Day 11: Wednesday, April 20, 2011

31 miles to Vesuvius, VA

We decided to take a short ride today since we had to bicycle over the Blue Ridge Mountains.  We rode the Blue Ridge Parkway which was great.  It was beautiful and there was very little traffic.  We stopped at the Humpack Rocks Visitor Center and a ranger told us there was a guy who came through last year traveling the TransAmerica Trail on a Unicycle.  He didn’t know if he had made it, but he said he had lots of energy when he left their spot.  We climbed and climbed and climbed and climbed, but I preferred that to coming down the other side of the mountain.  Thank goodness I had read an article about coming down mountains and knew that it was critical to stop and check the tire rims to be sure the tires don’t melt.  We stopped about 3 times and my rims were very hot to the touch.  Vincent’s weren’t because of course he didn’t ride the brakes like I did.  Hopefully, I’ll get better at that with time.

It does seem as though every day brings a new issue with the travel trailer. Today, we noticed the refrigerator wasn’t cold.  Turns out we had parked at a severe angle (didn’t think it was a big problem since we weren’t staying in it) and the coolant doesn’t work under those conditions.  Once again, we relied on our good friend, Don, to help us out.  Despite the logistical problems with the trailer, it is like coming home when we get in from a long ride.  Much better than sleeping in a tent or even going to a hotel room every night.  

Day 10: Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Today, we are visiting my best friend from high school Tammy and her husband Tom in Staunton, VA.  They are very gracious hosts and are making sure we have plenty of rest, food and relaxation.  The first thing I did last night was take a nice, hot soaking tub bath and it felt wonderful.  We have taken over their laundry area and bicycle clothing hangs from all their doorways.  It is so great to be able to visit friends as I take this journey and share my dream with them.

Day 9: Monday, April 18, 2011

68.5 miles to Afton, VA

After passing Ash-Lawn Highland, the home of President James Monroe, and Monticello, the home of Jefferson, riding through Charlottesville, we started the climb around the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  The climbing was not steep, but very long.  Good training for the days to come.

Riding past the home of Thomas Jefferson.

Stopped by a train for the first time.

Day 8: Sunday, April 17, 2011

75.5 miles to Tabscott, VA

We rode through Ashland today, a quaint little town with the railroad running through it and a terrific coffee house that features live music and a gathering place for bicyclists.   We biked past Patrick Henry’s home and over Lake Anna.  We finally noticed that the trail is marked with “76” route signs which is pretty awesome since the trail was first ridden to commemorate the Bicentennial in 1976.  I hope they are posted the entire route as it sure makes it easier to find our way, although we took one wrong turn today.  Fortunately, we only strayed about 2 miles.

Day 7: Saturday, April 16, 2011

Another rest day dictated by a serious storm that began when we woke up this morning.  We decided it would be best to rest this out and double up on mileage the next couple of days.  We are heading to see my high school friend Tammy in Staunton, Virginia. One nice thing about another rest day is that I am able to work on the counted cross stitch I brought for this trip. I had just finished a set of 4 butterflies before we left, so I can now start the “Smoke Ceremony” piece I bought several months ago.

Golf ball size hail. Good thing we didn't ride.

Day 6: Friday, April 15, 2011

72 miles to Mechanicsville, VA

The day was spectacular and the ride incredible. As often as I have bicycled around Williamsburg, I never knew about the Capital Trail.  It picks up right at Jamestown and goes to the Chickahominy River, then restarts at Sherwood Forest Plantation and goes through verdant farm land.  We passed several other plantations and rode through the Richmond National Battlefield Park.  We stopped at the Old Dominion Outdoors store which was still closed for the season.  We used their picnic table and surprisingly the restrooms were unlocked and very clean.  Nice stop for us.

The Capital Trail runs through scenic farmland

Taking a rest at Old Dominion Outdoors

Road closed in Richmond Battlefield

We bicycled down it anyway and just had to get over a pile of boulders

Day 5: Thursday, April 14, 2011

We decided to stay another day at Chippokes Plantation. Mostly for logistical purposes as we still needed to work on more details for the trip and my friend Tammy, who we are visiting, had last minute business out of town for the weekend. We found a handlebar bicycle bag for Vincent.  It works out perfectly since it has a special map holder on top that the ACA maps fit into nicely.  After we picked up the bicycle, we took a walk around the plantation.  It was founded in 1619 and has been continuously farmed since then, making it one of the oldest farms in the country.