tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5582605712942553512023-11-16T07:27:29.858-08:00Velo MangeStevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.comBlogger70125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-65086497717232428542012-05-16T14:35:00.001-07:002012-05-16T14:35:38.330-07:00St. AugustineSlept in today (Tuesday) until 9:30. What a treat. I wandered over to a Brazilian cafe near the motel looking for breakfast, but they don't open until lunch, bummer. <br />
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Jerry , Michele and I took our bikes to the LBS to have the bikes packed and shipped. $50 for packing, the shipping co. Will call later with the shipping cost. The guys at the bike shop couldn't (wouldn't?) say how much the shipping would be. Doesn't seem right, but what option did I have. Hope it's not too much. <br />
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After that I went to a Cuban restaurant for a sandwich with black beans and rice, which was very good, then visited the Castillo de San Marcos. <br />
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The Castillo I supposedly haunted, but I didn't see any ghosts, not even when I crawled through a small tunnel in to a empty little room deep in the Castillo. I crawled out to a small group that was very curious as to what a saw "nothing" I said, "just an empty room". They seemed relieved that there was little reason for them to crawl through on their hands and knees. <br />
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Also visited the oldest house in St Augustine. It dates back to the early 1700s. There was an earlier house on the site, but the British burned it down on 1702. <br />
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Finally went to the Brazilian place for dinner with Jerry and Michele. We all had very delicious feijoada and I had a caipirinha. Afterward Jerry and Michele went off to a birding lecture, I meet Lori and Dean for beer. <br />
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Very relaxing day. I'm both happy to be done and sad that it's over. It's complicated. <br />
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Now what do I do?<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyrGBzxzor8XmDG92H2IJd2nbcu50-JSUKnjZzz7rijZ6izXrFwldxreMv7GMwxkt9FDmFLeNdLm8U-6toWk9RfglOLWYCFodbs9sQ853k_uiLA5fahFvyCk8uWLvT54CygHYx3Re8UM4/s640/blogger-image--807487017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyrGBzxzor8XmDG92H2IJd2nbcu50-JSUKnjZzz7rijZ6izXrFwldxreMv7GMwxkt9FDmFLeNdLm8U-6toWk9RfglOLWYCFodbs9sQ853k_uiLA5fahFvyCk8uWLvT54CygHYx3Re8UM4/s640/blogger-image--807487017.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh_K0VRNE-9F8HQ7pjFqp6rtm7GpJoZCkl2wDc2gowXVWBcSXrElvDZEjqI6T050D-JlBPq44zgSUYFj4-T25SQf-5ptBQhAsrylhvXdNgDQnjF8suAM2VLvpWoXlq2mcMr4sZrbHSbPk/s640/blogger-image--1675332845.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh_K0VRNE-9F8HQ7pjFqp6rtm7GpJoZCkl2wDc2gowXVWBcSXrElvDZEjqI6T050D-JlBPq44zgSUYFj4-T25SQf-5ptBQhAsrylhvXdNgDQnjF8suAM2VLvpWoXlq2mcMr4sZrbHSbPk/s640/blogger-image--1675332845.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-57095984524790854922012-05-13T20:03:00.001-07:002012-05-14T19:23:07.822-07:00Day 57 - Palatka to St. AugustineNice, easy, short ride into St. Augustine. <br />
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After breakfast I asked Jerry and Michele to take some time in Palatka so I could see some of the murals around town. I couldn't resist taking a picture of Rev. Billy Graham, but my favorite was the mural of USS Columbine. <br />
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The Columbine was a Union gunboat that was captured by Confederate Calvary (Yup, Calvary) and returned to service for the south. It was later scuttled and thought lost until 2006 when it was found in the St. Johns River in Palatka. <br />
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There are many other murals here, but I didn't want to hold us up too long. <br />
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Our route today took us on mostly deserted back roads finishing on route 207 into town. After a while on 207 we noticed a new, parallel bike path so we hopped on that not knowing where it would end up. It peeled away from 207 after a bit, but we figured worst case it would end at a road and we could then find our way into town. <br />
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Wrong. The path ended suddenly in the middle of nowhere forcing us to retrace our route back for a mile or so. A "no outlet" sign, or something similar would have been nice. We were in good spirits and cheerfully turned around, cursing our carelessness and rejoined 207. <br />
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Once in town we made our way across the intracoastal waterway to Vilano Beach. The only reason we chose this beach was because it was near the UPS Store, but it was perfect. The hard packed sand made it easy for us to push the bikes out to the surf. <br />
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We started by touching our wheels to the Pacific and ended by touching wheels to the Atlantic. Just as envisioned eight weeks ago. <br />
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The gals at the UPS Store were extremely helpful, they managed to get all of our gear into one box, saving us about $150 ($100, just for me). They looked at us a little warily at first, but they were soon helping us enthusiastically. <br />
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We even found a DQ for our traditional end of day root beer float. I think I'll send DQ a note letting them know how much we enjoyed seeing their little redas we entered small towns hot, tired and thirsty. <br />
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After that we checked into our motel, cleaned up, had beers with Dean and Lori, did some sight seeing and went out for a celebration dinner. All in all, a busy day. Jerry and Michele even found a Brazilian Cafe, I'll swing by in the morning to see if I can get an acai bowl and some pao de queijo. <br />
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We probably could have just tacked today's 30 miles on to yesterday and arrived last night, but it was nice to arrive fresh and to take care of our errands before settling in. <br />
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Jerry commented that it's hard to reflect on events until some time has passed, and I think he's right, but we received help from a lot if really nice folks, had some good luck with the weather (except we never really did get a tail wind for any length if time) and had a great time. I was especially surprised by the courteousness of the drivers along the entire route, we never had a single problem. <br />
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I'm already thinking about doing the northern tier, but tomorrow I sleep in!<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1BMGixFw6xgQPeuOD4D5zXfCpIN3dzsCzLoAesmR4-4oTnrP2VzB2FWDFqXWwry_-tPiQoLjsGbKpjG6PpGQChvspD6hITuCpU_OVUeec1Ilnv7GSxzGyoAbm8jWNSSapLtSOO7OwS8Q/s640/blogger-image--566629818.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1BMGixFw6xgQPeuOD4D5zXfCpIN3dzsCzLoAesmR4-4oTnrP2VzB2FWDFqXWwry_-tPiQoLjsGbKpjG6PpGQChvspD6hITuCpU_OVUeec1Ilnv7GSxzGyoAbm8jWNSSapLtSOO7OwS8Q/s640/blogger-image--566629818.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LWcfQ6KolvSQRlxb2YVVUin4rSIT_DxmRm3MXmWLsbdwW0bBQ7OOIceJ_OANZDsL__khWpHygzYwSCPck2N5ChH9q95c8iWioM_6RBxe2sOULsxrZChyphenhyphen-WBW3HxmPNzNv16eC0h0ViY/s640/blogger-image-906431920.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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Glad we're not there anymore. <br />
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Its been very buggy lately. Love bugs are out in Florida, landing on anything that doesn't move and smashing in to those of us that do, Ugh. <br />
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Here in Palatka the midges are swarming. They look like mosquitoes, but apparently they don't bite. They are annoying tho. Nothing like walking out of your hotel room in to a swarm of mosquito like bugs. they get in your hair, land one your arms and legs, and get in your eyes (and teeth). Yuck!<br />
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I'm not a real bug fan of bugs. They creep me out. <br />
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We took a quick ride down to the University of Florida on our way out of Gainesville and ended up at the Plaza of the Americas. Florida had the first Latin-American Studies Department in the U.S. and the Plaza was dedicated shortly thereafter, with an oak tree planted for each country in the America's at the time. One of them must be for Brazil, but they weren't labeled, not that I could see anyway. <br />
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There was also a giant sculpture of a couple dancing. The 20-foot sculpture by Artist J. Seward Johnson Jr., called "Whispering Close," is inspired by the painting "Dance in the City" by French Impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir.<br />
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That campus seemed very nice, but we didn't see much. <br />
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The Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail took us the first 14 miles out of town. That's a very nice way to travel by bike, we got another couple of miles on a bike trail later in the day, parallel to Route 100. <br />
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On the G-H Trail we ran into some students out for a ride. They knew, Rutger, one of the east to west riders we ran into earlier on our trip. Small world. <br />
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We made quick work of the remainder of the day and will spend our last night on the road in Palatka. Our hotel is right on St. James River and we'll start tomorrow by climbing up and over the river on Memorial Bridge. <br />
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Palatka is famous for the murals painted around town, over 30 of them. Jerry and Michele went out mural hunting, but I stayed in my room re-packing my stuff so I can ship must of it home tomorrow. I'll go mural exploring tomorrow before we leave town. <br />
