Team Alpha on the Greenbriar River Trail WV

Back home again in Circleville, Ohio 10,300 miles

It's official we are home! And it's double official because I went back to work today at Berger Health System. I am the Wellness Director at the hospital. Don't tell my boss but I think that I have the best job in the world. I get the opportunity to go out into the community, local businesses and Berger employees to help them to learn ways to become healthier. I am not sure that taking a 10,000 mile + bike ride is a healthy idea but I'll get back to you on that.

We rode the last leg of the ride from Chillicothe to Circleville in a downpour. But then that's bike ridin'! It didn't bother us at all. In fact we had a wonderful tailwind so it actually felt like we were sprinting to the finish line. A great end to a wonderful ride. When we rode out our driveway last May we decided that we would do everything and ride anywhere we wanted for a year. We wouldn't regret anything or leave anything out. And that is just what we have done. No regrets. No, we wish we had..... just it's time to go home for awhile. Then??.........??

When we rode into Circleville we were pleasantly surprised to see Amy and Gregory standing on the side of the road with balloons, flowers and signs. Thanks guys for the great welcome. They really went above and beyond to come out in the rain. Then they followed us through town taking pictures of us. And all of the balloons on the car was a bonus! It was sort of like a parade!

Our house survived, but as you can see from the picture someone needs to mow the grass. I think our grass would get mowed more if the lawnmower had pedals!

Thanks to everyone who has supported us during this year with notes, emails, phone calls and prayers. We couldn't have done this without the support of all of you.

I will be making a couple more entries in the blog. We are doing a ride this weekend in W. Virginia with Dugan, my brother in law who has Alpha One. It is a fundraiser for the American Lung Association along the Greenbriar River Trail. Two days and 70 miles. Dugan is planning to ride with us. So for all of you who have all of healthy lungs, Dugan will be riding with about 1/4 of one lung with oxygen on his bike! No excuses is there?

Chillicothe, Ohio

When we arrived in Charleston we went out to dinner with Deb from the ALA and Neva who is an Alpha One support group leader. She has arranged for Hap & I to meet with the WV Governor tomorrow at the capital building. What an opportunity to do some PR for Alpha! Thanks Neva! We also were going to present our check to the ALA for the TREK bike tour we are doing with Team Alpha next weekend. It is a 2-day ride along the Greenbrier River in WV. It is a beautiful trail. Hap & I rode it a few years ago.
The next morning we were supposed to be at the capital building at 9:15a. We were only a few blocks from there so we got to the gate a little early. A TV cameraman showed up from WOWK Charleston station and did an interview. Another station WSAZ also did an interview. Meeting Governor Manchin was really cool. He read a proclamation stating that May was Alpha One Awareness month. He told us that he had mandated that when any knew roads were built in WV that a 2-foot shoulder was required. We thanked him for that. All in all it was a special day for us. We are still trying to figure out why people are so amazed at our “little bike ride”. All we are doing is having fun! When things get tough sometimes along the way, I remember Dugan and how hard he trained and worked to ride his bike with a quarter of a lung! What we are doing is easy. Hopefully we got some good press for Alpha.
We left Charleston and headed towards Huntington. We stopped at John’s bike shop in St Albans. We were very impressed with the bike shop. Great selection of bikes, parts and Jeff actually knew something about them. He had done a tour across the US back in 1976. We ate lunch at Taco Bell. We stopped at Jim’s Campground outside of. Milton, WV. There were two choices of campgrounds. The KOA wanted $30 to pitch our tent. Jim’s wanted $12. Which would you pick? Jim’s was really nice. We had a huge shelter house that we could park the bike under and cook our dinner too. It also had electric outlets as a bonus.
We left the next morning after eating our traditional oatmeal, peanut butter and banana breakfast. It was hot and sunny. The road was little busier as we got closer to Huntington. Most of the traffic gave us plenty of room. But there’s always that 10% rule. We had a flat tire on the way into town. It’s always much more fun to have a flat tire, in traffic, with no shoulder. It didn’t take long to get it changed. Hap’s getting really good at it. I don’t even have to tell him what to do anymore! It was supposed to start raining so we planned to stay inside in Ashland, KY. We stopped at a gas station to look in a phone book for hotels. While we were there a guy said, “Hey didn’t I see you on TV this morning?” He talked to us for quite awhile. We had been wondering why so many people had been blowing their horns at us and waving as they passed. Maybe they saw us on the TV! That would explain it. Before we got to the hotel we stopped and bought another tube. Just in case…..We have had to ride in more junk on the side of the road just because of the traffic. We got to the hotel, left the trailer and road to a Wal-Mart for dinner supplies and to get a prescription filled. While I was standing in line a lady behind me said, “Didn’t I see you on TV this morning?” I asked her if she learned something and she said yes she did. It was very interesting. Oh, did I mention that the Wal-Mart was on TOP of a big hill? So here’s the picture…..four lanes, no shoulder, slow tandem, lots of traffic. We had a lot of people come pretty close. I guess they had to get to Wal-Mart in a hurry. I am sure that it was some sort of an emergency that’s why they couldn’t wait 10 seconds or so to get around. But we all made it into Wal-Mart and no one got hurt. That’s the important part.
The next day it was pouring down rain. We decided to stay an extra day in Ashland. We spent the day doing laundry and eating. We only have 30 miles to go to get to Portsmouth, OH. Then maybe 70 miles or so to home.
This morning we left Ashland, stopped at Bobby’s place (or Bob Evans to all of you who aren’t from Ohio!) and road north on Rt 23. Rt 23 runs through Circleville HOME. Not far now. We are getting to our neck of the woods. It was overcast all day but still a great ride. We made a call to All Saints Episcopal Church in Portsmouth about spending the night there. We have stayed there many times when we road TOSRV (Tour of the Scioto River Valley). They agreed to let us stay even though TOSRV is the next day. We planned to be riding north tomorrow as TOSRV riders are heading south to Portsmouth. This way we get to see all of our biking friends that we haven’t seen for a very long time. We got to the church just in front of a big downpour. My brothers and wives are driving down tonight to take us out to dinner. It sure will be great to see them!
We are down to two more days of riding before finishing this year long (and three day) adventure. I go back to work in a couple more days. Where did the time go?

