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Genesee Valley Greenway – Part 1

In this episode we embark on the first 18 miles of the Genesee Valley Greenway, traversing from Rochester to Avon. This historic trail, repurposed from a railroad and canal, is a testimony to the region’s natural splendor and history. Our host Lindsay, along with her friend Kim, navigate through urban edges to peaceful countryside, encounter various obstacles, and even witness a wedding. Their journey highlights the close-knit equestrian community and the accessible outdoor adventures in Rochester. They share laughs, challenges, and the joy of riding, inviting listeners to experience the trail for themselves.

Thank you Easton’s for hosting our recording.

Short Recap video only. Not the full episode:

Links – 

Stats – 

Ride or Drive – Ride or Drive (entrance at Erie-Attica)
Trail Level – Easy – Wide stone dust trail, North of Ballantyne Rd is Paved and not horse friendly
Parking – 2 large parking areas for trailers
Distance – 31.7km (19.6 miles)
Challenges – First 4-5 miles is paved, Parking at Genesee Valley Pool, advise drop off if attempting this as a challenge.  Must have BOMB proof horse if attempting city portion.  If on main trail which is Ballantyne to Avon you will encounter likes of walkers, runners, cyclists, pets etc.  Many people area wearing earbuds and cannot hear you.

Transcript:

Genesee Valley Greenway: Miles 1 to 18

Lindsay: [00:00:00] You’re listening to Rochester Trail Riders.

The Genesee Valley Greenway is a 90 mile stretch of repurposed railroad bed that starts in the Genesee Valley Park near Rochester, located in Monroe County. and ends in Hinsdale, located in Cattaraugus County. The route was originally the Genesee Valley Canal, which was in operation from 1840 to 1878.

Trains traversed this corridor from 1882 to 1963 when RG& E purchased large portions. They later sold these sections off to New York State Office of Parks and Recreation, and in 1991, New York State Parks introduced the idea of a rail to trail conversion and officially opened up sections of the trail in 1992.

Today, the trail is maintained by a partnership between the public and private interests, and if you’re interested in helping improve and maintain the trail, consider becoming a member of the Friends of the Genesee Valley Greenway. Trail conditions are [00:01:00] continually monitored. For construction, detours, outages, and all this information can be found on their website.

They also provide easy to print maps of the three main sections, complete with any detours. Greenway is broken up into three sections that we’re going to call North, Central, and South. Today’s adventures? We’re going to focus on the northern section. This spans from Rochester to Avon. Horse trailer parking for this area can be found on Brooks Road north of Scottsville and the Erie Attica Spur in Avon, New York.

The few miles north of Brooks Road that head into the city are not overly horse friendly. And unless you are planning on a kind of drop off situation with a crazy friend like I had, well, I wouldn’t recommend it. Typically, right about this time I’d Go into a scripted story of the journey along the trail.

But with a partner in crime, I thought it’d be a heck of a lot more fun to include her on the storytelling. So I leave you with an interview style narrative as we [00:02:00] discuss our preparations, trail conditions, planning, gear, mishaps, and everything along the way. I hope you enjoy.

Guys, we are here today with Kim McGann, who was crazy enough. To join me on an adventure, because I called her up one day and I’m like, Yay, Kim! You feel an adventurist, do you want to do something stupid? And she says, How stupid? And I go, The first 18 miles of the Genesee Valley Greenway in one shot, starting in the city, ending at the Eureka Trail.

And you said, yes,

Kim: yeah, I was actually just flipping through my phone looking for the original text message, which yes, was something like, Hey, I’ve got a harebrained horse adventure. Do you want in? And I just remember responding. Yes. And then the next message said, what is it?

Lindsay: You committed, you were done.

It was like, awesome. So, what’s actually funny is we’re recording this here at Easton’s, which is where I wrote that message [00:03:00] because a little bit of liquor was involved in making this decision. And my lovely husband, when he heard of my idea and was willing to be my chaperone, said, you know, it might be a good idea if you have somebody go with you.

I was like, fine. And I had to think of somebody on the fly who would be dumb enough to try this adventure with a horse sane enough that can handle What, the first six miles? Yep. Because those first, I think the majority of our entertainment came from the Jesse Valley Pool to getting on the trail at Ballantyne.

Kim: Yeah. We got, well, we kind of had bookends, but yes, we definitely had an entire ride’s worth of adventure in like the first four or five miles. And then we counted off at the end too, though, and we got to see someone get married and that’s, we’ll get to that later. We’ll get there.

Lindsay: I didn’t just remember yelling at the end.

Congratulations!

Kim: I actually, I think I’m, [00:04:00] I think I’m actually really glad that I didn’t quite realize what the first couple miles were going to be like. I wasn’t about to warn you. Yeah, I mean, I had a general idea, you know, and I was like, okay, I but I was like, oh, U of R and the airport really are right here and um And it was, it was the riding on Scottsville Road, you know, the little bit that we had to do that was actually on the road.

But, so our adventure didn’t get

Lindsay: off right away. We were discussing earlier, somebody was like, Oh, Linz, didn’t you hurt yourself? Because the original day we had planned, I don’t even think the weather was the greatest on that day. Yeah. And, uh, my delightful stallion got loose and left what we like to call sex divots in soggy soil.

And I tripped and sprayed an ankle in one. And I’m like. 18, 19 miles, not going to do it. So we

Kim: rescheduled. And then your trailer had, Oh God. Yeah. Her trailer had a, uh, malfunction, a malfunction. So [00:05:00] we wound up, which was fine, but we wound up, uh, I brought Ted, my horse over in my rig, and then we used that to drive ourselves up and that, uh, so that was, that was the other sort of, um, I don’t know why the universe was trying to tell us not to do this.

I think I

Lindsay: heard and texted you at one point going. Um, my, my full might be college.

Kim: Yes, there was that too. So yeah, there was a whole lot to get this like actually off the ground and going, but I figured we had our

Lindsay: three between sex divot, uh, trailer malfunction and a full scared. Yeah. I was like, Hey, what else can go wrong?

We’re good. Yeah.

Kim: Yeah. And we had, um, I think I have a picture somewhere of a, you know, smalls and talls. Uh, so it was fun to have Ted and Pete and the trailer and. And I’ve got adjustable butt bars and, you know, so, uh, just the little size differential. And there’s a size differential between you and I. And so, we were, we were almost the same height on my 17 hand Thoroughbred, a 5’5 and they’re,

Lindsay: [00:06:00] and, and my 6’2 ness on a 15

Kim: hand Oni.

So we, we had great conversation because we were eye to eye, but it was cute to watch them on the trailer together. Uh, you know, their little, little, uh, various sized butts.

Lindsay: The size difference actually made the ride a little more interesting. I know you were like, oh, we only trotted for this amount. And then I looked at my time and the amount of time I was trotting.

And it was quadruple. Because your horse is just

Kim: lollygagging along.

Lindsay: And poor Pete and his short little feet was like constantly jogging to catch up. So I was like, my knees were killing me by the end of that time. I’m going to try a different saddle next time. But

Kim: it’s all good. But yeah, so we, um. You know, the, the, it was a little overcast and a little drizzly when we started, and there were some puddles in the parking lot when we pulled in.