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While they were out, Jerry and Michele tracked down Angel's Diner (oldest in Florida, they say) so we finished off the day with shakes, cherry for me. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8rzBEPEaWSelHNQ0z_HEMddAEGJgHPpfSExQqRz0jyj0Z0netqa-OZgBfb_fmA_4topfL9we9kTS6GAyTntQyU-2t5_tKJdaAiIzyO7_M9mvlTzfu9Am1kkAs9eByctsqltFfyVr4YY/s640/blogger-image--329567657.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8rzBEPEaWSelHNQ0z_HEMddAEGJgHPpfSExQqRz0jyj0Z0netqa-OZgBfb_fmA_4topfL9we9kTS6GAyTntQyU-2t5_tKJdaAiIzyO7_M9mvlTzfu9Am1kkAs9eByctsqltFfyVr4YY/s640/blogger-image--329567657.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR3I4zecIV3EmGcCn4Lhv_TqmkYZdarKj9Rpzoj5PH5GzO9UqhHp7Tk1ucFNf5Fi06SrSV8nOeOCLLYqbTzhR06I2V_nj8-JckbLCf0_1Ig6bjmIz2Aydnwxttddt4Zw6vAFlav6_5fXI/s640/blogger-image--372703609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqOS1-TJMDm5Yj6mPaFxec12z5hUb1umdrTeCgE210YZRIAN6rgZCGiUSKfeSADahgyVMJ10yljql06_AgrfwbWGlAVSZMyxcShzk9NfPNUdRouKNhCvW30Cjv5fB6T8Vsl0fGodyqCD4/s640/blogger-image-1603005887.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqpds5hZ7VyObfYJASaAGH6TAfN6Thv9a5G29QcBILBkUzZFCKEtaFNj1I_gVEQvFFyKYbYdEFovyhPay_iD_wghyphenhyphenJ3bL0JORSHYy1Sm9ymDefOogF7m-Icbeu85W2NtL4H3J3av4GGwE/s640/blogger-image--729928681.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqpds5hZ7VyObfYJASaAGH6TAfN6Thv9a5G29QcBILBkUzZFCKEtaFNj1I_gVEQvFFyKYbYdEFovyhPay_iD_wghyphenhyphenJ3bL0JORSHYy1Sm9ymDefOogF7m-Icbeu85W2NtL4H3J3av4GGwE/s640/blogger-image--729928681.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-79024066755735162052012-05-12T18:54:00.001-07:002012-05-12T19:29:04.335-07:00Day 55 - Suwannee Valley Conservation Area to GainesvilleI'm really getting lazy about the whole picture taking thing. <br />
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One thing you can see, from the few pictures I took today, is that our relative positions on the road don't change much. Jerry takes the lead, followed very closely by Michele and I bring up the rear, wandering around, weaving back and forth, day dreaming, dropping back, speeding up and generally doing my own thing at the end of our little train. <br />
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That's not to say I haven't tried to make myself useful and pull at the front, but whenever I do the system seems to fall apart. I end up dropping them, or I try to adjust my speed to what Jerry and Michele are doing behind me and that just slows everybody down. Seems to work best in this configuration. I'll just have to work through my guilt about Jerry doing all the work. <br />
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Long stretch between meals today, fifty miles by my reckoning, but we finally arrived in High Springs and got burgers. Heck, the day was almost done by this point. Just 20 more miles and we were in Gainesville. I think these last 20 were the nicest of the day, we spent a lot of it under a canopy of trees. Pretty, and it helped to block the wind. <br />
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Looks like headwinds for the next couple if days, all the way to St. Augustine. Figures. <br />
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Dinner at Adams Rib Co. Ribs, chopped pork sandwich, collard greens and Mac & cheese. Yum. <br />
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Wonder how the Randonneurs are doing. Should be at Dimmick by now. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdHbLcSqfH76gmkwlXIgwBei9efn5wAi96EmKY3a08dxqvT6aJCoK8_Rk4bgJ4caboRFSmKC0Kwprvpik8_4mDuOHr8sIR8DZWD5esjG0PgHXDmb9mnlJ1U9RrH_MODJlfc-ukDmazUs/s640/blogger-image-1244987523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwdHbLcSqfH76gmkwlXIgwBei9efn5wAi96EmKY3a08dxqvT6aJCoK8_Rk4bgJ4caboRFSmKC0Kwprvpik8_4mDuOHr8sIR8DZWD5esjG0PgHXDmb9mnlJ1U9RrH_MODJlfc-ukDmazUs/s640/blogger-image-1244987523.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4cdnXE2tzCR9yD9EhLrDSp1nPMbrhSrWnLxdpOWp4IbSlxknbrv17znlTPxqE8NkJUlhNdGorYPzjD5qSslPS5xB8TvAkzOdkkYSwoZg-ST2gDEwggTRAteMdiI_uJwj-hFOXTMSCHk/s640/blogger-image--603363937.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP4cdnXE2tzCR9yD9EhLrDSp1nPMbrhSrWnLxdpOWp4IbSlxknbrv17znlTPxqE8NkJUlhNdGorYPzjD5qSslPS5xB8TvAkzOdkkYSwoZg-ST2gDEwggTRAteMdiI_uJwj-hFOXTMSCHk/s640/blogger-image--603363937.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifO5T2wSiqfj5EcwBt1pDRl4r6yyNCNKCPvtH0gPtoHw1wLkGUvjkhQOp65ojvaLLyqDzD5DTB4FoB8RI5GJQil1Y9TQ8uASAjauqNLCGIPpoZcGKwCrWW65a0WLvwrZ76O59aex3sw-8/s640/blogger-image-1308398104.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifO5T2wSiqfj5EcwBt1pDRl4r6yyNCNKCPvtH0gPtoHw1wLkGUvjkhQOp65ojvaLLyqDzD5DTB4FoB8RI5GJQil1Y9TQ8uASAjauqNLCGIPpoZcGKwCrWW65a0WLvwrZ76O59aex3sw-8/s640/blogger-image-1308398104.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2RIS_sF8ffzd9ksMpOjEotnKh1KILg9wZ1hR9K13m8ExAZZzSX2P3ty2yJA4Cs7JKvD4qlbSIJoYs_Z_1WWXu-CeGWTZzk412Z8mkQPpkcatylsuFh23HqOSo90FOLJeROZOAypfdT_4/s640/blogger-image-1593901182.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2RIS_sF8ffzd9ksMpOjEotnKh1KILg9wZ1hR9K13m8ExAZZzSX2P3ty2yJA4Cs7JKvD4qlbSIJoYs_Z_1WWXu-CeGWTZzk412Z8mkQPpkcatylsuFh23HqOSo90FOLJeROZOAypfdT_4/s640/blogger-image-1593901182.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-5057231030406095232012-05-12T04:42:00.001-07:002012-05-12T18:41:50.029-07:00Day 54 - Monticello to Suwannee Valley Conservation AreaWell we were going to skip Monticello and cut a couple of miles off our route today, but I missed our turn. Oops, I suspect we all wanted to check out Monticello anyway. <br />
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From there it was an easy ride down US90 to Greenville where I once again tried the gas station sausage and biscuit. Just okay, hard to beat that one from the other day. <br />
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Food was a problem today. We reached Madison to early for lunch, but it looked like there might not be anything down the road for a while. Jerry picked up some dried sausage and bread, just in case, and we set off for Lee with high hopes. Nothing there, good thing Jerry thought ahead, but I was starved by the time we finished. <br />
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Not much to see today, except the Suwannee River which popped into view out of the trees. The river was surprisingly black. Very striking. Then we were back into the trees. <br />
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We camped, for our last time, at the Lee's Country Campground, which was very nice, and clean, cleaner than some of the motels we've been in recently and located on the edge of the Suwannee Valley Conservation Area. <br />
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One note on happenings back home: The San Francisco Randonneurs are running their Fort Bragg 600k this weekend so if you're in Napa or Sonoma County this weekend keep an eye out for sleepy Randonneurs, they'll start at 5:00 AM on Saturday and will be out on the roads until 9:00 PM Sunday. Give them a word if encouragement if you see them and please pass carefully if you're driving. Tom will be among them, ride safe Tom. <br />
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Bon Route, Randonneurs et Randonneuses. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih12D8c8GXAKVOZ6c3D6X85o_vHEXozupUg91nvcKN0vcCwx-WqNtd9MGgB_r88abDss4v5CYvQUiHaDgIz6dChStBrS8guIyjkjr2ehcqJIl4QgsxXDdYR-JgsI27MB8AAJoh_cGg5Dg/s640/blogger-image-1281781731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih12D8c8GXAKVOZ6c3D6X85o_vHEXozupUg91nvcKN0vcCwx-WqNtd9MGgB_r88abDss4v5CYvQUiHaDgIz6dChStBrS8guIyjkjr2ehcqJIl4QgsxXDdYR-JgsI27MB8AAJoh_cGg5Dg/s640/blogger-image-1281781731.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7wKbHBH_bSToZ4j3L368IDh0ExIXloTUthkpZp_wRwGQKUmJbyWInhauidvUkF64czIj1o6l7oMFBUkGCpgoD0oKd87vI2IJe1XXuvYu_Xl9xJ61VZImrdHpNRu3OS2dHxLHWn7ThBA/s640/blogger-image-428913782.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk7wKbHBH_bSToZ4j3L368IDh0ExIXloTUthkpZp_wRwGQKUmJbyWInhauidvUkF64czIj1o6l7oMFBUkGCpgoD0oKd87vI2IJe1XXuvYu_Xl9xJ61VZImrdHpNRu3OS2dHxLHWn7ThBA/s640/blogger-image-428913782.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhewZqF3x2hZHf1_qrdZrJl4zSP2Ym_WxTD-Mxlcn4OeEc9yl0T2XDSAuykzeKbm76wTgNgEU8JeLJNOoHign-u4cLHWqSDtPY79fbFn4R0Vwm12tscZ9ev-es1r5yZabrKyfvSGUeAgRc/s640/blogger-image-747522292.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhewZqF3x2hZHf1_qrdZrJl4zSP2Ym_WxTD-Mxlcn4OeEc9yl0T2XDSAuykzeKbm76wTgNgEU8JeLJNOoHign-u4cLHWqSDtPY79fbFn4R0Vwm12tscZ9ev-es1r5yZabrKyfvSGUeAgRc/s640/blogger-image-747522292.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgh_1Vec-_MraMx-WTYiOfbqi0Kawg98Jh0qKMsF4G-8hBr9SeHKtfJHLy7U7Upd95T7JH4-oEECD1knksMhtkuv5Wmlxad30Hy6mvGemFazL5fxALMkp8xLnWHL3JtCUQD2XHkkvkuA/s640/blogger-image-490146026.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgh_1Vec-_MraMx-WTYiOfbqi0Kawg98Jh0qKMsF4G-8hBr9SeHKtfJHLy7U7Upd95T7JH4-oEECD1knksMhtkuv5Wmlxad30Hy6mvGemFazL5fxALMkp8xLnWHL3JtCUQD2XHkkvkuA/s640/blogger-image-490146026.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGnALg3ill31btV2-D52FZS2QG2fX9jjRaC3BQtdMN31vYyrC5XF4GZ_7MFMWPi4jxosb9SEtDkAAhUoIZG_QRn-RjWogEl8z7TGQt_14Xlq3ygKtNQmvIoFTi5K7MV_efK1LSBu4Q0Rk/s640/blogger-image-1896830323.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGnALg3ill31btV2-D52FZS2QG2fX9jjRaC3BQtdMN31vYyrC5XF4GZ_7MFMWPi4jxosb9SEtDkAAhUoIZG_QRn-RjWogEl8z7TGQt_14Xlq3ygKtNQmvIoFTi5K7MV_efK1LSBu4Q0Rk/s640/blogger-image-1896830323.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKvMAXppGCYWTtilTz7gsRU2q7kdfmD92-_6vHSBRHHzx-7GyMjRn4aO_tg0RIIC_td-WILb1cgtb0k2yZX8Zn_oy9vpkkKEfUlm-KfswN_MHvENHzrFkwTJ6JqcdijXZymFLo3AKs94/s640/blogger-image--48797624.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6XNjBrSTEAGkdtufhS5hqrQj24V8j9VG09A-_2XTvEde4GvOsgFPhhZx9_ZgRJtx4egaKZ8QUSbbPgL-IvgfDYfBd6DaU4n8CDjbbFZ6gLsXrRgO0Om2DTV345IoeI7b58yf7l3f7Blg/s640/blogger-image--217877883.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQ5TQja6jDEEOTZTdhI88IHjsSLTmZgChkzw2PQ0uXBBxi9ClMQmcJxzrMICBvx891TKKRAtN9HCWjFBOs0uZZLHMnVzAsM989FlQj_-OgZ201-auLXjPPOyulZX18q_NPV4yTUlwoig/s640/blogger-image-1136191351.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyQ5TQja6jDEEOTZTdhI88IHjsSLTmZgChkzw2PQ0uXBBxi9ClMQmcJxzrMICBvx891TKKRAtN9HCWjFBOs0uZZLHMnVzAsM989FlQj_-OgZ201-auLXjPPOyulZX18q_NPV4yTUlwoig/s640/blogger-image-1136191351.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKf7wc5HTnjGm_Ic_y4PrSbkPCXgpqMJmwaiyaE5rVRc_lrD4sNDPIyvd7n1RL6KF43ebNlUJfkMWQtWNLGKC7JX1r8HwYELAs8oGfzuvqXays9J4ShQR_PMsbSfHwoA6X2XASne3f9TA/s640/blogger-image-2047585569.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKf7wc5HTnjGm_Ic_y4PrSbkPCXgpqMJmwaiyaE5rVRc_lrD4sNDPIyvd7n1RL6KF43ebNlUJfkMWQtWNLGKC7JX1r8HwYELAs8oGfzuvqXays9J4ShQR_PMsbSfHwoA6X2XASne3f9TA/s640/blogger-image-2047585569.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-71292386613238376482012-05-10T19:36:00.001-07:002012-05-10T19:36:57.901-07:00Day 53 -Quincy to MonticelloWow, the weather changed! It was actually chilly when we left today and the humidity dropped about 30 points. It was a very nice day for a bike ride. <br />
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First target for the day: the Waffle House 13 miles down the road. I'd never eaten at a Waffle House before, I know, hard to believe, they're everywhere, at least outside California. Better than iHop or Denny's, the waffle and hash browns were especially tasty. <br />
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We rode through Tallahassee, but didn't see the Capital. We briefly saw part of the FSU campus as we rode by, definitely not as pretty as the UT campus. <br />
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After that we took a short cut. Instead of following the ACA route we hopped on Route 27 and went straight to Monticello. That saved us about 10 or 15 miles, not sure exactly, but it was a lot. We were worried that it wouldn't be safe, but it was fine, not much traffic after Tallahassee and a nice shoulder to ride on. We're staying out of town by I-10 and will skip downtown Monticello which was named for TJ's place up north (this is Jefferson County after all) but is pronounced differently, with a soft "c". <br />
