortunately this day there were several climbers. It was fun watching them ascend and descend."

"By this time along the route I was ready to take a rest and what better place to rest than near a place that serves up soda, hot dogs and snow ice."

"Several, and I do mean several, miles later I stumbled up one of the covered bridges of Lancaster County, Kauffman's Distillery Bridge."

"This bridge was identical (to this untrained eye), to the covered bridges found in Bedford County."

Another view of this Lancaster County landmark.

"Many more miles elapsed and I was growing weary. But I could not pass up the chance to photograph this looming descent."

"Thanks to modern technology I was riding and turning wherever my gadget told me. For this reason a strange thing happened: I rode by the same spot twice, without planning to. Normally this isn't a problem, but in this case it was. The temps were hovering around 100 degrees, and I hadn't a clue where I was. To make matters worse by mobile telephony device was almost out of juice, and so was I. I did manage to make to to the city limits of Ephrata. I had no idea of distance A/C, tacos and family. So, with great wisdom, I called for a pickup and sat beneath a shade tree. My newly minted Son-in-Law, Harry, was soon seen coming in for the pickup. After loading the bike we took off. I asked Harry to make a note of the distance back to their place. Upon arrival he told me that the distance from the pickup point to his place was exactly 1 mile. I think he was a bit embarrassed for me. I was not embarrassed in the least though, especially after noting that the temperature range experienced during the ride was 96.5 - 103 degrees." So, a great day ended with a cool shower, hot tacos and warm conversation. A good day. Here's the 52 mile route, including the obvious unnecessary detour.