Lindsay: I did. I packed a, uh, a bunch of rain gear thinking they were calling for clearing, but I wasn’t sure what it was going to be.

Kim: I was like, yeah, no. It was kind of hard to figure out what to, what to [00:07:00] pack, because even though we had someone who was going to meet us about halfway, where we were going to have a lunch break and had some supplies, but it was like, well, what are you going to actually need on the trail?

Um, I wound up at the very last minute, which I was glad I did, I had a set of saddlebags that Tend hadn’t actually had on before that I, I had some extra clothing in and he was, um, he was a little, um, he was muy caliente when we, uh, followed him, which is unusual for him, but, uh, you know, when we unloaded him, I could tell that the, This sort of nylon of the saddlebag he’d never had on right behind the saddle was not going well, so I was really glad I made the last minute.

It’s always important to add new

Lindsay: gear just before a

Kim: launch. Correct. I mean, Right. It’s always, it’s always the way to go. Imperative to do it that way. We got the, uh, we, but we got the important starting out shots, you know, here we are, Yep. Like in the parking lot. And, um, turned out to be interesting because we

Lindsay: had a lot of viewers.

Kim: We did. We were, I was, it was interesting, um, going, what’s that [00:08:00] group of people over there? And then there was kind of more people joining and they were kind of mailing around. This one was a pilot. Yeah, there was a, yes, there was a pilot and then it took a little while to figure out there was somebody with a cape.

And then we realized, aha. Oh, it’s a group,

Lindsay: a running group that was all in costume.

Kim: Yes.

Lindsay: And they took off the thing. Same time we

Kim: did. Yes, and they were walking their course they were going to run. So they didn’t take off running like we could just wait here and then they’d be out of sight in a minute. So just this big mass of people with like random things flopping and flapping off of them, moving in a mass in front of us as our two horses, both of whom have very level heads for going.

And you’re sure about that. All right. For as much as

Lindsay: that was a little It’s very odd to start off with. I was very thankful for them because the first obstacle we had was [00:09:00] that stone bridge over the Erie Canal. Yeah. WAAF is an old stone bridge. It is asphalt, I think, if I remember correctly. But it’s only got, what, two, three foot walls on the side, which is a little disconcerting, but they seem to be so focused on that group of weirdos in front of them that they were just like, Oh, we’ll follow

Kim: them like a lap, you know, neither one of them even noticed because yeah, they were just kind of looking at the group in front and marching along.

So, um, and then I think shortly after that, that was right before when the under, we had to go underneath the highway. Yeah. I bet we met a guy with a really cool giant dog. Yes, there was a nice guy with a huge dog who

Lindsay: had a great recall because he was off leash. And I was like, Oh boy, and I was concerned and he just, one call that dog was right with him.

He unleashed it. We said, thanks. Have a nice day. Yep. Capirate on going. Yeah. And then, uh, so

Kim: we go, we go under the highway, which that was fine. And then the, the group of runners that were walking, you know, they [00:10:00] split off and went another direction. And we made, we made a mistake at this point where we said, well, It’s good that we got all the drama and excitement out of the way.

What else do you think we could possibly get? What, you know, what could be more exciting than that? And then, uh,

Lindsay: well, you’re right next to the airport. And with that comes a firefighting training facility. Because it needs to be 20 feet off of the trail. With live action fire, hoses, guys

Kim: in gear. Fire truck with lights on.

We don’t name it. We come around the corner and I’m like, Is that car on fire? Yep, yep. Full fire hose and maybe 20 feet from us. Yeah. Plane

Lindsay: fuselages where they practice everything. The full firefighting. And

Kim: then they stop and they’re like, Hey, look,

Lindsay: it’s the horses. And

Kim: then you’re just like. They were very [00:11:00] nice.

They did, after we was, we sort of went right by them. They did shut their hoses off, but that was another moment. I gotta, I mean, Pete’s always amazing about. Here’s what got me about that. The horses

Lindsay: honestly could care less what was going on over there, but heaven forbid a root made them. Made the asphalt, like, heave a little bit and that was terrifying to walk over.

Oh yeah, firefighters with hoses, you know, I

Kim: got that. I just have to use this, you know, they were, both horses are really good, but I, I gotta give a, I just have to give a shout out for my, so my horse who’s a thoroughbred, he was a steeplechaser and. A turf horse and like people I often see ads on the Rochester Trail Riders page or whatever that people are looking for really sane, solid trail horses and that it always says no thoroughbreds and the two most level headed horses I’ve ever had have been, have been thoroughbreds and it was a moment where I like to tell Ted, I appreciate you, just that he’s named after Ted Lasso.

I appreciate you, Ted, because [00:12:00] I was, he would have been well within his rights to freak out and he and Pete were just like, yeah, well, I guess we keep

Lindsay: going, bro. All right. We got this. Oh, and then we had the sign that was the most confusing sign we ever met, which was a steep grade ahead with a biker going down a hill, steep grade ahead, like, all right, well, I wasn’t expecting a steep grade on a flat railroad

Kim: bed.

And it was, it was, it had rained and it was a little slippery because this was a paved part. So yeah, we were just like, okay, we might want to slow down. And then we went

Lindsay: on an S curve uphill.

Kim: I realize I would, I think I would probably have to describe as a, A gentle slope upward. I can’t, yeah. More than a steep grade, so.

I

Lindsay: think I’m. Dawn up steeper grades, you know, on, uh, handicap ramps.

Kim: Yeah, but then at the top of that was the, like, official start. We had the two, uh, you know, the yellow, uh, gates that

Lindsay: we’re familiar with. The map that actually says, you are here, mile one.

Kim: Yep, and we had our, uh, [00:13:00] we had a nice photo op for, like, symbolic start to the journeys.

I loved it. You

Lindsay: had your thoroughbred between the yellow gates, it was like, this is race is starting, let’s go.

Kim: That’s right. On your mark, get set,

Lindsay: mosey. Mosey, because it was all paved, all of it. Yep. So this full section, you were stuck at a walk. It’s wet, slippery. Yeah. But it was this area right now and from there until we made the road crossing was

Kim: actually really pretty it was and we, um, yeah, the river, um, or the canal, I think that was the river.

Yeah, it’s right there. So some really nice views. I got my camera out and took some pictures with foliage and a nice, you know, grass in between. And it was actually quite pleasant. I think we only met one other hiker

Lindsay: on this section. Yeah, quiet, nice and quiet, wide open. And we did it in the fall. So it was We had the pretty yellow leaves, and there’s something about yellow leaves, wet, black tar, it just, it really, it really

Kim: popped, I loved it.

Yeah, the colors were really nice, so yeah, we had this really [00:14:00] nice, nice stretch, and then we had another, we had another curve, and then that took us, I remember sort of going, wait, we, we go this way? Um, up to our crossing. Yeah, up to the Paul Road parking area, and then you

Lindsay: have to cross, so that was like,

Kim: Burned dairy.