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All in all we've found the roads to be great all of the way across. There have been some segments with rough pavement, but overall the road surface has been great. <br />
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We also ran into Lori and Dean again, we have the same schedule the rest of the way, we should see them a lot. Hope so. They sent their camping gear home and were sure to let us know how much easier the riding is. We have another camping night tomorrow so we're stuck with it all the way. Oh well.<br />
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Not many photos today. I did make sure to take one of the road travelled. Trees (yawn). <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjev0IZV5uiVBzEh-aI2FFHYcNiWiOj-BOhAcWZvGnHuA4hbWhRuHMb4xYMDmpF9jg8-2toq7qUVjV3beirACq2527lVo9LRd0uGho_wWYHNhiEnMEMCNNcKDsCJarkilFsnS96etp6BSY/s640/blogger-image--482655237.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjev0IZV5uiVBzEh-aI2FFHYcNiWiOj-BOhAcWZvGnHuA4hbWhRuHMb4xYMDmpF9jg8-2toq7qUVjV3beirACq2527lVo9LRd0uGho_wWYHNhiEnMEMCNNcKDsCJarkilFsnS96etp6BSY/s640/blogger-image--482655237.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLkOFJ2X_DIXdFxC3gqp-wXk_y-KMffeyktb-V32fwfZ4TWcKfhO-GL2nky5h6Cpp3rteXsoP-TAJUzDab349SLJSZPcUFfphAzooMD4OOd3GZlgVpArjlxdBFZe1Lvt56PEbsuon230/s640/blogger-image-2048823145.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzLkOFJ2X_DIXdFxC3gqp-wXk_y-KMffeyktb-V32fwfZ4TWcKfhO-GL2nky5h6Cpp3rteXsoP-TAJUzDab349SLJSZPcUFfphAzooMD4OOd3GZlgVpArjlxdBFZe1Lvt56PEbsuon230/s640/blogger-image-2048823145.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-1140218278644431512012-05-09T04:59:00.001-07:002012-05-10T19:04:55.720-07:00Day 52 - Chipley to QuincyEarly start today to try and beat the rain. Thunderstorms forecast for Quincy after 2:00 pm and we'll enter the eastern time zone before we get there so that'll be 1:00 by our clocks. <br />
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I got hungry by the time we got to Marianna so we stopped at the McDonalds for a snack, sausage biscuit, my favorite, but not nearly as tasty as yesterday. That one from the gas station used a homemade biscuit, now I'm spoiled. Nice McDonalds though. <br />
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It was very, very humid today. Hot too. <br />
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We traveled some nice roads to Chattahoochee and passed over a bridge in front of the Lake Seminole Dam, unfortunately the shoulder was a little narrow so I couldn't stop to snap a photo, nice. <br />
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In Chattahoochee we went to the Divine Cafe for soul food: salisbury steak; turnip greens, mashed potatoes & gravy, sweet tea and peach cobbler for dessert (too sweet for me - and I like sweet). All served cafeteria style. The locals recommended the fried pork chops, but those weren't on the menu today. <br />
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We left lunch under ominous skies, but the rain never fell, at least not until we were safe & dry at our hotel. Then it poured. Watching the rain through a window is much nicer than riding in it. <br />
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After the hotel last night I was planning on something a little nicer. We pulled into the Royal Inn in Quincy, same paint scheme as last night, uh oh. How much? $30? seriously? Not again! I shouldn't have worried, the rooms were nice and much cleaner, perfectly satisfactory. <br />
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I'm finding the scenery to be a little boring, it's pretty and all, but it's tree lined highways all day everyday ever since we left Texas, except of course for Dauphin Island and our short time along the Gulf Coast. In the desert, and in the hill country and ranch land of Texas you can see the horizon. I miss that. It'll be nice to get to the Atlantic coast, then I'll be able to see the horizon, even if it's flat and blue. <br />
<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1kMckxUMuSvIbmn9St47SInvxmkDRyePQJRATKflkZJbNbtgxTxyXLx6h_0LWH1ee21SidvqTRQiKafbksW8V8egpCg1CvGqzNdG6zHWALGnDBXTqw9D3TgKBlPbmiGOdDgpUV2ynb8/s640/blogger-image-895251471.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1kMckxUMuSvIbmn9St47SInvxmkDRyePQJRATKflkZJbNbtgxTxyXLx6h_0LWH1ee21SidvqTRQiKafbksW8V8egpCg1CvGqzNdG6zHWALGnDBXTqw9D3TgKBlPbmiGOdDgpUV2ynb8/s640/blogger-image-895251471.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJAN6gvjEIy4hQO30KgxTgOvyfuiyuYL6zjog42qaLI50eZex87pP_kNZiyjkMsDu49HL0Pk6huP8Ik5QoRdckJXOhLYPbPKSQ9DQ732s2xiembYUqzO-wFx1llaEQh9j1f8oQeB42aY/s640/blogger-image--1473005354.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuJAN6gvjEIy4hQO30KgxTgOvyfuiyuYL6zjog42qaLI50eZex87pP_kNZiyjkMsDu49HL0Pk6huP8Ik5QoRdckJXOhLYPbPKSQ9DQ732s2xiembYUqzO-wFx1llaEQh9j1f8oQeB42aY/s640/blogger-image--1473005354.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5QI8Huo_YAhCaBMzRZYV2SxY26HXgGxh7A-Ni5RfMQD-lZUKLAEBTfeqIptPNUYUNgApcdQ8oK2y34p3sZ_XhTRzeNKMO9hHAyhEoDrj5Bq1JmuRYh6TpxslrC6c4nJ86803OF5GSzL8/s640/blogger-image--692151567.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5QI8Huo_YAhCaBMzRZYV2SxY26HXgGxh7A-Ni5RfMQD-lZUKLAEBTfeqIptPNUYUNgApcdQ8oK2y34p3sZ_XhTRzeNKMO9hHAyhEoDrj5Bq1JmuRYh6TpxslrC6c4nJ86803OF5GSzL8/s640/blogger-image--692151567.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCyrNv6gHdjPAw4K8RYoPAfD8ocR4TXzJXRXCher-XPUG_8qo9QgTXDulauB6b-Smyq90EMXrPluHbQuU_U5cTR9NKBcvQj1wiTxESxgrW-DQ5l3qMMcIrF-wY0R4ZGbgOnlOAKnwQXzo/s640/blogger-image-2131598626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCyrNv6gHdjPAw4K8RYoPAfD8ocR4TXzJXRXCher-XPUG_8qo9QgTXDulauB6b-Smyq90EMXrPluHbQuU_U5cTR9NKBcvQj1wiTxESxgrW-DQ5l3qMMcIrF-wY0R4ZGbgOnlOAKnwQXzo/s640/blogger-image-2131598626.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivq-9v5dy_-6WvqQ5D9hPW-SVSu0G3Gj8gqDIu-nxIYyILAQ-8aeWU-Afl85PXIQXsQC00DY2eOfFfH4WVOJxdSyYiwu6xcb-hT6HTVOy-Hw8XpTcBIMDE28TeEFYzpULASQ53bQzp21E/s640/blogger-image--1446437307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivq-9v5dy_-6WvqQ5D9hPW-SVSu0G3Gj8gqDIu-nxIYyILAQ-8aeWU-Afl85PXIQXsQC00DY2eOfFfH4WVOJxdSyYiwu6xcb-hT6HTVOy-Hw8XpTcBIMDE28TeEFYzpULASQ53bQzp21E/s640/blogger-image--1446437307.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27Blu41LPOKAJGxVDpJGdtZ2nBSK_Owgmb_6pHQDYCizUkPYBLBSYV1FRxqmZoe3NUFh56J-ynnuZldXni3_9YbOdY62evSQERllMriWqwt1VF2EpGmSmHKrHE4SC-8cV7HPIgBPUNXI/s640/blogger-image-694231305.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh27Blu41LPOKAJGxVDpJGdtZ2nBSK_Owgmb_6pHQDYCizUkPYBLBSYV1FRxqmZoe3NUFh56J-ynnuZldXni3_9YbOdY62evSQERllMriWqwt1VF2EpGmSmHKrHE4SC-8cV7HPIgBPUNXI/s640/blogger-image-694231305.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nHcObg_BKi6uAzL8cIaaqAICldujTD6UBKx6nFr7rffYM1pqP7lyYW884Ewm_69PBtB_R5qI8zL2mqOHCzBV9MpLurci8rLZtmx5daqa-8RzyRsIwr0viyHvRFg5DcVbuL9Q5QLkitM/s640/blogger-image-1274332262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7nHcObg_BKi6uAzL8cIaaqAICldujTD6UBKx6nFr7rffYM1pqP7lyYW884Ewm_69PBtB_R5qI8zL2mqOHCzBV9MpLurci8rLZtmx5daqa-8RzyRsIwr0viyHvRFg5DcVbuL9Q5QLkitM/s640/blogger-image-1274332262.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgced1HBOZ6V4-qGQtk9zLZM18TC8tiJB57EhrKf9SbDJQLFLspawvqUQG3uCWJaZaIqAX_6k23HW2OdNnIU2w3ZaN5ZemuvNxd1PFp_Gath4JbgEWRgY1O_2vx3I1pVmeZ8U2oAraoxN4/s640/blogger-image-1991417676.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgced1HBOZ6V4-qGQtk9zLZM18TC8tiJB57EhrKf9SbDJQLFLspawvqUQG3uCWJaZaIqAX_6k23HW2OdNnIU2w3ZaN5ZemuvNxd1PFp_Gath4JbgEWRgY1O_2vx3I1pVmeZ8U2oAraoxN4/s640/blogger-image-1991417676.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-26717345341636657392012-05-07T19:04:00.001-07:002012-05-09T04:55:08.593-07:00Day 51 - Crestview to ChipleyAnother day of riding just to be done with it. We spent the whole day on US 90 and there was not much to see. I did have a tasty sausage biscuit at a gas station about 15 miles out of Crestview. It's funny, some of the best food we've had has been at gas stations. <br />
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Stopped for lunch at Sally's Restaurant in Ponce de Leon. Where I lost the bandana I bought in Austin, left it on the table, Arrgh. Luckily there is a western wear store across from our motel in Chipley so I replaced it. it's hot and humid, I need a bandana. <br />
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The days only excitement occurred when Jerry was dismounting at the motel, he caught his shorts on the saddle and fell over. Thunk! He's okay, just a little embarrassed. <br />
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Tonight's motel is a new low for us, and we've stayed in some pretty low end motels, $30 a night. I think we've paid more than that for camping sites. It's dirty and run down and I'm not really comfortable. I think we'll have to try to find options at least one notch up the food chain in the future. <br />
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That's it. Didn't bother to take any pictures today, we'll see if tomorrow brings new motivation. <br />
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Side note: my ankles are covered in bug bites. Lots of bugs over the last couple of weeks, mosquitoes mostly, but also biting flies and who knows what else. Itchy. Lots of bugs bouncing off of our faces and helmets as we ride too, fun. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_a4WW8rmlFed7A4-R0Dlua5k2YKQ55ATLVQ6h8N-nry2kJcpsX8CnS3qcRQTVbOUxXur5Y0D4fmpBg3KUQbVJrEF67w0bNANKppB-ZLF7RNYdvz1czM0OCfjneMtnyW3evhZR4dZCBQ/s640/blogger-image--825692857.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi_a4WW8rmlFed7A4-R0Dlua5k2YKQ55ATLVQ6h8N-nry2kJcpsX8CnS3qcRQTVbOUxXur5Y0D4fmpBg3KUQbVJrEF67w0bNANKppB-ZLF7RNYdvz1czM0OCfjneMtnyW3evhZR4dZCBQ/s640/blogger-image--825692857.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8rXzbpNwm03RrqUZoVOPQqt-OJpN35r63YfyhsgYubFUpQyPX9r7S8QqFUhK5mifgbanociF4a2PrbwY1IR4Ez-isuHo_E-Fba_nSWFLdaF1_aR2t8wGm1bD_JJSyLyNzz64hXidPc4/s640/blogger-image--485577878.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8rXzbpNwm03RrqUZoVOPQqt-OJpN35r63YfyhsgYubFUpQyPX9r7S8QqFUhK5mifgbanociF4a2PrbwY1IR4Ez-isuHo_E-Fba_nSWFLdaF1_aR2t8wGm1bD_JJSyLyNzz64hXidPc4/s640/blogger-image--485577878.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqEazID0b2pDtOTyilf5CfDs5NjFY-oD3k9c2-gR2_oPhgQo9N4ZUegHUI_CvmCiAVDoRjYcpjOoWF3irJfM56N-G253z338fnva5ikOj_fMu-mglhWLKb1Ur_hlT3d4ltcg12yaDkx3A/s640/blogger-image-1165503455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqEazID0b2pDtOTyilf5CfDs5NjFY-oD3k9c2-gR2_oPhgQo9N4ZUegHUI_CvmCiAVDoRjYcpjOoWF3irJfM56N-G253z338fnva5ikOj_fMu-mglhWLKb1Ur_hlT3d4ltcg12yaDkx3A/s640/blogger-image-1165503455.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytU1xTJpKjMd6UmWBNUoErpYdnrTK-srMQryDhKqjWZO0mmEUXw0fY0JT4qw64i2LfsfA06cvxtCT3H_P4BQrYP2Rl-vybL0zlYCgPsZK2DZ6lzpEXkNurmOJJ7-uPJqtNEZPUXaZgSQ/s640/blogger-image-1267191088.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytU1xTJpKjMd6UmWBNUoErpYdnrTK-srMQryDhKqjWZO0mmEUXw0fY0JT4qw64i2LfsfA06cvxtCT3H_P4BQrYP2Rl-vybL0zlYCgPsZK2DZ6lzpEXkNurmOJJ7-uPJqtNEZPUXaZgSQ/s640/blogger-image-1267191088.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-54900147019935343772012-05-07T19:03:00.001-07:002012-05-07T19:03:31.319-07:00Day 50 - Pensacola to CrestviewNot much to tell today, the flat beach roads of yesterday are gone as we turned inland to face mild rollers, not much of a challenge after some of the big rollers we hit to the west. Very similar roads in look and feel to those in Louisiana and Mississippi. <br />
