Celebration

Dipping our front wheels in the Atlantic Ocean. We started on March 5 by dipping our back wheels in the Pacific Ocean.

St. Augustine FL April 29, 2010

We started the day with a final 40 mile ride through rural northern Florida, farms, mostly growing potatoes and deep woods. We arrived at the firehouse in St. Augsutine where we met our escort for the parade, 2 SUV police cruisers and two policemen on motorcycles. Here we are lining up. They took us through the town itself with all the intesections closed while we passed through. When we arrived at Anastasia State Park on the ocean they turned on their lights and sirens and we had a dramatic ride through the park to the ocean.

Here we are lining up for the parade.

What will I miss most when the tour ends?

Tomorrow we will arrive in St. Augustine. I wonder if I will sleep at all tonight. What will life be like back in the real world? We have spent 58 days together, this band of 22 independent determined women. We have conquered mountains, hills, rain, snow, leaking hotel roofs, and Txas chipseal roads. Tomorrow we will reach the Atlantic Ocean, or goal. As Linda says "3098 miles on a tiny seat."

I will miss the comraderie. I will miss seeing my sister every day. I will miss not being able to eat 5,000 calories a day. I will miss having a chef and needing to do my own grocery shopping and meal planning. In the photo is our chef telling us what she made for dinner. I will miss the countryside and riding and riding and riding.

Perry to High Springs to Patlaka FL April 27 and 28, 2010

Two days of 70+ miles each. Tuesday we passed through pine forest, horse farms and Ichetucknee Springs State Park. The state park was home to beautiful clear springs, the clearest most pristine water imaginable. The color was a turquoise blue. We stood in the cold clear water and soaked our aching legs.

Today started out with lots of logging trucks coming toward us and the faint smell of a paper mill nearby. As we rode the countryisde changed back to farms,mostly cattle. In the afternoon the logging trucks were all going the same direction we were. I never want to see another one from the viewpoint of a bike seat.

We saw this Brahman bull by the radside. I do not ever remember seeing one with floppy ears liek this guy had.

Wakulla Springs to Perry FL April 26, 2010

A short fast ride 51 miles. We had a decent shoulder and road surface, somewhat of a tailwind and the terrain was flat, flat, flat. The miles zoomed by. Mostly it was through pine forests.

uUr lunch stop was at Mama's Italian restaurant, great food, cooked and served by Mama herself. She was a delight to talk to.

Our conversations lately are centering around where we will bike next and trying not to be morose that the ride is about to end. Our friend Patty wonders if she goes out to her driveway after the ride and sits on a plastic chair whether someone will bring her dinner?

Wakulla Springs FL, April 24 and 25, 2010

A rest day at Wakulla Springs. An interesting place. Known for its crystal clear spring fed lake. There are under water caverns. Dinosaur bones discovered here. Movies have been filmed here including Tarzan and Airplane 1976. The lake is full of alligators, turtles and fish. Birds abound in the woods surrounding the lake. It poured rain on Sunday morning. It was so nice to wake up to the sound of rain and thunder and know we did not need to go anywhere.

A special note of interest to my parents and siblings, Edward Ball a plilanthropist and successful businessman, whose name was everywhere and who had the lodge built was a married to to Alfred I. Dupont's sister. We grew up on a farm we rented from the Alred I. Dupont Estate. Small world!

Marianna to Quincy FL Aprill 23, 2010

A short beautiful ride, 54 miles, to the county seat of Quincy.Country roads. Miss Helen at lunch said that htere are 25 Coca Cola millionaires in Jackson County. They took a chance and bought some Coca Cola stock way back when.....

This picture is or my granddaughter Quincy.

Crestview to Marianna, FL April 22, 2010

Today was our last really long day - 93 miles. We had a preacher visit us at one of our SAG stops. He started out by telling us that he is sympathetic to women who need to clean bathrooms after men. He had a job cleaning the men's room at a truck stop and said that men are just disgusting. They leave paper on the floor and drip water everywhere.... Then he launched into a short sermon. Some of the other women scooted away real fast when he was just getting warmed up. I stayed and ate my snack and stretched my muscles and added an Amen once or twice. JoAnn even gave him a Hallelujah. At the end he said he wanted to say a bendiction for us. He gave the one that Dad always used at church when we were growing up and I got a big lump in my throat and said it along with him (silently). At the end I told him my Dad was a preacher and he said the same bendiction every Sunday when I was growing up and he gave me a big hug and left. The verse on the back windsheld is original with him.