And we got to get to the other side of the road. I discovered this was where teamwork was important because I went to walk Ted up, um, you literally had to press the button to get the light to change as if you were a pedestrian. And I volunteered to go do that with Ted, except he’s so tall that I literally could not reach down to press the button.

It was like below stirrup lever for you.

Lindsay: But don’t worry, you know, micro Pete and I, uh, metal to handle. But what was entertaining, what I enjoyed about that, was you and your camera were crossing Scottsville Road with a ton of traffic on these, you know, Beatles esque white lines going across that the horses are like, Oh my [00:15:00] gosh, what’s going on?

And here you are with your photo taking pictures of the cars that are taking pictures of you.

Kim: Yes. Yes. Always, uh, always the photographer. And you know, since Ted seemed okay to be. He was like, Well, I’m just gonna follow Pete. And, uh, yeah, I figured it would be fun to take pictures of the people who were going, This is not what I expected to see on Saturday

Lindsay: morning, Saturday morning, I’m like, and unfortunately, this marked.

The fun part of the trail where you’re on the road. It was pretty wide and the trail actually is off of the road for a good chunk. You’re right next to it. Right. But you’re, I mean, it’s, you’ve got trucks, trailers,

Kim: buses. We have a, I think we have a sidewalk and we could walk on the. Yep, on the grass for most of it.

But I mean, you were like, this would not be a place that you would take a horse that you were not 100 percent confident that they were traveling the same

Lindsay: and both of them, even though Pete is traffic safe. I mean, he’s my parade horse for crying out loud. He was eyeballing [00:16:00] everything and I we had to stop for one minute just to let Ted have his like brains.

He’s like, Come back. Let’s chill. We’re gonna be okay. Yeah, didn’t do a little loop. Out and back, they had like a little horseshoe loop, which I think gave their brain a break for a

Kim: minute. Yeah. Which was helpful. Yeah, we did. We pulled up, you know, Ted, he was good and he wasn’t actually doing anything. He hadn’t actually done anything, but I could just kind of tell that he was getting a little bit wound up.

And so we did, we pulled off, there was like a parking lot, somebody’s parking lot. And we just kind of stopped there for a minute and chit chatted and whatnot. And then, you know, he’s a little better. And then we had the big obstacle, which was the railroad tracks. You do have to

Lindsay: cross the railroad tracks, like the busy ones.

So you’re just, you’re eyeballing, you’re like, okay, no trains coming. Come on, come on, come on, let’s go, let’s go. There’s a break in traffic because you actually have to be in the road to get across these. And neither of them would go.

Kim: Yeah. And it was not the right place to sort of stand and train, you know.

And I’d, if it was, if the road had been closed, [00:17:00] or for some reason you knew there was no traffic, like. If I’d had three minutes, it probably could have gotten Ted to go across, like the way he, same thing with Pete, but you just don’t have it. You’re like, oh, here’s our, here’s our 30 seconds and kind of get this done.

So.

Lindsay: I, uh, sacrificed myself to a quick jump off because, well, my horse is already on the ground.

Kim: It was another good teamwork moment, because I’m like, yeah, I’m not getting off because I can’t get back up. And Pete’s

Lindsay: willing to follow me anywhere, even into a, you know, a pit of lava, as long as I’m on the ground helping her.

So I crossed it and Ted just was like, well, if he made it, I can make it. Yeah. Thank God both of them went right over. Yeah.

Kim: And then the next. You know, we, we, we were, we were almost to Comer Territories, but then we had the last little bit up to the intersection, we had like a sound wall on one side of the sidewalk.

So we had a sidewalk and there was a little bit of a breakdown lane, but the other side was just like a solid sidewall. So yes, no place to go. And so we’re just walking down to the giant intersection between, uh, Scott’s Michael, but [00:18:00] 52,

Lindsay: that’s okay because one thing we spotted going over that fringe before we hit that wall was a port a

Kim: pot.

Yes, that is fine. At this

Lindsay: point in time, I’m like, that’s where we’re

Kim: going. And that, that was actually, so we, you know, we get to the, we get to the main intersection, you know, we’re making a right hand turn, so it’s no problem. But yeah, we, it was a little bit, you know, slight detour, but, um, do you remember the name of the park?

Yeah, it was Black Creek, uh, Fishing Access. Yeah, and it was great. It was, um, you know, it was away from the traffic. Uh, there was an actual port a potty, which was unlucky, really.

Lindsay: It was a nice big one, too, so you didn’t have to, like, you know,

Kim: kick all crank. Yeah, and you know, uh, and more importantly, especially for short me with tall horse, um, ample rocks and a picnic table to be able to get back on.

And so Uh, you know, gave both horses a break, with it being a fishing

Lindsay: access, it did have a boat launch, and we did attempt to give the horses a water break to what we were leading him into [00:19:00] lava at that point, and they were like, heck no. Well,

Kim: you know, you can lead a horse to water, but he won’t go in without a snorkel, and I left mine.

Lindsay: The detour did give us a nice change, because it put us on a, uh, a residential street that paralleled Ballantyne. And we decided to, after checking the map real quick, oh my god, it, this is going to come right out literally across the street from the railroad bed and the Genesee Valley Trail, as we all know and

Kim: love.

Right, right. Yeah, that was great. I was so happy when you, when you said, hey, we could just follow this road. And I have to say, so then we’re, you know, it feels like you’re just kind of on the suburban back road. And I have to say, extra friendly people on that road. We have one or two drivers and people in their yard.

Yeah.

Lindsay: I don’t think they ever expected a horse to come down their street. I don’t think a horse has come down the street since the 1920s. How they were ecstatic to see just two ponies and being friendly waving back and. Sure enough, we made the corner and poof, there were [00:20:00] the fancy yellow gates that brought us on that trail.

Kim: Yeah, and it was, uh, it was, it was nice to be there both to be sort of like

Lindsay: The stress. Yeah. I don’t think we were on that more than about 30 seconds when I’m like, we need to move. I cannot do this one, two mile an hour walking thing anymore. Yeah, it was, it

Kim: took us a long time. Yeah, there was a lot to navigate.

And like, you know, it was funny when we When we got to the, um, you know, where the trail is stone and stone dust and, you know, back, back to forest on both sides. And I was like, I’m really proud, like, both horses, you know, really proud that, like, we did that. And I don’t ever want to ride that section again.

I don’t. I’m,

Lindsay: I’m happy I did it. It’s for a challenge. It’s something that I want to do is the whole entirety of the Jesse Valley Greenway. And there are other road sections further down the way, but nothing like going through the city of

Kim: Rochester. So that would definitely be a, like, if you’re, you know, unless you [00:21:00] also want to have this symbolism of having done the whole thing.

That first section is definitely not particularly horse friendly and you’re, you’re not missing a lot, a whole lot of scenery.

Lindsay: You’re not. Um, however, if you do want to give up one of your nine lives, go for it. Right,

Kim: right. Yeah. But yeah, we, when we first then, uh, you know, got on the trail, um, you know, got off the road and, and on the parts, um, that, Uh, on the part that, you know, has good footing and trees, we just a straight away as far as we could see and a really lovely trot just,

Lindsay: and, uh, my husband who was monitoring us through app, like the Apple tracker app there, um, he got a kick out of it because we were going so slow for so long that when we picked up a trot, that little line just kept, it was like on the map.