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So similar in fact that I didn't bother to take any pictures. Well, one, we rode on a multi-use trail for a few miles, that was nice, took a picture there. <br />
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Not much else to report: lunch at Tastee Freeze, dinner at the catfish restaurant across the street from the motel (yes, I broke down and ate catfish, it was ok. The hush puppies and cheese grits were better). Also had another flat today. <br />
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Of the dozens of flats we've had, way more than we expected, this was the first in a front tire. We stopped at a bike shop on our way out of Pensacola this morning and I took the opportunity to pump up my tires with a floor pump. I had two thoughts while doing this: "wow, these were really low" and "I bet this means I'll get a flat today", sure enough. didn't hit anything, but there was a little pebble that finally worked its way through the tire to the tube. It was probably there for days and the extra tire pressure was enough to finish the job. Oh well. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWM35mFSOH78X8YjBivhOfgDVd9ld3fJvwJDAYjnjeOTEY3Dca7MJvP-OKxfLY4jsFJRD-JqbxmonpKeBedDtqj1HU_ktgBQy23zUlS-u6YNEqVKaydAQFX6V81ZW8ZVX-kDMQ8Ai4t7M/s640/blogger-image--1635458795.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWM35mFSOH78X8YjBivhOfgDVd9ld3fJvwJDAYjnjeOTEY3Dca7MJvP-OKxfLY4jsFJRD-JqbxmonpKeBedDtqj1HU_ktgBQy23zUlS-u6YNEqVKaydAQFX6V81ZW8ZVX-kDMQ8Ai4t7M/s640/blogger-image--1635458795.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-74682737339143496942012-05-07T18:39:00.001-07:002012-05-07T18:40:08.601-07:00Day 49 - Dauphin Island, AL to Pensacola, FLWow, Florida, it's taken seven weeks, but we're here, finally. Unfortunately, the Florida panhandle is pretty long. We'll be riding in Florida longer than any other state except Texas. <br />
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First we had to get out of Alabama and that required a ferry trip across the mouth of Mobile Bay. The ferry was smaller than I expected, but smooth seas resulted in a very pleasant ride. Scenic too, except for the oil platforms (unless you like looking at that sort of thing) the bay is littered with them. <br />
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The scenery on this side of the bay is really different, white sand beaches dotted with little (and some not so little), pastel colored, beach houses on stilts. Looks like a nice place to spend a week. A little out if the way tho. <br />
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Eventually we ran into the larger resorts, giant high-rises built right on the beach. I guess that's why they call it the "Red Neck Riviera". <br />
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At the State line we stopped in at the Flori-bama Oyster Bar. Apparently this is quite a hoppin' spot: food; drink; live music. Looked like fun to me, but there was not much going on when we got there so we pressed on to Pensacola. <br />
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Pensacola was a really nice town, at least what we saw of it. There's a big Naval Air Station here, home of the Blue Angels if I'm not mistaken, so there must be plenty of money to keep the economy going. Seemed pretty prosperous. We went downtown to Hopjack's for pizza and beer (112 beers on tap, half price tonight, Sunday), and that area was very nice. <br />
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We're all happy to be on Florida, it means were almost done. It's been a ton of fun, and hopefully I'll be able to do it again (northern tier anyone?), but I'm ready to go home. <br />
<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNUs66CbZZSNHN_F4U0WpzBcJGq3qzvZXQXMaXgiDNZOoClz6ExIeg-ZVpTC1HbdarPIlmAyRCmpoCsjr_8rj7GJsfn2248Hek0XyLsaHdXjf3WxCslWvGnSiRH6kTOyBbuZEZz18rVg0/s640/blogger-image--1355344826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNUs66CbZZSNHN_F4U0WpzBcJGq3qzvZXQXMaXgiDNZOoClz6ExIeg-ZVpTC1HbdarPIlmAyRCmpoCsjr_8rj7GJsfn2248Hek0XyLsaHdXjf3WxCslWvGnSiRH6kTOyBbuZEZz18rVg0/s640/blogger-image--1355344826.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB5-U5o2Qtp3KKHw7BMxYJbn4cIjzdovl_AxCWIH5Hh7bpsnMcAOg-5Tn6XV1KEro0wl5dygFSDY2augxCWz1scUE5xCWdNvT1TfWCktlf6RoPI0t4Pz8OsXqAZcyeOUPntdwK81ERxQI/s640/blogger-image--811877898.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB5-U5o2Qtp3KKHw7BMxYJbn4cIjzdovl_AxCWIH5Hh7bpsnMcAOg-5Tn6XV1KEro0wl5dygFSDY2augxCWz1scUE5xCWdNvT1TfWCktlf6RoPI0t4Pz8OsXqAZcyeOUPntdwK81ERxQI/s640/blogger-image--811877898.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTwIDuzWx2k1O1gN3zCx1TB1v1cCOA3XlvGGIn8-kaNP9iqMgamoBbZ8ncfsk8xA0OUsU4LSyatohYP0mFqknm8McDF1wkJq0vvAimK97i6tvw69ieiEklxsQTijQByubBkQaT8mu4-cs/s640/blogger-image-330806493.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTwIDuzWx2k1O1gN3zCx1TB1v1cCOA3XlvGGIn8-kaNP9iqMgamoBbZ8ncfsk8xA0OUsU4LSyatohYP0mFqknm8McDF1wkJq0vvAimK97i6tvw69ieiEklxsQTijQByubBkQaT8mu4-cs/s640/blogger-image-330806493.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-76138226477201925022012-05-05T16:27:00.001-07:002012-05-05T19:37:42.254-07:00Day 48 - Dauphin Island Rest DayWoke up early to be at breakfast at 8:00, which I enjoyed very much. Then I took a nap, which I also enjoyed very much. <br />
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When I woke up Jerry and Michele had already left to go exploring, so I set off on my own to Fort Gaines. Fort Gaines and its companion, Fort Morgan on the other side of the opening to Mobile Bay formed the gauntlet that Admiral Farragut ran with Union forces to capture one of the last remaining ports available to the blockade runners in the Civil War. That battle along with the capture of Atlanta are considered key factors in his re-election. <br />
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It was during this battle that Farragut utter the famous words "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" after the Federal Monitor Tecumseh was sunk by a mine (called torpedoes at the time). <br />
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We were fortunate in our timing because today was one of only a few days during the year when the fort is staffed by folks in period costume. I saw a woman making chicken and dumplings using period kitchen utensils (didn't get to taste it), ate bread and butter made with an 1860's recipe, watched a mock firing squad with civil war era rifles, watched the firing of a civil war cannon (loud!), saw women making clothes and a blacksmith at work. I had a great time, but it was hot and humid, I had to take refuge in the air conditioned museum a couple of times to recharge before continuing my exploration. <br />
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The rest of the day was spent resting, doing laundry, bike maintenance and the like. And I watched a little TV in my room, check out the size of that remote. <br />
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This is our lasted planned rest day, we should be in Florida tomorrow and we should be in St. Augustine a week from<br />
Monday (May 14th). <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHIuTaWHrFJXRt0LEBNY2uciWaFRoF-wfbg23q-Sgov9wWZ99neunsat65n_LCauTX_B9zKBU2D2SGPUSfGoxJvJKzVJVJ4Nj_gveHEdRROt9Io5EvrjBLk-S4MAUzOsXTmfG4ki6Hbbs/s640/blogger-image-252475232.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHIuTaWHrFJXRt0LEBNY2uciWaFRoF-wfbg23q-Sgov9wWZ99neunsat65n_LCauTX_B9zKBU2D2SGPUSfGoxJvJKzVJVJ4Nj_gveHEdRROt9Io5EvrjBLk-S4MAUzOsXTmfG4ki6Hbbs/s640/blogger-image-252475232.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB7qkCqDi7AZRFNfkCLooIGZVHjYznAu7EKfwJzgbHd32RWRUEMC3_4j2d-xE2oRTitn-Q1V86sysWigibJNsMAKfG48mQuM_VSWf3KoyP1aoq83NuCP8VUtYUj4FcN2oqx5rHLxjg0Zs/s640/blogger-image-2110474968.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO89J5Q_tKc1DzADRCFF-qNiixi3efMPKavw4kg-lohZv2gZhIgCVUV4L5L7N0Xq9erKLc7c02szWvZeJeSrt2le1Xx8gUAlTDuhTmZ-dkNjsWYKsFq4b6Vc3lvcj3cRyXJSaz_DaGThA/s640/blogger-image-801695821.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-66604683483434786672012-05-04T20:54:00.001-07:002012-05-05T15:19:50.239-07:00Day 47 - D'Iberville, MS to Dauphin Island, ALI woke up to donuts! Jerry and Michele went out and bought donuts to go with our tamales for breakfast. What a treat. <br />
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I plotted a route out if town that would keep us off of US90 for the first 15 miles or so, I thought this would be more pleasant, but I was wrong. The road was nice enough, although there was no shoulder and a fair amount of traffic, but that wasn't the problem. Jerry managed to run over a price of beer bottle that put a pretty good size cut in his tire. We replaced the tube and I used a Park quick patch to cover the hole on the inside of the tire. <br />
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I've found that while the Park quick patches often don't patch tubes very well, they do a great job repairing the inside of a tire. What's the word for something that doesn't do what it was designed to do very well, but is great at something else? I don't know.<br />
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A couple of miles down the road Jerry flatted gain. We couldn't find anything in the tire so we suspect that the tube was bad, either not repaired from an earlier flat or it had been repaired poorly, well figure that out later. This time both the tire an the tube were replaced, just to be safe. Payback, I suppose, for not having any flats yesterday. The second flat occurred on a narrow road and Jerry had to work in a small strip between speeding cars and a swamp. Michele looked out for gators and I watched traffic. <br />
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Once again it rained on us all day, even though the forecast only called for isolated thunderstorms. I guess they were isolated over us. My ortlieb panniers have done a great job of keeping everything dry, but Jerry and Michele's panniers are not water proof so their stuff keeps getting wet. Michele says she will go with ortlieb if they ever do another long tour. I'm happy with them, but more pockets or dividers would be nice. <br />
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Lunch was a problem, I was starting to bonk as we rode into Grand Bay, but there was nowhere to eat unless we wanted to ride out to I-10, and we didn't. We ended up at a Circle K with a Pizza Inn inside. I remember we used to go to the Pizza Inn in South Africa when we wanted American style pizza, this one was okay and it served its purpose, but the pre-made personal sizes pizzas will not bring back such fond memories. <br />