Dauphin Island AL to Pensacola FL April 20, 2010

Another wonderful ride. We started out with a ferry ride off the island and rode for miles along the gulf shore. Soon after lunch we crossed another state line into Florida. I did not know whether to cheer or cry. I am so anxious to get home, but I will be so sorry to see this end.

Dauphin Island, AL April 19, 2010

Our rest day was on beautiful Dauphin Island. We were right on the beach. White sand, wild dunes and a swimming pool just outside the door. A great place to recuperate those tired old legs. We need to provide our own food on the rest days and here we are carrying a fresh seafood dinner for 9 back to the condos on our bikes!

Crossing the state line - Alabama

Here we are crossing the state line into Alabama.

No, I was not afraid

Yes, it is a real live alligator. His mouth is taped shut with electrical tape. We all took turns holding him. Hia name was Stumpy because a big gator took off his one foot when he was little.

Pascagoula, MS to Dauphin Island, AL April 18, 2010

A fun day. We found an Alligator farm on the right and turned in. We saw baby alligators by the dozen. They are kept in separate pens because the adult gators eat the little ones. The mesquitos are just awful. I have dozens of bites, even a nest of more than 10 of them in the middle of my forehead.

Wiggins to Pascagula MS April 17, 2010

Today was a wonderful ride. 67 miles. There was no wind for a change, bright and sunny. The roads were through the country,back roads. The Azaleas are just amazing so I am posting another Azalea picture. About half of the ride was through a national forest. Truly the best riding conditions. We crossed a river close to the gulf and could see the gulf from the bridge. Great day. If we have too many more of these, I will be sorry to see it end!

Was I transported to Lancaster County?

We saw this sign today, but no buggys came our way. Also did not see any Amish farms unless they have electricity here. Dad, do you know of any Amish communities in this part of Mississippi?

P.S. Obviously I have not figured out how to delete pictures when I accidentally duplicate them. Am still learning this blogging business.

Almost a bad scene

This is a re=enactment of a scary moment this morning. I hit a splintered board on the shoulder and it jumped up and got stuck in my wheel. I got stopped and removed the board and went safely on my way and then regretted not getting a picture, so we re-enated it for your viewing pleasure!

Bogalusa LA to Wiggins MS April 16, 2010

We crossed another state line! Blue skies, more azaleas, more tall pines and grazing cattle and lots and lots of Baptist Churches. One of my best riding days yet, only 60 miles. Things are going much better since I have admitted I cannot keep up with Linda. This road sign picture is especially for my grandson Holden. I saw a Shelby Street sign one day but the traffic was too heavy to stop, sorry Shelby. I will keep looking.

Hammond to Bogalusa, LA April 15, 2010

Today was a beautiful ride through rural Louisiana. I think it might be race horse country. Saw lots of horses and even a trailer that said it was carrying race horses. Coninue to see lots of tall pines and the logging trucks carrying them out. The azaleas are in full bloom and all of them are huge compared to the PA bushes. They are as big as the hedge in my back yard and are often used as hedges. Gorgeous. We saw one field of horses, about 20. They were all the same color and some of the most beautiful horses I have ever seen. Every time I snapped the camera they would run, so I did not get any pictures of the whole herd. It was a short day, 55 miles and no major terrain challenges.

St. Francisville to Hammond LA April 14, 2010

Today was another long ride, 86 miles. Much easier on rested legs. We are winding our way through rural Louisiana. Today we found a strawberry farm and stopped to buy some strawberries from the farm. We had to eat all we bought since there was no way to carry them. It brought back memories of our strawberry picking days. Dad's rule was 20 quarts before breakfast and then Mother made wonderful big breakfasts for us with all the trimmings. It was a no picture day.

Rest day in St Francisville LA

We a wonderful day off in St. Francisville. We stayed in a charming Bed and Breakfast called the St. Francisville Inn. There was a flower filled courtyard in the back, perfect for relaxing. We cleaned our bikes, did some work, went out to lunch, had some ice cream and just recuperated. The flowers were in the courtyard and the pig was out in front of where we ate lunch.