And he’s like, wow, you guys cruise. Like you’re literally going three miles an hour. Up to 12 to 15 miles an hour, just in one pace.

Kim: Yeah, and [00:22:00] this too, if I remember right, this is about Two, when the, um, the weather actually really started to get quite nice. So it had been kind of overcast and, you know, it had rained in the morning and we thought we might get drizzled on, but yes, we started moving, you know, really headed, heading South.

It like, good. Yeah. And, and then the, the clouds sort of started dissipating and we got a little, some peaks and blue skies. We were like, Oh, this is actually the perfect temperature to be

Lindsay: in. I wasn’t hot. The horses weren’t hot. Nobody was sweating. It was fantastic. We did run

Kim: into some friends of yours.

Yes. Anne? Yeah, Anne and, um, two of her friends who, um, do, uh, work, I think she said, picking up. Yeah, trail maintenance of some sort. Yeah, on the greenway. So, um, yeah, we bumped into them. You never know when you’re going to see another horse person and stopped and had a nice chat and introduced the horses and, um, so that was fun.

And we, uh, there was also the occasional bikers we started encountering, which was [00:23:00] Stressful.

Lindsay: I’m just going to sum it up when stressful, not all bikers. Um, there were a handful of them that if they saw us coming immediately stopped, said hello. I cannot stress how much it means just to say hi. Let the horse know if you’re a human being, and not that swear words that might come off, and thanks, at least now I know you’re a human, even though you swore at me the whole time you rode past.

Kim: Yeah, and, and especially, you know, especially for folks coming up behind, you know, to, which it’s hard because we don’t hear them. The bell. Yes, we had someone with a bell, which was wonderful.

Lindsay: And she did. She rang it way back. So, you know, it caught our attention. So we turn around and can face them and the horses were perfectly fine with it.

As long as they knew it was coming and not a surprise.

Kim: Yeah. So that the vast majority of the bikers that we encountered were really delightful. Yep. Um, and [00:24:00] very nice. Um, but we did have one or two that, um, were, they were, were not really interested in sharing the trail and also didn’t realize that. That, that’s, that’s the, the rule.

The rules. Also that they have to share. Um, and so we, we did, we spent a little time chatting about how we could, you know, kind of try to, try to spread the idea that, you know, we need to share the trail and, well, here’s the thing that you and

Lindsay: I, like, after, well, after what, 15 miles of running these things, we actually discovered a method to our madness.

At one point, if they were nice to us, Did you know we would actually yield to them? But if we were in the lights, whoops, all of a sudden we don’t have any control over our horses and they’re in the middle of the

Kim: road. Yes, and that is actually something I’ve done. I ride on the Greenway a fair bit. And, um, you know, Ted, um, does a lot of babysitting duty because he’s good about that.

And he is very generally really good about bikes, especially the ones approaching him. If bikers won’t slow down, I mean literally aren’t going to slow [00:25:00] down or stop, and I, you know, I’ll yell and very politely but loudly ask, I just park in perpendicular across the trail. Yeah, and I’m lucky enough to have a horse that’s okay with that, but it’s challenging.

The admin

Lindsay: of, you know, headphones, AirPods, earbuds kind of thing, usually the rule is if you’re hiking or biking, You wear one, so you’re still aware of your surroundings, and people don’t do that. They put both in, and they have noise cancelling. They’re in their own world, and they have no idea that you’re trying to get their attention.

Yeah,

Kim: and that was something to realize too, because I’m um, I’m not a quiet person, and so when I’m Especially, especially when I’m trying to be loud and so it took a couple times to realize and seeing them, you know, pull them out of their ears that they literally couldn’t hear, you know, couldn’t hear me.

My,

Lindsay: my favorite comment from one of the guys though, when we’re saying hi, hi, can you say hello?

Kim: Can you

Lindsay: just say hi? Say the alphabet and he’s like, I’m not a talker. I’m like, and we, and you speak. Thank you. [00:26:00]

Kim: Well, one of the things that we, you know, we talked about and that I thought of and I, in my subsequent rides, you know, on the Greenway, um, you know, having encountered more bikers that I, I think I’m, I may start doing is, um, you know, one way to get them to stop is to have something for them.

And I was thinking that carrying little bags, even if it was just a couple of peppermints, but also with a note in there. You know, that, um, says, Hey, thank you for slowing down for a horse. This is the rule, you know, and this is the rule, um, might be a nice way to sort of try to spread some, you know, goodwill, but also the knowledge that it really is for everybody’s safety.

It’s not just for us, but we don’t want them to get hurt if they sneak up behind a horse. I’m sure lots of people are saying the videos on Facebook of horses kicking bikers, you know, so we don’t want that to happen either. And we want everybody to be able to happily share the trails. So. Almost all the bikers that we interviewed were really nice.

There

Lindsay: was only, there was just a couple of them, and boy, they, they made an impression, I’ll tell ya.

Kim: [00:27:00] They did. Um, but speaking

Lindsay: of safety and regulations on the trails, I’m not sure if you noticed, there’s um, the Friends of the Genesee Valley Greenway are doing a survey for equestrian riders. Um, it is something I pinned to the top of the Rochester Trail Riders Facebook group, and By all means, if you guys are a rider or driver of the trail in any way, shape, or form, go fill out that survey because it asks a ton of questions about what you want to see on the trail, what features would you like, and what safety issues or concerns do you have on the trail.

So just go throw that out there.

Kim: Go do it. I did it already. Me too. Definitely. It’s the way I’m, I’m, um, in, I live in Avon and I’m a kind of a member of a little ad hoc committee on the Avon trails committee. We met a couple times this summer to talk about how we might apply for some grant money to improve, um, the Erie Attica Trail area and where it connects to the Greenway.

And there was, um, a lot of talk on the committee about [00:28:00] making things bet, you know, better for bikers, which is wonderful. We want lots of people to use the trail. Um, but I, I made a point to talk about, you know, be, be sure to mention, you know, how much having lots of riders use the trail and especially in this kind of Avon area with the good parking to do

Lindsay: with parking.

I should actually speak to parking because as we’re traveling towards Scottsville. Um, it’s the Brooks Road. It’s Brooks and River? No, River’s out the other side. East River Road. So, Brooks parking lot is, was put in by RG& E. Actually, RG& E is the one that technically owns almost all of that trail, believe it or not, and gifted it over.

But they’re the ones that put in the other big trailer parking area at the Brooks Road and has a little tiny conductor and, and gets you on. So, if you want to start at the north end with the horses and not, and skip the whole city part. You’re only missing about a mile of trail to the north of Brooks Road, but it’ll get you a good start where you can do a down and back to Scottsville type of

Kim: [00:29:00] thing.

Yeah. That’s yeah. Good parking matters a lot. Otherwise

Lindsay: Brooks and Avon are your two parking areas. There’s nothing really in between.