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The rain cleared about 15 miles before we arrived in Dauphin Island so we got to ride over the bridge under sunny skies. The bridge wasn't difficult, but there were broken bottles and even carpet tacks all over the shoulder, no flats, but we'll see how the tires hold up on Monday. <br />
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When we arrived at our B&B we found out that the rains of the last few days have resulted in quite a bit of flooding around here. Yesterday the roads on the western half of the island were not passable. Everything looks okay today, if a little wet. <br />
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We're staying at the Dauphin Island Inn and it's really nice, right on Mobile Bay. Lori and Dean are still here, they decided to take their rest day here instead of Pensacola so we all went out for BBQ together and exchanged stories. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5MV4L5o-tjpHfkYtmqmHwBRNCIbbor4TlnNdNua-UFfbqzHlkmz9DZ5S5sUgYj1micfUXMSgXegHCh7TYoxpmEijceH4GWOIfm78CmiL51bv7a-l3_5oRNQ82_yLU5cFToi5U8TLv0Kc/s640/blogger-image-2137800868.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5MV4L5o-tjpHfkYtmqmHwBRNCIbbor4TlnNdNua-UFfbqzHlkmz9DZ5S5sUgYj1micfUXMSgXegHCh7TYoxpmEijceH4GWOIfm78CmiL51bv7a-l3_5oRNQ82_yLU5cFToi5U8TLv0Kc/s640/blogger-image-2137800868.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibudM19dKJvJFbIS7DJ03KPRo6xAs0xiaOOjbiydifEqycHeiJOBfCwCwOMPEG-T4x40a7rEpJdMTebE_8xeErfo9BIyVGDd2HVL2GReWL4c6fivIoEKt-IfRLXNKr6_-vPzZXnz46sFU/s640/blogger-image--992421772.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbuhRhTnQ4rRY3dwNi629IiP2u-Hi8x6dacwZ40FgKQ5ENuedcN94cgs_O3o4OPeoxlzwdE7nMGz_-tzga2cM2z9HTNWmiTPltVqWafT6DUWpwMW3iWGObKe0zzGERhftxZsG_nWTEpnA/s640/blogger-image--1802482742.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8YSbpEC4fG5CYxm-w1Tqv0y5w6qDeb-kv1QtZbn6PvVnmtrMR3d49qWNsUgSDA64-mWSo3aYaBQk-m_m9EBQiDLi62F5bHVbqSE4uRccB98sHGwh_Fq10uRMEUxYGVVILOpqhVqMCl1c/s640/blogger-image--1956194939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8YSbpEC4fG5CYxm-w1Tqv0y5w6qDeb-kv1QtZbn6PvVnmtrMR3d49qWNsUgSDA64-mWSo3aYaBQk-m_m9EBQiDLi62F5bHVbqSE4uRccB98sHGwh_Fq10uRMEUxYGVVILOpqhVqMCl1c/s640/blogger-image--1956194939.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrdX_wHAYna2q6eSqRs41eMFA8Ab78cvz_r8rxaL4ekP-MN1n5hgQaSImFG4RD6yqTkOIgV0hmuVzilcSOoKZLZkBaofbJ64n7FhywvnJzhtAQzXac8ZVFz6uMm9ZhHeGuzDcaKv2RmY/s640/blogger-image--1932180077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrrdX_wHAYna2q6eSqRs41eMFA8Ab78cvz_r8rxaL4ekP-MN1n5hgQaSImFG4RD6yqTkOIgV0hmuVzilcSOoKZLZkBaofbJ64n7FhywvnJzhtAQzXac8ZVFz6uMm9ZhHeGuzDcaKv2RmY/s640/blogger-image--1932180077.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-9934064339505210132012-05-03T19:28:00.001-07:002012-05-04T20:36:16.378-07:00Day 46 - Poplarville to D'IbervilleYay! No rain today. And no flats, we'd had flats 5 of the last 6 days (or was it 6 of the last 7, not sure). <br />
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Jerry and Michele stayed in for breakfast, but I ran over to Wards for bacon and eggs with grits where I meet the chair of the Mississippi Republican Party (he was behind me in line - I didn't notice what he ordered), or maybe we was the Chair of the County Committee, now that I think about it, we had a brief conversation about the upcoming Mississippi Party Convention and the state delegate distribution. Nice fellow, worried about Tea Party influence. <br />
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While I ate, Jerry had to repair a frozen link in Michele's chain. He swapped out the problem link with a quick link and the problem was solved. Maybe that counted as our mechanical for the day so we got a pass in the flats. <br />
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After about 20 miles we happened upon a small grocery at a fork in the road southeast of Silver Run, MS. About half a dozen people were sitting on the porch and they invited us to sit down and join them. Which we did. We had a grand time. We bought Gatorade, soda, chips and ice cream and Maudie (I hope I spelled that right), the proprietor, offered us some boiled peanuts, which were delicious. She then proceeded to help me with our route to D'Iberville. D'Iberville is off-route and apparently the route I designed would have had us on some dirt roads (don't tell Michele, she gets really nervous when I start talking about going off-route). I'm glad Maudie was there to set me right. <br />
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On our way into McHenry Jerry was chased by a dog, we get chased by a lot of dogs. Earlier in the day I was being chased and the dog was almost hit by a car going in the other direction. The dog chasing Jerry was not so fortunate, it was run over by a pickup. The dog was injured and ran off into the trees. Jerry tracked down the owner and hopefully everything is okay. Leash your dogs people!<br />
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After that excitement we settled down and rode on to Saucier for Poboy's and fries, shrimp for me, catfish for Jerry and Michele. I've been avoiding the catfish (slimy), but may I'll give it a shot. <br />
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Once in D'Iberville we walked over to Doris' Hot Tamales. Poor Jerry and Michele, I keep dragging them off to these random places, but I've been on the hunt for hot tamales ever since we got to Mississippi. I won't go into what differentiates a Mississippi hot tamale for other tamales, suffice it to say they're different. <br />
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Doris' was closed when we got there, we thought it might be, hot tamales are often sold out of people's homes, but R.J, the owner, saw us standing outside and offered to open the stand for us. A very nice gesture and we accepted, we found the folks in Mississippi to be very friendly. We ordered two dozen tamales and took them back to our hotel. One dozen for dinner, the rest for breakfast tomorrow. They were delicious. Thanks R.J. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdqcFbxG8-A84B6NW1RQPSAYf9b5JoE5pleIBZCYsiZfpi6vCOBuLTiWkuqnAVbC6rSGJlyB7yiqQDxBRClx1qvSXDGVLSdiubl9_5METAI0X84PVydSb5rMfZ_RupPhIvgKwab6nmik/s640/blogger-image-929847452.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdqcFbxG8-A84B6NW1RQPSAYf9b5JoE5pleIBZCYsiZfpi6vCOBuLTiWkuqnAVbC6rSGJlyB7yiqQDxBRClx1qvSXDGVLSdiubl9_5METAI0X84PVydSb5rMfZ_RupPhIvgKwab6nmik/s640/blogger-image-929847452.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-upCRuhBJMKEZWZImGNhkGU8EsUs8gBBxEQRgQWj0M2-qWbVnFOxeDVhYVwdCaLc1QBcAsECgw4hoOA87HtZAw2Oi9YgooGn5B-ahkkKaRFY_kJTQoSh7xv5IqmRXk46wOzuR4uNsxo/s640/blogger-image-1321880360.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-upCRuhBJMKEZWZImGNhkGU8EsUs8gBBxEQRgQWj0M2-qWbVnFOxeDVhYVwdCaLc1QBcAsECgw4hoOA87HtZAw2Oi9YgooGn5B-ahkkKaRFY_kJTQoSh7xv5IqmRXk46wOzuR4uNsxo/s640/blogger-image-1321880360.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; 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text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQk8m1mJDYslyZxF3-t8U7FcETIAs9Vd5vtbz68IgFXzkTc1EtKYiRoOs0t9cGDYS-5wQuoN6R1PXqwiURgmGaf2WwSuOA_OWi2UVbQMB3JI4MkpeuBTMJZ-zg8P-Wd1wt1ES-qSceLI/s640/blogger-image--2059758539.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQk8m1mJDYslyZxF3-t8U7FcETIAs9Vd5vtbz68IgFXzkTc1EtKYiRoOs0t9cGDYS-5wQuoN6R1PXqwiURgmGaf2WwSuOA_OWi2UVbQMB3JI4MkpeuBTMJZ-zg8P-Wd1wt1ES-qSceLI/s640/blogger-image--2059758539.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1I1XQcX3Fgn2Zkvt1xP8Sw35zJW4T7rf__lbU5-VN1WS3gR5cDfFmaWuHndRnh2WARW6iqcsyRBrYIqmykDjVIGs5zs_UPtfnAzuJTIbCkAW6gDsjy7Vgsa15hBIaYq6583ix714Fu5Y/s640/blogger-image--788969049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1I1XQcX3Fgn2Zkvt1xP8Sw35zJW4T7rf__lbU5-VN1WS3gR5cDfFmaWuHndRnh2WARW6iqcsyRBrYIqmykDjVIGs5zs_UPtfnAzuJTIbCkAW6gDsjy7Vgsa15hBIaYq6583ix714Fu5Y/s640/blogger-image--788969049.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-13525196619497844002012-05-02T19:52:00.001-07:002012-05-02T20:55:29.522-07:00Day 45 - Amite, LA to Poplarville, MSRain, rain, rain. Scattered thunderstorms my ass. It rained on us all day. <br />
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Actually it wasn't too bad, it was still warm enough to ride without a jacket and we were mostly on back roads with little traffic. Still got seriously wet tho'. <br />
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The first 2/3rds of the day, from Amite (pronounced A-meet, for some reason) to Bogalusa was similar to yesterday, rolling hills on highways with moderate traffic. Not much to see, not much to do except push on to the next stop, which was lunch it turned out. We did make a snack stop around 10:30 at the McDonalds in Franklinton though. I've decided I figured out why McDonalds is so popular: it's tasty! It also provides consistency, sometimes it's nice to know exactly what you're going to get. <br />
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Take lunch for example. I asked a man on the street where we should eat lunch. "the Chinese Buffet" he said. Groan! That must be the third time that someone has recommended their local Chinese Buffet. We didn't ride all of the way to the Louisiana/Mississippi border for chinese buffet, but you can only fight it so long so we ate there..... It was terrible. Although the covered opening did provide a nice area to wait out the heavier rains. <br />
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Once in Mississippi we turned on to narrow deserted roads and even with the continuing rain, much lighter by this time, this was a very pleasant place to ride. One gentleman pulled up next to me in his car and asked where we started. I told him San Diego and he said that he used to play for the San Diego Chargers, I was just starting to ask him his name when Michele and Jerry caused some commotion by almost running in to each other and he drove off, probably thinking he was causing a hazard. <br />
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Laurie and Dean from Nevada, who are still riding one day ahead if us and have become our advance scouting party, reported that the campground here in Poplarville was to be avoided at all costs (named the Haas-ienda Ranch by the way - their spelling, I'll check it out tomorrow as we leave) so we are staying in a rental home. Three bedrooms, one bath, $100 per night. Laurie and Dean only paid $75 because they only used one bedroom. Seems quite reasonable. it's a very nice little house. Train passes by pretty close though. <br />
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For dinner I walked over to Wards Restaurant and got us take out chili burgers and fries. Wards, a Mississippi burger chain, also makes their own brand of root beer which was very good with a creamy texture and lots of vanilla, or so it seemed to me. I'm going back for breakfast, the very nice woman behind the counter assured me that they make grits from scratch every morning. <br />