Linda and her new riding buddy

Here are Linda and Karen who just ride like it is all downhill.

I had to find a new riding buddy

Linda is routinely leaving me in the dust, so I had to find someone else to ride with, so here is Suzanne. Linda is so strong and seems to be unaffected by the headwinds.

For everyone who owns their own business

This sign is for my daughter Sara and my son-in-law Andrew and anyone else who is in business for themselves!

Not Your Mama's Cafe

We had lunch at Not Your Mama's cafe and ate some local Louisiana food. I had a a Po Boy Catfish Sandwich, basically a big hamburger type bun with catfish, lettuce, tomato and some type of sauce, very tasty. Food is amazing after a long morning of biking. There were a lot of clever signs hanging around the cafe, like "anyone who has teenagers knows why animal eat their young." This one in the picture is especially for my fishing brother, Ken.

Cyprus Knees

Back in the fifties when I was a little girl everyone who went for a southern vacaction came home with a highly polished wooden lamp made from Cyress knees. Yesterday I saw the real thing in a Cypress swamp.

Yard art

Sometimes the yard art is just so entertaining we stop for pictures. Here is a Buddah with Mardi Gras beads. Let's see that is a combination of an eastern religion with the partying Catholics of the Gulf coast.

Lafayette to St. Francisville LA April 12, 2010

Today was an exciting day. We crossed the Mississippi River on a ferry. We rode our bikes onto the ferry with all the cars. The river is very muddy looking. I am sure it is because the soil here is so full of clay.

We need water too

Our SAG ca follows us and stops every 20 miles so we can fill our camelbacks and water bottles. We mostly ride on very rural roads and sometimes there is no place to stop and buy water, so the SAG is our lifeline to water.

Rice fields

The other industry here is rice. We passed rice paddies. Not much to see at this time of year, but the rice is starting to grow. I understand that sometimes rice and crayfish are raised together. My dinner last evening also included rice, so it was a very local dinner!

Water, water everywhere - crayfish farm

The industry revolves around water. We passed farm after farm where crayfish are raised. See the buoys? We think they are attached to traps. We topped off the day with a visit to a restaurant with cajun food. I learned that cajun is short for arcadian and that the cajuns were transplanted french Canadians. Lots of French influence. Street names often start with Rue.... The band at the restaurant consisted of an accordian, washboard, drums and a bass. I had cajun crawfish for dinner. Tasty.

On the way to Lafayette, Louisiana Aprill 11, 2010

Brackish water. We spend a lot of time looking at what is just to the right of our bikes at ground level. These days it is a ditch of brackish water. Sometimes there are cattails growing in the water, sometimes ragweed, sometimes just standing water or mud. Once I saw 4 or 5 wild turkeys in the ditch. Another time at a rather upscale community the water and mud was covered with spanish moss obviously placed there to make it look less disgusting. The point is the water table is very close to the surface and the evidence is everywhere. In some cemeteries the dead are not buried, but rather put in vaults above ground. In the picture is such a cemetery.

Unfinished business with Texas

Before I get any further in Louisiana I need to get this sticker off my helmet!

Train

We have crossed lots of train tracks, but today was the first time we had to stop to let a long tain pass.

Azaleas

In Louisiana the Azaleas are blooming and the bushes are huge compared to the ones at home.

Hello Louisiana

There was no Welcome to Louisiana sign, so we used one that Kathy Kirby's friends made.

Silsbee TX to Lake Charles LA April 10, 2010

Today was an 80 mile ride and we rode out of Texas and into Louisiana. We were all happy to be through Texas. We spent 20 days riding across Texas. It feels like such a milestone to be in another state. Yesterday and today we were riding through logging country. Lots of tall pines and it seems like that is what the logging trucks are carrying. Some places there are acres of smaller pines sort of like Christmas tree farms, but the pines are the logging type. The terrain is quite flat. The rivers and and bodies of water have changed dramtically to a muddy brown. In West Texas they were crystal clear.

Texas Longhorn

I think I finally got a photo of a longhorn. I was so close I could almost touch him and he just stood and watched me take his picture.