Kim: Yeah. Those are the main, yeah. And trailer, unless you’re getting dropped off. Yeah. If

Lindsay: you’re doing a down and back. Yeah, that’s your only spots. Um, there used to be a place in the Scottsville area that would let you park it, but it’s since been sold and there’s no place to park anywhere in there either, unfortunately.

Yeah.

Kim: So yeah, we had, it was pretty uneventful heading down to, um, the park in Scottsville.

Lindsay: Yeah. We did a lot of trot, walked, trot, walked, just trying to make up time. We did have to go under the, uh, New York State

Kim: Thruway. Yes. Yes, that’s right. And we also, actually, before we got to the Thruway, we had a nice stop at Lock 32.

Yes. Where, um, which is right near where Whaley Farms is. It’s just over the hill from them. But, um, they’ve done a lot, like historically, you know, to sort of, um, provide [00:30:00] some history there. And there’s a nice marker now. And so we had a nice break. I am

Lindsay: impressed with how many picnicky areas there are.

There’s a ton of spots to stop and picnic. I think the only thing they missed on those is a hitching post.

Kim: Yeah. And the related to the picnic areas, um, is. Every road crossing, um, has a UR Keir sign. Yes. Um, but every road crossing, um, also had a mounting block. Had stone mounting blocks with a lovely, Charming image of horses on the, like, on the side.

Yeah, they were edged into both sides at the top step. And

Lindsay: they were usually three, four step mounting blocks. They were a decent size.

Kim: Two or three, yeah. So, um, you’d probably be fine with them unless you were extra short on an extra giant. But they were pretty, they were, they were hefty. They were.

Lindsay: Lightly tall for a tall person getting on a short horse.

But by that time I barely lift my legs anyways. So

Kim: it’s welcome. [00:31:00] Yeah. But yeah, so we, we had a brief stop, um, at lock 32, which was, which was very nice. Um, but yeah, then continued on. Um, but yeah, we had to go under the thruway. Um, and as a bonus, when we were actually under the thruway and you know, it’s, it’s echoey and a little dark.

But there was, um, there were ample pigeons flying around as well. I got a kick out of the fact that there was literally a pigeon egg on the ground.

Lindsay: I, and you were like, Oh my, there’s pigeons. Pete’s looking at the fact that there was a puddle because that was terrifying.

Kim: Uh, and there was a bench under there.

Yeah. There’s a little bench. Like, I’m not sure if people hang out under there, but just before

Lindsay: that, there was a sign for like eggs and there was a house like way back in the cornfields too. I’m like, Oh, if we get hungry there, you know,

Kim: but Pete led the way on that one. And then, uh, but then, so, you know, once they got under there, Ted, Ted was fine too.

And yeah. Then we said, chug right along, and we kept going, and that was, that was, we were like, well, that’s going to be our [00:32:00] last big obstacle. Yeah, maybe. This is also about when we realized that the map was a little off by about a mile. I think

Lindsay: it’s because on the map, it had mile one. Being where we started practically, which technically it was, but that’s not where they put the first mile marker.

Yeah, so that was after that whole firefighter fun

Kim: thing. Yes, so that, that the actual first or the, the actual first mile distance wise was, you know, we started at the trailer at the, at the pool and then a mile later that would have been it. But what was They started that

Lindsay: as miles zero. Yes.

Kim: When we got to the Yellow Gates and up the gentle slope that was not a safe grade.

No. So, because we had a friend, um, who was going to meet us. Do you remember the name of the potluck? In Scottsville, Cat oh, Cat um, Catawagas Park? I think it,

Lindsay: yeah, might have.

Kim: [00:33:00] So, I’d have to look it up. Um, quite near where, um, River Road connects with, um, 383, by the Artisan Coffee Shop. There’s a, a lovely park

Lindsay: there.

In the summer, all the kids are in the creek with inner tubes, having a good time down there. Yeah,

Kim: so. So we’d arranged to have a friend, um, meet us there, um, with some water for the horses and, um, a little food and, um, just to kind of muck forks

Lindsay: and stuff in case anybody made a mistake while

Kim: they were there.

Um, and by then the sun had come out as well, but we did realize, um, as I was keeping in touch with our friend who was meeting us that we were basically about a mile behind where we thought we were going to be, um, which was fine. But, um, yeah, we wound up, um, the, the weather was just beautiful and the park had some lovely picnic tables and so we were able to just get off the horses.

Didn’t want any of the food we had brought for them. They just wanted to eat grass. I was fine that I tied

Lindsay: him to a picnic table and just let go. . Yeah.

Kim: Um, and you know, I was able, it was warm enough [00:34:00] actually, that I took Ted’s saddle off and sponged him off and then he was dry.

Lindsay: Hell yeah. An hour later. And the blue skies, it was gorgeous.

It was, oh gosh, what was it? Man, my lunch was fantastic. I never knew a bologna sandwich could taste so good. I was

Kim: so hungry. Yeah, I was hungry by then, too. I had some, I brought a sort of nut, you know, mixed nut bag and some, uh, some seltzer water. But it was just, you know, even though, you know, I’ve got a comfy horse, you’ve got a comfy horse.

But it was really nice just to be off and be able to stretch and walk around a little. Um, you know, use the facilities and just to chat. What facilities? Well, find a faraway spot. I did have

Lindsay: to investigate some corn later, if I remember correctly, that I just couldn’t even get to.

Kim: So we teased. We did have, um, so we stayed about 45 minutes and just had a nice time.

Nice chat, relaxed a little bit, and the horses seemed happy, and then, you know, I tacked Ted back up, and then Pete’s bridle back on, and helped, [00:35:00] you know, put all the equipment back in our friend’s car. Thank you, Ann Katie, who’s not on cue.

Lindsay: Oh, you, you know, a little supported ride

Kim: was perfect. It was great.

She took a fun video of us too, when we all kind of coming across that last bridge. Yep, coming in, and um, yeah, then we headed off, and that was, we were sort of, um, we had kind of one more, So

Lindsay: about a mile to the next road crossing. Yep. And that was our last road crossing.

Kim: But there was a special guest at that road crossing.

A delightful

Lindsay: guest. Um, but before we could reach him, there was somebody in a car. Who turned their engine on the

Kim: second you were right next to his vehicle. Oh my gosh. It was not a quiet engine. No, yeah, that, I forgot, oh my gosh, I almost forgot. Yeah, this was another thank you for not killing me Ted moment.

There was a car parked and we were just about to walk through the, you know, the yellow gates. We just crossed the road and I mean, the car was right there. I mean, I could have like put my foot. You

Lindsay: know, to [00:36:00] the weirdo. Like, it was what you’re made of. You don’t know.

Kim: Literally, as Ted was next to the driver, they turned their car on.

Yeah. And I just, um, blessed. That was a spook. Yeah. Yeah. Uh, blessed that he just went, hmm. And that was, that was about it. But, um, yeah, you just. You never know.

Lindsay: There were some words flowing, if I remember correctly. Yeah, I might have yelled a little bit. Well, you know, it spooked you, it spooked me, it spooked both horses.

Kim: Yeah. Oh my gosh. It was just unexpected. I mean, I don’t know if they didn’t They didn’t do it on purpose.

