To Huntington Station

May 16, 2024

It's misty but not raining when we start riding this morning. Good enough. We are pedaling on the steep punchy hills of Long Island's North Shore. They're a wake up call for my glutes.

Our first stop is in Port Washington to visit with Curt at his place on Manhasset Bay. Sculptures along the Bay Walk Park that leads to his street evoke life on the bay.

The landscapes here look to be at the peak of their spring glory.

Small marine life sculptures made by 77 fifth graders at Sousa Elementary School decorate this bench in Bay Walk Park. Red sails behind it echo the regattas on the bay.

Looking out on the bay from Curt's apartment

Curt has a law practice and serves as chairman of Residents Forward, an organization devoted to making Port Washington beautiful, sustainable and resilient. He has been an active volunteer here for decades, advocating for local policies around environmental education, public health, safety and land use.

He fills us in on the sand mining industry that took off in the late 19th century. High quality sand mined here was used to make concrete for most of the skyscrapers, sidewalks, and bridges in New York City. In the 1990s he advocated for the federal cleanup of some 70 sunken sand barges.

Friends for 66 years, reminiscing about their younger days in Minocqua Wisconsin

Mike's photo of the memorial to immigrants who mined the sand used to build New York City

From Curt's place we ride to Roslyn for lunch at La Bottega. The 18 miles from there to our homestay for the night feel longer than that. Traffic is heavy and there are a lot of hills, turns and lane shifts. The drivers here are quite patient with us.

This periwinkle blue home caught my attention

Even with all the traffic, wide shoulders make the ride comfortable

The Duclay family in Huntington Station are our WarmShowers hosts tonight. Thierry and Veronica Duclay have four children in their twenties. Killian and Sean, the two oldest, are the connectors on the WarmShowers network and everyone in the family makes us feel welcome. They are an adventurous bunch, more into touring via motorcycles and vans than bicycles. All of them are skilled sailors.

Sean Duclay and Mike, who arrived first as usual

Hens roam the Duclays' yard along with the family's four dogs.

They have also raised honey bees, a miniature donkey and goats.

Over Veronica's delicious pasta dinner we learn about SailAhead.org, a nonprofit that Sean and Killian founded in 2013 to engage veterans in sailing as a form of therapy. The boys had heard statistics from the VA that 22 veterans were dying by suicide every day. Sail Ahead partners with veterans organizations and yacht clubs to take servicemen and women and their loved ones sailing. The first vet they took out on the water tearfully described the experience as the best therapy he ever had.

Our Mates, a collection of 220 name badges remembering veterans who die by suicide every ten days according to the VA.

After dinner digestifs with Jenny, Veronica, Thierry and Killian. Sean and Maya were with us as well. We feel very fortunate to get to know this warm and affectionate family.

Thierry brought out the Green Chartreuse, a wonderfully aromatic concoction of 130 plants, flowers, bark, roots and spices. It's not easy to find but worth searching for.

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Today's ride: 30 miles (48 km)
Total: 2,185 miles (3,516 km)

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