CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Mark Looney grew up near Lake Ontario in Webster, New York, wondering what life was like on the other side.

Now the 58-year-old cyclist has seen all sides of all the Great Lakes, from his bike. Beginning in 2015 with Lake Erie, he circumnavigated one Great Lake each year – a total of 4,200 miles, ending with Lake Huron on May 31.

Looney, a 58-year-old quality manager for an aerospace company, has also biked from California to Connecticut in 1983 and in 2014 across Ohio, turning his five-day journey into his first book, called “A Path through Ohio.”

The time in the saddle and the steady cadence of the bike allow Looney to contemplate and appreciate the environment.

Looney said he’s one of eight people who have achieved the feat of cycling around all Great Lakes.

“Now I get to put myself in that club,” Looney said. “I’ve been mapping out like the explorers did a safe path around each of the Great Lakes.”

His favorite lake?

Looney is diplomatic. Each has its own personality, he said. But he’s particularly fond of the natural splendor of Lake Superior.

Here’s what else Looney had to say about his adventure.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Did you always intend to circumnavigate all the Great Lakes?

It started out, I was just going to do one lake, Lake Erie. Then once I announced that I got all the way around, I ended up getting three people who followed me on the Lake Ontario ride the following year.

Since then I’ve had some partners.

How many miles do you ride a day? Do you stop and enjoy the scenery, or are you pretty focused on getting the ride done?

I averaged 80-85 miles a day. You get up at 6. You meander at 10-12 miles an hour. I stop, I eat, I talk to people. I visit national parks and try to get a feel for the culture, the natural environment.

When you’re on a bike in motion, you’re taking in a lot more stimuli than in a car. It’s a human pace. I’ve done a couple of 100-mile days to get to the next campground.

So you camp?

Predominantly. Usually I’m cleaning up in a pond or a stream or the lake. I go for a dip. Every 3-4 days I find a motel, and get a shower.

What kind of roads do you bike on? Are you always near the lake?

One of the ideas was to keep the lake within view and limit the use of GPS. I usually get a AAA map and do it the old-fashioned way. I’ll compared my AAA map to Google and try to make a composite. A lot of times the bike paths take you through some of the most scenic bike paths. Sometimes I’m going off on tangents to pick up a national park or an extra campground.

How did you get through Toledo and Detroit, for Erie?

Detroit and Toledo are difficult to go through. I cut Erie off a little bit. I took a ferry in Sandusky, went to Pelee Island. I went through customs like anyone else would.

But all the other lakes you can circumnavigate around.

Why do you like cycling?

I was 19 when I went cross country. I was trying to prove myself, learn my limits.

I found that traveling at human speeds, your body and your senses take in so much more. You open yourself up to kinder, gentler people. People are more willing to approach you on a bicycle.

How do you not get really sore?

Lots of training.

The first three days are pretty strenuous. You have 85 pounds of gear, and your muscles are rarely prepared for that. Your legs and knees and joints. By the fourth day you’ve worked out most of the bugs.

There’s always cream for your skin and saddle sores.

What’s next?

Right now I’m relaxing, writing a book about the lakes and the issues in each one. I’ll ride the Ohio to Erie Trail. I’m planning a 50th anniversary ride of my first cross-country ride in 2023.

Mark Looney rode his bicycle around all five Great Lakes.

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