Lindsay: Yeah. They had no idea it was going to cause a problem. Yeah. It’s not their fault.

Kim: Yep. But, you know, that’s part of trail riding, right? But, Part of riding.

Lindsay: The good news is, if you did come off, just on the other side of those yellow gates is one of those, uh, mounting blocks.

Kim: That’s right. That’s right. A beautiful three step mounting block, upon whom rests, Us, my lovely husband,

Lindsay: who knew it was our last road crossing before we hit eight miles of trail between Scottsville and Avon. So it [00:37:00] was his last chance of coming over and saying hi. And, uh, pretty much I just jumped off, gave him a horse and said, I got to go pee.

And, uh, Said our goodbyes, and he wished us some good travels, and said he’d pick us up at the end. It was fantastic.

Kim: So that is actually probably one of the things that we should mention, because I’m sure lots of riders would be interested, is that, um, other than that one port a potty that we happened to see when we were By happenstance.

By happenstance, and that’s really in the sort of city part, um, you are on your own for, uh, au naturel, uh, use of the restrooms. So. Um, planning, um, there are mount, as I said, there are mounting blocks. So, you know, before and after road crossings, if you’re concerned about being able to get back on your horse, are your best bets.

There are plenty of places, you know, you’re not going to go more than a mile without there being a spot that you

Lindsay: can, believe, believe no trace method of doing your outside business [00:38:00] is PSP, whatever, have a nice day. It doesn’t exist. But to always carry a trowel if you have to do more than that.

Thankfully, that was not the case on our road trip.

Kim: But that, that is important. So if you’re, you know, if you are doing a longer ride on the Greenway or, you know, it’s summertime and you’re, especially, you know, you’re hydrating a lot and whatnot. But, you know, be, being aware of that. So, since this

Lindsay: is a long, boring section, with nothing really in the middle, with the exception of a, the Lehigh Valley Trail and, uh, yeah, a wedding, um, what, what did you pack for your trip?

Kim: Oh, um, what did I pack? I was pretty light. So, um, I, I did pack, um, a halter and a lead rope. So I tied the lead rope around his neck. Fashionably. And I, I did, I was wearing a halter top because I had my halter draped over me. My saddlebags that I had chosen to use weren’t big enough to store the halter. Um, but I had a multi tool.

I had [00:39:00] some electrical tape, vet wrap, and a sanitary pad. Um, which was actually for horse bleeding, if that happened. Um, I had some snacks for me and a water bottle. And that, that might have been it because you had first aid stuff. I did

Lindsay: carry. So I like to carry a, um, a camelback. So that’s the water for me.

And it’s also got a couple of zipper pockets and in those I carry my lunch. Um, along with a human first aid kit and an equine first aid kit. Pretty much things that if we got into a big pickle, I can sedate them and, uh, give them pain meds until help arrives, pretty much. Along with a collapsible bucket, which is handy because if you needed to give your horse water at any point, there were places where you could go down to the river, go down to a creek to pick up some water, [00:40:00] but having a collapsible bucket Made it so I wasn’t worried about stop where somebody had to bring us water.

Kim: Yeah, and pro tip as of November, December 2022, you can buy collapsible buckets for cheap at TJ Maxx and Marshalls in their cleaning section. I now have one and it lives in my trailer, but um, it was, I don’t know, like 7. 99 or something. They’re pretty cheap. Yeah, so I’m, and would be very easy. I could just took it to my saddle.

Um, so yeah, it would have been super easy to pack. Yeah, this one I

Lindsay: get little just fit on the outside of my pack. No big deal. Yep. And it was like,

Kim: I mean, it, it would be two or, I mean, two or three gallons. I mean, like it was a teeny tiny, they’re pretty size

Lindsay: when they come out. So that’s one thing I like to carry because worst case scenario, I carry three liters of water for myself and I could even parse that off for my horse in there.

Yeah. So it. It is something that I do like to carry along with it. [00:41:00] Hoofpick is another big

Kim: one. Yes, oh, hoofpick. I had one of those too. Yeah,

Lindsay: because you never know when you’re picking up a rock and you Yeah. The

Kim: thing that I like to have, um, on, on my multi tooler that I sort of think is most important, um, is wire cutters.

I’m always, even though we had no plans to go trailblazing or anything like that, but You

Lindsay: step off a trail, either direction is fence,

Kim: so Yeah, so I, I do like to carry, you know, if I’m going to be out at all or places I don’t know, I try really hard to have.

Lindsay: Uh, traveling down the, down when we got to the Lehigh Bailey crossing, because those that don’t know or haven’t been there, um, the Lehigh Bailey trail does intersect the Genesee Bailey Greenway with one of those nice, big, gigantic train trestles that goes over the Genesee River, and we met up with a little cute little family there, their

Kim: kids.

We did! That was one of the, you know, and that, it’s one of the delightful things I find about riding, in addition to the actual riding part, but You know, I was a horse crazy kid and just anytime I saw a horse in public, you know, and I would, had it, yes, and I remember the [00:42:00] few times that it was okay and it was like this magic thing and, um, and one of the, so it was really fun to bump into a family and one of the things I always, of course, always adorable when the kids want to pet your horse.

But I find it so charming when the adults are equally enchanted, and it’s just fun to have somebody come up and ask about your worst, and yours is the prettiest, and

Lindsay: you’re like, of course, that’s the prettiest, but yours is the prettiest. Well, of course, mine’s the prettiest. Yeah,

Kim: and of course, both, both Ted and Pete were, uh, you know, do you, do you have any cookies for me?

I mean, you know, happy to get some head scratches and, you know, just good ambassadors. But yeah, there was a nice family that was out. We had a lovely chat with them. They were really friendly. And then

Lindsay: it was just long stretches. I think I got off there and walked for a little while. You know, I bought a saddle.

It was custom made for him. It’s custom made for me and my knees were killing me. So I went with the choice of riding in a Western saddle because I could put [00:43:00] saddle bags, I can put items on it that, you know, to carry type of thing. If any thing was an issue, I’m like, Oh, why wouldn’t this be comfortable?

It’s a, I’ve done this for miles and miles in the Adirondacks, but I don’t know what it was. That saddle and me, we might have to part ways at some point, because it was not what I wanted it to

Kim: be. Yeah, I was um, so I got off a couple times and walked too, which is more, you know, just to kind of stretch my legs and whatnot.

And I was riding English and I was riding in my, I have a just black country all purpose saddle. This is actually the fourth horse that it’s fit with just some minor tweaks. You’re lucky. I, I am lucky and, uh, but I, you know. Uh, I’m always great. I’ve always been grateful that it is fit different horses, um, because it is so comfortable.

And I have to say that I was able to go, you know, we were on the horses for six hours almost. And I did fine with my saddle. I was really grateful for that, even though it wasn’t nice to get off and walk, but that’s so [00:44:00] important. Like, you know,

Lindsay: having tech that fits you and your horse. And he was fine. Well, we got to the end and I took that saddle off.