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<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcUu7qOKvByXjCl5Ya5P4FvwZBZ6Qll7uFawJaMsZXupZ5Ve7DfXaXbqSOZaLmLp3m7t7z3hmarUm9opFB32OEkF0x-4lpPG0N8HIYbdu_9lnFBTonJkCwXuXV1SOZ3Wl3HGR9g_K-kbQ/s640/blogger-image--750574158.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcUu7qOKvByXjCl5Ya5P4FvwZBZ6Qll7uFawJaMsZXupZ5Ve7DfXaXbqSOZaLmLp3m7t7z3hmarUm9opFB32OEkF0x-4lpPG0N8HIYbdu_9lnFBTonJkCwXuXV1SOZ3Wl3HGR9g_K-kbQ/s640/blogger-image--750574158.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ0lpRk-9X8uDkCojH1DGI1O-gIbKYWlWuTXN80Pp0dTbzNOuj0Zglg89q8myvclruKhimUH6SyHGgrL-LzSImgFBB7xOyrrrsIK9xBOtF7qHUO1IbttnlXNov_275yJlS2bPJIAwEMhA/s640/blogger-image--732143412.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ0lpRk-9X8uDkCojH1DGI1O-gIbKYWlWuTXN80Pp0dTbzNOuj0Zglg89q8myvclruKhimUH6SyHGgrL-LzSImgFBB7xOyrrrsIK9xBOtF7qHUO1IbttnlXNov_275yJlS2bPJIAwEMhA/s640/blogger-image--732143412.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vP4oFcPaLxdn9l_c3-u2eWhaICxjpYqtueHM9yACJYwcKFNnaq_wIy56t2kDpbhDy8W6OkXAJTFfj7SXpU1zVriHONViVotG8734p2x1DvWes5ZTfYHaWtZ3o2qXdxUZaTHTFv5IB08/s640/blogger-image--909568470.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9vP4oFcPaLxdn9l_c3-u2eWhaICxjpYqtueHM9yACJYwcKFNnaq_wIy56t2kDpbhDy8W6OkXAJTFfj7SXpU1zVriHONViVotG8734p2x1DvWes5ZTfYHaWtZ3o2qXdxUZaTHTFv5IB08/s640/blogger-image--909568470.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhldjbY9ddzoHRI9ZwdM1gfRELXM_yVrkG2TY_T9wk8tfzj9EewNhl7rg5A3zekgkEf2dv83Rn7OrrHUIcFofIa6p_mv1Qo_mWrhmC-AJ_eLQTuBa_rYTmLXJXwpm0l1peYh5507jh0qGo/s640/blogger-image--1023213836.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhldjbY9ddzoHRI9ZwdM1gfRELXM_yVrkG2TY_T9wk8tfzj9EewNhl7rg5A3zekgkEf2dv83Rn7OrrHUIcFofIa6p_mv1Qo_mWrhmC-AJ_eLQTuBa_rYTmLXJXwpm0l1peYh5507jh0qGo/s640/blogger-image--1023213836.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0yjHVAWzw1gzeOSB2I-kqRZ4yBkPMEJT0K2cDI_zPVahA1rx0vpKtYE4Da_FKwMBVy_-jgIDrxjgAKqqlVF52PcQHehcpbvb0pjqgAUGApV8jn-ydvmDu8xE2ZNLUrs19joQx6A6BkH8/s640/blogger-image-233376749.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0yjHVAWzw1gzeOSB2I-kqRZ4yBkPMEJT0K2cDI_zPVahA1rx0vpKtYE4Da_FKwMBVy_-jgIDrxjgAKqqlVF52PcQHehcpbvb0pjqgAUGApV8jn-ydvmDu8xE2ZNLUrs19joQx6A6BkH8/s640/blogger-image-233376749.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvY93SBNSvJaFq4lPO0AWGeorbdJLsOHHAa-EzeVmsf0DKTuqEbVvJ8pFGQUqz_TY5pR9OckOk-_dpBOFFtPAIVh83J5ojSTE8saSN166yt9313adnStNH3tYG-FD_vRLf-GF_owP5XkQ/s640/blogger-image-1749009329.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvY93SBNSvJaFq4lPO0AWGeorbdJLsOHHAa-EzeVmsf0DKTuqEbVvJ8pFGQUqz_TY5pR9OckOk-_dpBOFFtPAIVh83J5ojSTE8saSN166yt9313adnStNH3tYG-FD_vRLf-GF_owP5XkQ/s640/blogger-image-1749009329.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSRXl_SKGaWBmE3UcaXhS-hiY6zH9HCSZgM5JVvaLsJwoh0FbOoM9K99aUiq54ca_EVs3giZ-ZuhvXtmFJvKU44hKrFrlWUE4grYPYwY0c9ZQRSs3ccmg8PE9IEk5nuGT9Vb4b48d0a5s/s640/blogger-image-1476933735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSRXl_SKGaWBmE3UcaXhS-hiY6zH9HCSZgM5JVvaLsJwoh0FbOoM9K99aUiq54ca_EVs3giZ-ZuhvXtmFJvKU44hKrFrlWUE4grYPYwY0c9ZQRSs3ccmg8PE9IEk5nuGT9Vb4b48d0a5s/s640/blogger-image-1476933735.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-27610515940468540692012-05-01T19:50:00.001-07:002012-05-01T19:50:25.478-07:00Day 44 - St. Francisville to AmiteWow, I really didn't take any pictures today. One of the courthouse in Clinton, and one of an exhausted Jerry sitting on the sidewalk in front if the grocery store in Greenburg. That's it. <br />
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I don't know if that's a reflection on the scenic value of Louisiana or just because I'm running out if steam. Probably the latter because Louisiana is really quite beautiful. Looks manicured, in fact, like a giant golf course. I'm just ready to go home, we all are and today's ride was done in that spirit. Just do the miles. I expect attitudes will get better as we approach Florida. <br />
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We also haven't had a rest day in a while, that may be contributing to the attitude problem. We'll rest Saturday on Dauphin Island in Alabama, it's at the entrance to Mobile Bay. There are a couple if Civil War era forts guarding the entrance to the Bay and we want to check those out. <br />
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Don't get me wrong, we had some very nice roads today and a great breakfast at the B&B we stayed at last night. Easy, rolling terrain. All in all a good day. <br />
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The food was good today too. Breakfast, as I said, was great: bacon, eggs, grits, apple crepe, coffee, OJ. We stopped for a snack in Clinton, but all that was available was some gas station fried chicken and pocket pies (ground beef) under the heat lamps. Surprise, surprise, these items were very good, Michele went so far as to say it was one of her favorite meals of the trip. I think that's an exaggeration, but the food was a nice surprise. In Amite we went next door to Mike's Catfish Cafe. Only Michele had the catfish, I had fried oysters, Jerry just ate from the all-you-can-eat salad bar. Good stuff. Lemon refrigerator pie for dessert. That was so-so, should have skipped dessert. <br />
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Tomorrow should find us in Mississippi. Hmmm, maybe we are making some progress. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ukeRQYemHRqh_WyaqBERjGXDZx4_fq8OdOTRfr1HZz7-V9iwUEszWJYmrvtPPlKgQcTsu7Q_anBSshFrHrpT4XFMAqLeBTHLe8Mzdi-B-ZvKVFS3TrLMePUszggppyuCY9wm6lA4QWk/s640/blogger-image-2049281872.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ukeRQYemHRqh_WyaqBERjGXDZx4_fq8OdOTRfr1HZz7-V9iwUEszWJYmrvtPPlKgQcTsu7Q_anBSshFrHrpT4XFMAqLeBTHLe8Mzdi-B-ZvKVFS3TrLMePUszggppyuCY9wm6lA4QWk/s640/blogger-image-2049281872.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNDa9XLc05dpzCpYyqkjjoBY5LkdZpsw7C8sLJfKrOgI89xQqJGFUCVZhq4_-ZvUOQfptI04wMlAnfoOzF2X4uipaa2Fd-GJ0GIsbVfI2cWejQOZUFxA-1riqWVcD7jBs1usK_ZKwKlrs/s640/blogger-image--1076716214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNDa9XLc05dpzCpYyqkjjoBY5LkdZpsw7C8sLJfKrOgI89xQqJGFUCVZhq4_-ZvUOQfptI04wMlAnfoOzF2X4uipaa2Fd-GJ0GIsbVfI2cWejQOZUFxA-1riqWVcD7jBs1usK_ZKwKlrs/s640/blogger-image--1076716214.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-10606295547231203942012-04-30T21:55:00.001-07:002012-04-30T21:55:10.378-07:00Day 43 - Simmesport to St. FrancisvilleI tried to take more pictures today. <br />
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We started off with a quick climb over the Atchafalaya River Bridge. That loosened up the legs. Most of the rest of the day was spent riding along the levees controlling the Atchafalaya and Mississippi Rivers. At one point we got off the bikes and walked up a levee road to look at the Mississippi. Should have ridden the Hunqapillar up that road, turned out we had to walk about a quarter mile to the river. We dipped our fingers in and walked back to the abandoned bikes. <br />
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In Morganza we took a break to grab a snack. I tried to get Jerry to order some cracklin, but he wasn't interested. Maybe the snouts turned him off. I wasn't that eager either. <br />
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After Morganza it should have been a short 18 miles to St. Francisville. That was when the ferry shuttled folks across the river. There's now the fancy new Audubon Bridge. Unfortunately the bridge is about 6 miles down river, that's an additional 12 miles we weren't counting on. Oh well. <br />
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St. Francisville is a neat town and was, for a brief 74 days in 1810, the capital of the West Florida Republic. I didn't even know the was a West Florida Republic. Did they teach me that in School? It was quickly annexed into the U.S. <br />
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Our lodging tonight is definitely a step up from yesterday, which was pretty sketchy. We're staying in the St. Francisville Inn, a B&B in one of the many old houses here (formerly the Wolf-Schlessenger House). Lots of cool old buildings here so we took a walking tour around town to check them out.<br />
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Freaky thing just happened, the floor lamp in my hotel room just turned itself on. Creepy! Hope this place isn't haunted........<br />
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With the old oak trees coveted in Spanish moss and the clouds passing over the moon this sure looks like the kind of place that would be haunted. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqYqMEg69Jr3UeJ3HxkbM3Anx-dgydaTt-01F9WTsKkGLi9jKClgIWD04Kjbs54p0LrfcX_hH3SFW2tht-Kh6GdWJxYbzdL3u5bqrie1fumgxnm02l91IsgH8raolAg8b9WISiPLvJrk/s640/blogger-image-1587736878.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkqYqMEg69Jr3UeJ3HxkbM3Anx-dgydaTt-01F9WTsKkGLi9jKClgIWD04Kjbs54p0LrfcX_hH3SFW2tht-Kh6GdWJxYbzdL3u5bqrie1fumgxnm02l91IsgH8raolAg8b9WISiPLvJrk/s640/blogger-image-1587736878.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsy-83Rb008Gi919MfTxdaoy_6cEavddyMbITXpqAH4Mo2wdzgu9NYfpZNQ3ABAqbTrAzYSJTfooRgKfBxeMaEUuO11TRgwCLS4hVSsCzxvPMqfrXnB6cFKD_MT4Q6-x4HF61hoz5Nxuo/s640/blogger-image-476418754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCxlJsliw_gxV4VUPPbxa5en57SgVeGYMYbollEiogJzlMmuHcSNTyX0j2IKMnbKLjqGAGCgFldRAztCP1flpF9_irbfDGInUIkGBu91vVJ96BKusHkIdYuX3-U4TFl_3KJcG9HtFT0ck/s640/blogger-image--2116357080.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-11300209216138653402012-04-29T20:35:00.001-07:002012-04-29T20:35:11.660-07:00Day 42 - Ville Platte to SimmesportI miss Texas. We've only been in Louisiana for a couple of days in my opinion, that the roads and drivers are more cycling friendly in Texas. <br />
<br />
The roads here often have no shoulder at all and are poorly paved. I guess Texas has the money to maintain their roads and Louisiana has other priorities (hurricanes?) Must be all that oil money. <br />
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That said, today's route was very nice, but lots of rough pavement. Not that I took many pictures. The area around Thistlethwaite State Wildlife Management Area was really nice, but it reminded me of a country club, we rode around it, but couldn't see in. Too many trees. <br />
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For lunch we finally found what I was looking for, a hole in the wall where I could get some gumbo. And it was delicious. Jerry thought it might be his favorite meal of the trip. <br />
