Onondaga Lake Park

According to the people at the Apple store, my MacBook has been fixed! The ride back to the mall to the Apple store is short, only about 4.5 miles. There is only one really less-than-friendly section to travel where the road is two lanes in either direction: two narrow lanes! It's an industrial area, that used to be a oil storage facility before the mall was built. Now what remains is the water treatment plant, a metals recycling facility, used car lots, petrol stations, pan handlers on the corner, and brown fields. Since most of Syracuse travels by car, there's not a lot of patience for cyclists outside of a couple of specific areas. I actually use the sidewalk through this area. There are very rarely any pedestrians.

The staff at the Apple store recognized me. Well, that's not really true. They recognized the dude with the folding bike. I was asked to demonstrate how it unfolded and what it looked like when it was in it's "bike" state. I have to admit, I was pleased. I know this sounds fatuous, and I really am proud of my brompton.

The computer was, in fact, finished, so all was packed back into the T bag. I was off. The mall, newly expanded and designated Destiny Center, is a stone's throw off Onondaga Lake, which has the dubious joy of being known as what was one of the most polluted lakes in the US. There have been years of remediation, and a recent project to remove and cap some of the most polluted areas was just started. No one swims in it. It would be foolish to eat any of the fish. And many use it for boating, scull, and kayaking. There is a very pretty lakeside park around the eastern and northern sides with a nice, paved cycle path. I thought a loop around the lake was in order.

Onondaga Lake from the northwestern looking down toward the city of Syracuse. The day was overcast and cool, good for riding, but not as good for photography.

Another photo that shows the city in the far distance.

The bridge spans a section of the Oswego River and canal, part of what connected Syracuse to the Erie Canal system and Lake Ontario.

It ended up being a 17 mile loop that made for a great ride!