It was. Perfect wear, perfect sweat, not a ruffle thing. So he was comfortable, I can tell, not me. So next time I think I’m going to use my, uh, my endurance

Kim: saddle instead. Another, um, just tip, uh, if you are doing, you know, a ride that’s a little, you know, longer than what you’re usually doing and you might not be able to, you know, this was a ride where it would have been tricky, especially where we were now.

Cause we had eight miles with no road crossing like. You know, uh, you could really call it quits, you know, or easily, um, but they make a fabulous product called Body Glide, and if there’s any place that you are worried that you might have some chafing, um, it is totally worth the 6. 99 that it costs you for a stick, and that is another thing that was in my bag, um, because just once you get a little rubbed on a sensitive area, it can be quite [00:45:00] painful, so that’s, that’s a great, a great item to just kind of keep You know, uh, in your, packed in your bag that can really save you a lot of misery in the longterm while we’re talking, even as well as tack that fits.

But, you know.

Lindsay: At this point, I think, yeah, it was a lot of, you know, walk, trot up, down, you know, who was taking a turn walking, who was riding, kind of thing. Um, till we got our last mount. Yeah. It was a ways down. That was like a mile or two from the actual Eriatica, uh, junction, if I remember.

Kim: Yes, we, um, because I remember I got off.

So again, short rider, tall horse, uh, and middle aged. So not athletic enough to get on from the ground. That’s me. Um, and, uh, we had gotten to the point in the trail. We were probably three miles from the junction with the Erie Attica trail, which is probably good to know. If

Lindsay: you don’t have a GPS, they actually have mile markers.

They

Kim: do. So,

Lindsay: you know, if, if a GPS fails on you at [00:46:00] some point, or you can literally just be like, Oh, where’s the next mile marker? And They’re

Kim: labeled. Yeah. And, uh, I knew from previous rides earlier in the year that they’re, um, that coming up there was going to, in about half a mile, there was going to be, uh, a set of boulders that were kind of set off to the side.

So I got off. I thought, Oh, this will be good. I’ll have a little half mile walk for me. And then we got there and the boulders were gone. It turned out

Lindsay: to be more like, I think we were walking for well over a

Kim: mile. I mean, which, which was fine, but I was just amused because I literally could not find any place that I could get back on.

But yeah. Then there is a, maybe a mile from the Eriadica Crossing, if that, um, there’s a, a little creek, uh, that has a nice, um, It’s a picnic area. Yeah, it has a little picnic area. It has some really cool, um, bike, uh, rests, like it’s stone. They, next to a picnic table, they have, um, big blocks of stone that have had a gap cut into them where you could rest a bike.

Also doubles as a [00:47:00] nice mounting block. I really enjoy using the picnic table. That’s about my height. So I was able to get back on. Um, and uh, yeah, then we continued on. And then, and, that’s optional, that’s optional. I’m like, do you hear

Lindsay: music? I hear music. There’s a party

Kim: going on. And then Sure enough, um, I’m trying to remember the name of that mansion that’s right there.

Yeah, so it’s the Jerris Estate. Aha. So, um, most people, so they hold weddings there. They also often have estate sales there. It’s on River Road. I just remembered because they

Lindsay: had a haunted house there too.

Kim: Yes, which you can still see the remains of the scarecrow, um, in the trees up high in the back field, um, from the trail that we were on.

But yes, we heard music and we could actually, because most of the leaves were gone. Yes. We could see that there was a wedding and we literally could see the bride and the groom starting to

Lindsay: walk down. Yeah, the bride was going walking down the aisle. It was awesome. And then, um, you know, you could [00:48:00] hear the, the, the pastor, whoever they had officiating, go through, you know, the whole, um, ceremony.

Yep. And, you know, we just kept walking right along. Until we actually made it up the junction, took our photos, and once again, all by the Euretica sign. It was like, hey, this is the end of the world, woohoo! And I think just about the time we got up, because there’s a bit of a hill

Kim: to get up. A gentle slope, not a steep grade, a gentler slope.

Lindsay: A gentle slope. Um, got up to the top and you could hear them. I now pronounce you man and wife. And then yelled. We yelled. We had a, we had a party for him. So whoever got married on that weekend, I think it was the last weekend in October. Yeah. Um, congratulations.

Kim: So we’re on the last stretch now, so, and this is a stretch that, um, I’ve ridden on a lot of.

You’ve been on a lot. Constantly. Yeah. So it’s about a mile, um, from the Greenway back to the, the Eriadica Trail. There’s, it’s, it’s flat with like, S curves, two [00:49:00] little S curves, so, um, people vary in how often they keep their dogs on a leash, um, we didn’t encounter any loose dogs. But it is just something to be aware of that that stretch tends to be the actual Erie Attica Trail is generally will have more people on it than the Greenway, right?

Because

Lindsay: it’s literally, it’s literally a mile. So if you go down and back, it’s like. Quick, easy, fast. Two miles.

Kim: Yeah. Um, so we, we get to the, we kind of go around the final s-curve. We’re chatting about, oh, you know, we’re excited, we’re almost done, and how much excitement we’ve had. And we’re kind of, we’re talking about the firemen and the runners and all this stuff.

And as we sort of the, the last bit, it’s probably. It’s maybe half a mile. Yeah, easily half a mile. Straight as an arrow. And you can see the bridge. You can see onto the bridge that, you know, you go over it again to the Eriatica parking lot. You can see the bridge was not vacant. Yes. So as we get [00:50:00] closer, we start going It looks like there’s people on the bridge.

I’m thinking gaggle was, the word gaggle was used multiple times. Yeah, gaggle of people, but, but we can’t quite tell what’s going on. I said, well, maybe it’s another wedding. It is actually, that bridge is a popular place for people to take, you know, graduation photos or wedding photos or prom photos. They never seem

Lindsay: to move forward.

They just

Kim: stayed there. Yeah, like a lot of people. And, but then as we really get closer, all of a sudden the bridge is cleared. Sam’s one person on the

Lindsay: far side of the bridge and as we’re coming over, there’s my delightful husband and our ride home taking pictures of us coming across the bridge for the finale.

Because the bridge is literally the end of the trail, it’s the last thing you do before you hit the parking lot.

Kim: So we get, we’re probably halfway across the bridge. Um, both Ted and Pete have done this before, but, you know, it clump, clomps and makes noise, [00:51:00] and it’s just always nice to get across it. And as we get about halfway across the bridge, we realize the gaggle comes back.

The gaggle is about 25 bike riders who are getting ready to come onto the bridge to do a photo shoot, and as we are still on the bridge, The first ones start to come on the bridge, to which I very politely said, yeah, I’m out very loudly, please wait

Lindsay: in a, in a bit of a panic tone. Well, they did. They stopped very quickly.

Um, hardened like the Red Sea, unfortunately, and expected us to go through the middle of 15 or so bikers on either side. And you. Advise them to stick to one side, please. Yes.

Kim: So there, uh, yes, it was a Red Sea situation and there was not a whole lot of space and it was definitely, even [00:52:00] with good horses, I mean, any spooking and somebody would have gotten trampled and tangled in a bike.