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Dinner, however was a different story. Convenience Store sandwiches. We originally went down to the Piggly Wiggly, but it closed a 5:00. It fact, everything was closed except the truck stop. Had a corn dog too. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9Y0KEfPXWzY4R0wgjzzB7eR6Jm_aHDoVQfD6_Ydj-ke1otPab61UXGq3Z14OFHLJkwatGanO9mFLbKXy-Cwv2qcDKi7wFAtw0bKUxEc-mN2CNcUYh1RuZv-0D-Xpwys74LCAC9fVAv0/s640/blogger-image-2111693685.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio9Y0KEfPXWzY4R0wgjzzB7eR6Jm_aHDoVQfD6_Ydj-ke1otPab61UXGq3Z14OFHLJkwatGanO9mFLbKXy-Cwv2qcDKi7wFAtw0bKUxEc-mN2CNcUYh1RuZv-0D-Xpwys74LCAC9fVAv0/s640/blogger-image-2111693685.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIhyJ8RuMK-Br2h4q_14ihIdbQzH-eFNXbpB7Z_OSiTGmW7nJYheD2BdT2AXjXO2XfQYHFxa6raRftUSRD4pYSTliEGTL7dSViN9dx1SBLUlUBzVCUn-xWCvH71mMfNvUfbOkI-O_e7NQ/s640/blogger-image-1362390507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwLZYLqoTL4zHaQtJQohluOqcPNgHz_NIZLQcb5zW9hnduBy6TxjKmW4Qdgxr9LpHUJoOWQd7wZa95-Z90PXLwRRdWbaAhRUGSSgjot-GtLSWlA5eodLivybxf_i7IVTgE5l-Fxa3HZgM/s640/blogger-image--94763385.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7m-qmVgnDVC_keje93pUyKMHYHCT-rRC27jOLAI6NacDaKiS8MnmBH6XZmRRY4ak9ReafH8wzXiTZ6puKN691fH-CFf6fx2Fv2SDL3XKGrkLpg2Tz7LHVwqOhlaBCeFKycntEH7M0zjI/s640/blogger-image-1132831075.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7m-qmVgnDVC_keje93pUyKMHYHCT-rRC27jOLAI6NacDaKiS8MnmBH6XZmRRY4ak9ReafH8wzXiTZ6puKN691fH-CFf6fx2Fv2SDL3XKGrkLpg2Tz7LHVwqOhlaBCeFKycntEH7M0zjI/s640/blogger-image-1132831075.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-67496962597919006812012-04-28T10:16:00.001-07:002012-04-29T20:10:56.730-07:00Day 41 - DeRidder to Ville PlatteNot much to report today. More wind, bummer. Guess I should be used to it by now. Lots to see, but I seem to have lost my motivation to take pictures. <br />
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Wheat fields, rice fields and crayfish farms sure are scenic, well maybe not the crayfish farms, but they make lousy wind breaks. Where'd the trees go?<br />
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Stopped for a burger in Oberlin. We asked at the Shell Station where we could find a restaurant where we could sit down and eat. That was probably a bad idea because they served food. The folks at the Shell told us there was nowhere else in town. <br />
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Wait a minute. Didn't we just pass a restaurant? Sure enough, half a block back was a small restaurant. We ate there. Not bad. And we got great service from the woman behind the counter and her young granddaughter. <br />
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Before arriving in Ville Platte we briefly stopped to watch a crayfish farmer harvest the days catch. Interesting, I had an apple while we watched, tasty. <br />
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Once in Ville Platte we went the wrong way, adding a few miles to the day, but it let me find Floyd's Record Shop, specializing in Zydeco, Cajun & Swamp Pop. Too bad they were closed. <br />
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Dinner of crayfish étouffée and fried catfish. I'm not a big fan of catfish, but pretty good. <br />
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Lodging: Best Inn, Ville Platte. Michele was ready to pass on the place because of the yellow and punk paint scheme, but the rooms were okay so we stated. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhylEmYKtLM9koVFX2ZtnfrHShawJJ5tNtDQzo0iurWVpb2d9mxDA2efvqbZsZuDhmCdvS6HSfddITWnaNRyLOA-eLVwFbzuQV5oTShnJeVPyvRcwh1-MfwzSpCsjPxvQM9a8DKHEHalfg/s640/blogger-image--1911160258.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhylEmYKtLM9koVFX2ZtnfrHShawJJ5tNtDQzo0iurWVpb2d9mxDA2efvqbZsZuDhmCdvS6HSfddITWnaNRyLOA-eLVwFbzuQV5oTShnJeVPyvRcwh1-MfwzSpCsjPxvQM9a8DKHEHalfg/s640/blogger-image--1911160258.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaO4bL3-3r-GFUlU32O2XAb1wjocAZ-anDs0SZcxRbuvStSggxI_WAI8nGonGvKtEbQZiPHEYEdTbz83JrqOLhhDuHdW3Zgu6d7pPDb1U4Qc44aU-Hei3UOKcrL4sWxqHJfs_RquNZqBA/s640/blogger-image--473923689.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaO4bL3-3r-GFUlU32O2XAb1wjocAZ-anDs0SZcxRbuvStSggxI_WAI8nGonGvKtEbQZiPHEYEdTbz83JrqOLhhDuHdW3Zgu6d7pPDb1U4Qc44aU-Hei3UOKcrL4sWxqHJfs_RquNZqBA/s640/blogger-image--473923689.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhi-YmjaLgAhb9LP9Ry7_AYMLcN2XGlYLQftvOTUlELZtDc6uCWCURxMltycUKt9XWUW2yOVhTLkVU08kCWA3dZwAt19hnFJ4Kk0PbI82-snqsq8cG4waSrsUNHEcXDba3I-C9Ru8iy0/s640/blogger-image--1292311651.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmhi-YmjaLgAhb9LP9Ry7_AYMLcN2XGlYLQftvOTUlELZtDc6uCWCURxMltycUKt9XWUW2yOVhTLkVU08kCWA3dZwAt19hnFJ4Kk0PbI82-snqsq8cG4waSrsUNHEcXDba3I-C9Ru8iy0/s640/blogger-image--1292311651.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMUsgEUGVKTjqntMAWVGUymI8uGJXwBKPts6N0mUOIP6KnuZDcw0xm3m_SY9KoVh6iWuzFE8DwfjB63-5Hz3tI1FJMhGTQBXRtrQpK9_HNVNtYnVE87_hIn9XTd3iYni7_A0QIZiPiBA/s640/blogger-image--204743344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMUsgEUGVKTjqntMAWVGUymI8uGJXwBKPts6N0mUOIP6KnuZDcw0xm3m_SY9KoVh6iWuzFE8DwfjB63-5Hz3tI1FJMhGTQBXRtrQpK9_HNVNtYnVE87_hIn9XTd3iYni7_A0QIZiPiBA/s640/blogger-image--204743344.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhw4Ulpu0bsD8LL22M_zTSzGHMgSOrLCCnSXU93NZ_UQHsNJoxdrfguH-x2X_hQxk2I-AY0PlemqMBc56vN_Nh0UpbV2LcLs6ewrjGd-PAWajJAN9DvcRBHObZHuYyQTvAQFKyuclg0U/s640/blogger-image-155412623.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhw4Ulpu0bsD8LL22M_zTSzGHMgSOrLCCnSXU93NZ_UQHsNJoxdrfguH-x2X_hQxk2I-AY0PlemqMBc56vN_Nh0UpbV2LcLs6ewrjGd-PAWajJAN9DvcRBHObZHuYyQTvAQFKyuclg0U/s640/blogger-image-155412623.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBy3kJdrjgpo3RFK2piDLb4DGF75-4lpLGECjooCBLrrjsY37A2BF_ZMq3rvsAjxCRx6SoqFst3klngpcahkZdch8oilB9wBn_HwN7sV1pgp2uyqKVuzifq1_Gh-adDf_QUjMAeyXhiJg/s640/blogger-image-2135511638.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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and we finally left Texas. <br />
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I can't even remember not being in Texas, we were there that long. Over three weeks. I liked Texas a lot, but I'm glad to leave it behind. Once again it feels like progress is being made. <br />
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We finally had a sustained tailwind. I stopped writing about the wind, but it's been a constant impediment to our progress. Recently we've had some protection from the trees, but today we ran north for the first 30 miles and had a 20-mph south wind the whole time. Those 30 miles flew by and we were at the Three Flags Cafe in Bon Weir for lunch in no time, 47 miles already behind us. J&M had fried catfish, I had breakfast: bacon and eggs with a monster biscuit. We also shared an order of boudin squares which are hard to describe, but delicious. Grant - note the table cloth on the table behind J&M in the lunch photo. get your guns up!<br />
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Bon Weir is only a couple of miles from the Sabine River, the Texas/Louisiana border, a couple if minutes after lunch we were in Louisiana. Yay!<br />
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We pushed on to DeRidder only stopping for the occasional photo. For dinner we had a couple of recommendations for the Cecil Cajun Cafe (fellow at the visitors information stop and guy at stop light), but it was a disappointment. I feel we continue to make bad choices for our meals. <br />
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Passed through "The Big Thicket" before lunch. The thicket is a very densely forested region in East Texas. I think it would be pretty spooky at night. There's even a ghost road where the spirits of old conquistadors wander about looking for gold, or it could just be car headlights filtering through the trees, decide for yourself, I'm going with conquistadors. <br />
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Texans that lives in the Thicket during the civil war refused to fight for the confederacy and we're known as Jayhawkers (like the Kansas Jayhawkers). Although the Thicket Jayhawkers did not fight like the Kansas Jayhawkers. The Thicket Jayhawkers hid in the area around Honey Island because of the bee hives in the area. They would collect the honey and trade it with sympathizers for supplies. The Confederates unsuccessfully tried to burn them out. <br />
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Skipped breakfast this morning, but had a really good bacon cheese burger at the general store / restaurant in Honey Island and signed the log book the proprietor keeps for cyclists. I noticed that the three med students we met at the sand dunes in CA passed through here 10 days ago. We better pick up the pace, they're probably done by now. <br />
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The rest of the day was easy enough and uneventful. Stopped for a root beer float at another Dairy Queen and rode off to the Red Cloud RV park to camp. Dinner of supermarket roast chicken and broccoli. <br />
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During dinner Jerry pulled out his original itinerary, looks like we're about a day ahead of schedule. We made up the day we lost in San Diego and the extra rest day in Scottsdale. Looks like we're doing okay. <br />
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Not my favorite camping spot of the trip. The mosquitos are really bad so we retreated to our tents right after dinner. It's also pretty noisy (trains, which are okay, and nearby freeway traffic and music from a club down the street, which are not) and bright (lots of overhead lights). I got lucky when I set up my tent, none if the lights shine directly in my eyes. On the bright side, it gave me a chance to catch up with my blog entries. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRnSkS_VNsQwA9KxIZ_Rj8LphK_OESui-kK21A-rb7X6H0YvIbRd6a9rcBPSxuSWyMg0aJIK-G7S6iwNjauQ_yqvibm17g-zHMneivZ48fo9lNUBGTs0Q-8L5XDbGlxhgRJ_iPbWn6oc/s640/blogger-image--1122824235.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoRnSkS_VNsQwA9KxIZ_Rj8LphK_OESui-kK21A-rb7X6H0YvIbRd6a9rcBPSxuSWyMg0aJIK-G7S6iwNjauQ_yqvibm17g-zHMneivZ48fo9lNUBGTs0Q-8L5XDbGlxhgRJ_iPbWn6oc/s640/blogger-image--1122824235.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEielaM2i33OYLu7yQgr0EX_fRYA3A3pVw0Nd7uIm-9RgKzR94zGMPLnMaTOcy_0p-3JdGPf-bUSefD8Aw6E2yaUMtl9js4kSnrSeDvrMnnSVFgDxyXd1FdLxD9g8Ia3MBdvXn49ZFObcIU/s640/blogger-image--1744684934.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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The restaurant was open so I got some bacon and eggs. It'd been a while. <br />
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Then off into the Sam Houston National Forest in search of the elusive and endangered Red-Cockaded Woodpecker. We didn't find any, but we did find trees with their dens (if that's what they're called). If we'd hung around til sunset we probably would have seen one. <br />
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I ate lunch in New Waverly, but J&M weren't hungry and they rode on without me. I was waiting for a call from Dad anyway. I spent the rest of the day riding alone. Dad finally called while I was passing through Evergreen which was perfect timing as there was an abandoned gas station where I hid from the sun while we spoke. <br />
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Finally re-connected with J&M at the Hotel in Shepherd. We cleaned ourselves up and went down to "The Grill" for dinner. It was very good. I had BBQ brisket and jalapeño venison sausage with spicy mac n cheese and mashed potatoes. I didn't really like the sausage so I traded with Jerry for some I'd his chicken fried steak. That I liked a lot.<br />
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We arrived in Navasota without any difficulty, more on that later, and stopped at the Rattlers Pit BBQ and Soul Food Cafe. It looked off the wall enough for us to want to try it, even though the locals we talked to never mentioned it when asked for recommendations. <br />