Lindsay: Yes. So even a horse stepping off sideways wouldn’t be a very bad situation because, uh

Kim: So we did, um, eventually get everybody to go on one side so we could go by. And, um, so we just step off the bridge and we’re, we’re literally, I mean, 25 yards from the parking lot. And I’m thinking, well, we’ve certainly had our excitement.

And then, someone, I looked up, and someone was hovering a drone over us, and really close. Yes, and what I said was, oh, a drone, as long as it does us how many lower. And the gentleman with the drone said, Oh, would you like it to come lower? And proceeded to drop the drone.

Lindsay: That was And then the second he realized that that was a mistake because the horses were not paying [00:53:00] attention to the drone, all of a sudden

Kim: noticed the drone.

Yes. So he, he did, he, he sent the drone zooming back to the air. And so we’re, we’re coming down. There’s this last slope, gentle, not steep, great, gentle slope. We’re walking down. Can see the rig, right? We’re almost there and I’m thinking of all the things that we’ve done today and I’m patting Ted because I’m going, Oh my gosh, like he’s taken such good care of me and he, what a good guy and I, I’m literally, I can see the trail where I’m almost there and a gentleman on a recline bike with a tall flag off of it.

Is late to join on the bridge for the photo shoot and is racing across the parking lot towards us on his recline bike with his flag and Ted decides, Nope, no, thank you. So has, um, a little bit of a moment to which I went, Hey, uh, I can basically, um, spit on my trailer from here. [00:54:00] And I just got off. Done because I’m not falling off.

Five yards from my trailer.

Lindsay: That trailer never looked so good.

Kim: Oh, I was staring nicely down. That

Lindsay: last, last stretch, just, it, it goes forever. For anybody that drives, um, 390, and you hit that rush Scottsville exit, and then you’re just like, when is Emma ever going to get here? Now imagine you’re doing that, but you’re on the Greenway.

Yes. Because there is nothing. There’s

Kim: nothing, except a lot of lovely scenery and some good footing. Oh yeah, oh yeah. But, but yeah. But yeah, it, it, I mean, you’re in the long haul, you take a stretch. I’ve actually done that on foot before I’m getting, you know, doing. Some walking to get fit for something I was trying to do and it’s, it’s a little walk, you know, there’s not, you gotta pack, pack your stuff.

But yeah, it was great to be back in the trailer. The horses did drink this time.

Lindsay: They did. We finally gave them water and they’re like, oh, you’ve been starving us this whole time. We’ve tried

Kim: multiple times to get you to drink. Yep. Lots, lots [00:55:00] of German muffin cookies for both of them. Alfalfa hay on the trailer.

They,

Lindsay: uh. Pete enjoyed his alfalfa hay immensely.

Kim: Everybody does. We like to uber people in style, you know. So we, um, yeah, we loaded up and then You got to play passenger in your own front one. I did. I got to ride passenger in my own rig, which was fun. And we, so we dropped Pete off. Yep. And then, uh, yeah, took, took Ted home and So what did you do?

Did you do anything special or particular for Pete that night or the next day? Did he seem tired or You know what, he

Lindsay: I turned him out and he ran up the hill because he’s on a steep hill for his paddock and ran up there and screamed at his ladies, um, because he is a stallion and he’s like, I’m home. I’m like, Oh, shut up.

But, uh, yeah, he got an extra meal, uh, for, I don’t normally feed my horses dinner. So he got an actual dinner, which he was very excited about. And because he got dinner, so does his boyfriend that lives with him, who [00:56:00] was wow amazed that, you know, food comes twice in a day. Excellent. Yeah. Ground bale and a lot of water.

Yeah. And salt.

Kim: Yes. Yeah. So Ted, Ted also drank quite a bit when we got home. And so I refilled him a couple times. And, um, I didn’t give him, he didn’t get extra food cause he’s pretty well fed at the moment, but he did get the next day off very much. And, uh, and then I had a gentle day or two with him after that.

Yeah.

Lindsay: Uh, I didn’t have a gentle day after that because my trailer was still busted and you were kind enough to unload your horse and drive your trailer back to my place and drop it off. I forgot about that. So that I can go to a horse show with another horse and buy the next day. Yes. Because glutton for punishment.

I didn’t woo very well, but whatever.

Kim: That’s great. No, I, I, uh, I’m new to having a rig. I’ve, I’ve only, um, I’ve only had my truck actually for about a year. And then this, the trailer, I had a different trailer before, but I’ve, I’ve only had a rig for about a year. Um, I, I keep saying that I owe the entire horse community about [00:57:00] a million rides because everybody was so kind to me with all my horses, giving me rides both to go riding and to many, many vet appointments and whatnot.

So I’m, I’m always happy to try to provide transport. Well, I, I owe the horse community a lot of Ubers. You

Lindsay: know, it says a lot about the community. One of the reasons why I started this podcast also is to let people know how great. of a community Rochester is, and especially for equestrians. We live in a very horse heavy area with a lot of amenities, um, and Rochester recently just became the second friendliest city in the United States.

So, go Rochester! So if you’re, uh, listening, and you’re like, oh, you know, maybe I want to move up this way, and you’re a horse person, we’d love to have you. It,

Kim: it really is the secret, you know, the hidden gem of, uh, it’s, it’s hard to find places that have. So much open space and public space that you can ride or drive on that also have a reasonable cost of living.

It doesn’t [00:58:00] cost a fortune to live here. Um, so, you know, I, it’s, it’s, you know, Southern Pines and, and Aitkin. And I mean, those are wonderful places, but you got to have a particular kind of job, which plus, you know, but I don’t have that

Lindsay: working for a college.

Kim: Oh, wait, you work for a college too. So I do. Um, but you know, that I, I really do think it’s, it’s that combination of things that, you know, you, you don’t have to be independently wealthy to be able to, you know, rent or, or buy a house here.

And, um, you know, the board prices are reasonable. The hay prices are reasonable. And we have two

Lindsay: racetracks, which gives you access to fantastic veterinary

Kim: care. Yep. And lots of off the track through regrets. Yeah.

Lindsay: Highly recommend. Well, thank you so

Kim: much for taking time today. Oh, thanks for inviting me on the crazy adventure and I, I can’t wait to do the next, the next bit.

I even I, you know, I take tons of photographs, but, um, I almost never print them, you know, and, uh, I did actually print and [00:59:00] go buy a photo album for this Genesee Valley Midway Outer. So I printed pictures of both of us and I put them in an actual scrapbook. And when we finish, I’m just going to have this Pete and Ted’s excellent adventure on the Greenway.

And, um, I’m going to make sure

Lindsay: that a lot of these photos that we took as both you and I went. Photo crazy in this, on this adventure. So part of the show notes for this one and the, the actual, uh, post takes that I have, we’ll have lots of photos showing a lot of the things that we described along the way.

So if you’re inclined to do this crazy adventure, especially the first, uh, six miles or so. Yeah, you’ll have very good understanding of what. What to expect. Yeah. So, um, all right. Well, thanks. All right. Have a good one. Thank you very much. That wraps up today’s show. Until next time, respect the trail, wear a helmet, and clean up after your horse at the trailer site.

Happy trails.[01:00:00]