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I had the chicken speghetti with sides of yams and corn on the cob. Sweet tea to drink. it was ok, tasty enough especially the tea, but the portions were on the small side. I finished with some banana pudding, that was really good. <br />
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In Richards the larger store/cafe was closed so we went to the smaller, open store and got sandwiches and a Mrs. Bairds fruit pie (similar to Hostess fruit pies), unfortunately I neglected to get anything else. Now I'm hungry. <br />
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We left Brenham on a small county road this morning. The plan was to take Texas Route 105 out of Brenham all of the way to Navasota, but the iPhone suggested a different route. We decided to go with the smaller road suggested by the phone and it was very nice, no cars at all and we even stopped to speak with a man walking his cow. Eventually we rejoined 105. <br />
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Just before arriving in Navasota we passed through Washington and crossed the Brazos River. <br />
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Washington on the Brazos is the site of the creation of the Republic of Texas. On March 2, 1836 the Texas Declaration if Independence was signed here. Of course, Houston's victory over Santa Anna at San Jacinto sealed the deal. <br />
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I think the Brazos must be some sort of unofficial dividing line between the South and the rest of the country to the west. Things are different now, it just feels like the South. The food's different (chicken spaghetti, sweet tea, banana pudding), the weather's different (hot, humid), the vegetation's different (very green, very dense), heck, we even crossed a bayou (according to the sign). <br />
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The road to Richards was even nicer, rolling hills, a couple pretty steep, not much traffic, lots of trees. Perfect riding road. Along the way we passed the Lone Wolf Ranch, the name caught my eye and I later found out that this is Chuck Norris' ranch, though the locals say he doesn't stay there much. <br />
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We stayed at the Mexican Hill Ranch just west of Richards. Ernie and Doris were fantastic hosts, Doris is German and they met while Ernie was serving in Germany while in the Army. Ernie told me that his main house didn't have enough room to host friends and family so he built a small guest house away from the main house, eventually he added more rooms motel style, a kitchen, a shower building, restrooms, patio, swimming pool and a stage for live music when he has parties. <br />
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One day a cyclist showed up looking for a place to stay and that's when he found out he was located on the ACA southern tier route. One thing led to another, he bought a hoteliers license and he now gets dozens (more than 100?) cyclists a year. $16/person to pitch a tent, $30 for a room. <br />
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He really seems to have gone out of his way to make cyclists feel welcome. <br />
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According to the sign he erected, we have 1830 Miles done and 1220 miles to go. <br />
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FYI, maybe too much "I", I have a huge bluster in my right pinky toe. I have weird feet, there I admitted it, I think if I am going to continue with this long distance cycling nonsense, Randonneuring, touring and what not, I'm going to have to have some custom shoes made. Shoes with room for all of my toes, no matter which direction they want to point. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxLYfQ9J3aIagsAfZvopb_r6fiahgDQPzjwtvio8h136r83dgPZz3ghCMJWKDuPDk2ma2ID1MWWVKuOD-3KehmmesicPXAhUSOpUA1CGoVjn5cW1TPq3RJyC_4815JYlkQwFmZPBY6Lw8/s640/blogger-image--1058801226.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxLYfQ9J3aIagsAfZvopb_r6fiahgDQPzjwtvio8h136r83dgPZz3ghCMJWKDuPDk2ma2ID1MWWVKuOD-3KehmmesicPXAhUSOpUA1CGoVjn5cW1TPq3RJyC_4815JYlkQwFmZPBY6Lw8/s640/blogger-image--1058801226.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisElV3O757Na3duktxlwXl0MZ2RxRaex-O0cy0UY_JQYWiL5V0xXtmQ5dNVsJRdN112Ccd4-RrbCTuImDLLg2seJpLoYTd-v_H2dogMa4FdnjgTpkZOdVtg4_j6rDsjVdlonVaC-Qwq5I/s640/blogger-image-1061956692.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJlrd5571PMxnflNa3SDAxypKXPNZHCyJ8iyIKWsX4SEevfduhUasYwGxHHLCqpM80KamIWlDSRfyf2NsKwqy6o24ACuGzsm9jzRaxO2Dz-TUv2vgk7wT_MVyD2pUniWFjB5_7_LDzWt0/s640/blogger-image-502448834.jpg" /></a></div>Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03811157373971043032noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-558260571294255351.post-26595814649437963362012-04-26T15:49:00.001-07:002012-04-26T15:49:27.335-07:00Day 36 - Buescher State Park to BrenhamAnother uneventful day. Jerry found a turtle in the road and, worried for its safety, picked it up and carried it safely across the road. Hopefully it doesn't change it's mind and wander back. <br />
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We found La Grange before too long and seeked out Weikel's Bakery, which supposedly has the best kolachis in Texas. They were just okay in my opinion. I also had a couple of jalapeño pigs in a blanket. The kolachis and pigs we had in Kerrville were better. <br />
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Our plan starting the day was to get to Navasota, but by the time we reached Round Top for lunch it was clear we would not make Navasota before nightfall so we diverted off course, with little or no mileage penalty, to Brenham. At Round Top we found only a portable pizza oven available, all other services were closed, but the pizzas were tasty and there was plenty of Dr. Pepper. They said they only show up on Mondays because all the other places are closed. Round Top is and antiquer's paradise. Several times a year the town hosts antique fairs attracting upwards of 50,000 visitors, quite a surge for a town of 500. <br />
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We stopped for root beer floats in Brenham before finding a hotel at Must be Heaven ice cream parlor. They were closed, but the staff who were cleaning up made us our treats, to go of course. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkVcp1kIfQCGJc2JLuXi7GGsgTJkkFtgLAtDVQZ_Kfq7bW43RrN5H5nUJQ46U4LSo8hbjRlJsFAYg250JS-zi0_G-BgMNTEMS8eVg9SMwPtSwplWahrkwBY6LEv9341pc5Y8JFliJvG14/s640/blogger-image--1554138092.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkVcp1kIfQCGJc2JLuXi7GGsgTJkkFtgLAtDVQZ_Kfq7bW43RrN5H5nUJQ46U4LSo8hbjRlJsFAYg250JS-zi0_G-BgMNTEMS8eVg9SMwPtSwplWahrkwBY6LEv9341pc5Y8JFliJvG14/s640/blogger-image--1554138092.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrQB48BA00tafkLJIyH_7W27YTLtGVYUHdDiNwliEgTQ4HVmkZrMFz72DSSqKhBN2rGUiDLwYd9HOYKysYIY8Cu7G69DYgTQG9pqO-xbjbno-wu6DYj4p4dAc4katG3UyoGATogsIn6A/s640/blogger-image--1953018731.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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On the way to the Brazilian place I ran across Amanda and her coffee shack, Black Lodge Coffee. I had to stop for a cup and it was delicious. Kiss My Grits was right next door and I really wanted to eat there too, but I held out for Brazilian breakfast. <br />
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At the Brazilian Cafe I had Acai na Tegela, pastel du camarao and pao de queijo. Yay! The Acai and pao de queijo were not as tasty as Sunstream in SF, but they were a taste of Brazil and of home. No coxinha tho, bummer. The pastel was the best I've had in the US. <br />
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The ride to Bastrop was unremarkable, nice, but nothing special. Although I did detour on to a pleasant country road for a while. I stopped at a Taco Cabana for a brisket taco just to try it. It's a local fast food chain and a wanted a taste before they stopped showing up. Not bad, a definite step up from Taco Bell. Fresh flour tortillas made on site. <br />
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We had planned on staying in Bastrop, but Jerry and Michele arrived before me, we're unimpressed ("all the charm of El Paso", I believe was how Jerry put it) and decided to push in to Buescher State Park, so I rode on to catch up. Frankly, I think Jerry was a little harsh in his assessment, it wasn't that bad. <br />
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The extra 12 miles were by far the most beautiful and difficult of the day. The road went through Bastrop State Park which is home to the famous "Lost Pines," an isolated timbered region of loblolly pine and hardwoods. Most of the park was destroyed by fire last year and the damage is extensive, and eerily beautiful. <br />
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Being a park road, it also turns, sweeps, climbs and descends like a roller coaster. The rollers weren't high, 75 feet maybe, but man were they steep. Even in my lowest gear I had to climb out of the saddle and weave back and forth across the road. The park website has this to say about cycling in the park: "The scenic, 12-mile-long, winding, and hilly, paved road between Buescher and Bastrop State Parks is ideal for biking, but should be used only by experienced cyclists." I'll say!<br />
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Buescher State Park escaped damage and is densely forested, a very nice place to camp. Can't say enough about these Texas State Parks. <br />
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Jerry & Michele lugged a roasted chicken, salad fixin's, and a cherry pie over that road for dinner. I felt slightly guilty for not sharing the load, but not so guilty that I refused to eat it. <br />
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Andrew is no longer riding with us, he went home to DC. That's too bad, it was nice having him around. Only good thing about him being gone: since he's not here I didn't get any beer and I was able to catch up on my blog. Don't feel much like blogging after a few beers. Posted five entries today. Whew!<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyKuZMW5htiEkKTQXl6UTPZ6Y_yd9_NKgvD397B7AFTuMv_faGxYnmSxXS7hnCeeZIeofux1e0Ra8olLAXxRtsgsdeUp9CHRbqhL0t16E4fW3J5h3LTPx2aMC4bjUerye48Xi1-M2OhaI/s640/blogger-image--1244339710.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyKuZMW5htiEkKTQXl6UTPZ6Y_yd9_NKgvD397B7AFTuMv_faGxYnmSxXS7hnCeeZIeofux1e0Ra8olLAXxRtsgsdeUp9CHRbqhL0t16E4fW3J5h3LTPx2aMC4bjUerye48Xi1-M2OhaI/s640/blogger-image--1244339710.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9H3VCmgMIhZdMoaeV00be7kCmR-oooq2puahhtiriFWI3ybqlS8pR8hm6Mbe101ucWcb_koGvhCnc4Cxirj4PtNUZQ5d5O-bDdxvXyjLBJcKQdZtxgpaMq4K8F1mF0PLwLF4UTqiQFI/s640/blogger-image--601577611.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq9H3VCmgMIhZdMoaeV00be7kCmR-oooq2puahhtiriFWI3ybqlS8pR8hm6Mbe101ucWcb_koGvhCnc4Cxirj4PtNUZQ5d5O-bDdxvXyjLBJcKQdZtxgpaMq4K8F1mF0PLwLF4UTqiQFI/s640/blogger-image--601577611.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; 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