Today we rode to Chillicothe. It was fun to see all of the TOSRV riders coming south. We saw alot of old friends that we haven't seen for a long time. It sure is good to be on home turf. We have ridden the Tour of the Scioto River Valley every year since 1983 so we felt like we knew every turn and crack in the highway. It is a very pretty ride following the Scioto River. In Chillicothe we made a quick stop in the park to talk to the local newspaper and take a picture. Then we stopped and bought my mom some roses for Mother's Day. Of course I told her that I had bought them in Portsmouth and hand carried them from there. All of my family showed up for a cookout. It was great to see everyone. Especially the three new babies, Korbin, Reed and Rowdy. I plan to spoil all of them soon!! Tomorrow is our last day on the road. I go back to work at Berger Health System on Monday. Hap will be busy getting our house (assuming it is still there) back in working order. We have ridden 10,280 miles. Tomorrow's ride will be about 30 miles. It is supposed to be a stormy, rainy day. A fitting end don't you think?

Charleston, WV 10,000+ miles!

We ate a banana and peanut butter for a pre-breakfast before we left the motel. We continued south on Rt 7 toward Gallipolis. It was nice because we had a nice shoulder and not much traffic. It was also warm and sunny. We stopped at a restaurant for some pancakes. OK, so we ate twice in an hour, is somebody out there counting? It was such a pretty ride along the river. Everything was so green, spring is finally here! We stopped in Pomeroy for a very special event! Our 10,000 mile of this trip. Of course we had to have ice cream. It seems impossible that we have actually ridden that far and it has almost been a year. Today we were on a secret mission. Niece Kendall (Dugan's daughter) is graduating from Rio Grande this weekend and we are planning to surprise her. She thinks that we are a million miles away (in biking miles....) and has no idea we are coming. Ssshhhhh....... Traffic started to pick up on Rt 7 but we were going to turn west off of Rt 7 before we got to Gallipolis. We had ridden between Rio Grande and Gallipolis before and taken this route. But that time we were on our mt bikes with Hap pulling Katie (our dog) in the trailer. We remembered the route as being really pretty with not many hills. But guess what happens when you add 180 pounds to a tandem. The route gets hillier and the hills get steeper. Or maybe we just didn't notice the hills. By any standards it was a very hilly route. It started to rain just before we got to Rio Grande. Several members of my family were on their way to Rio at the same time so we were on the phone alot talking to them. On the outside of town we called Kendall's sister, Tiffany to have her call Kendall and find out where she was. Tiff said she was at the apt. We rode to the apt to surprise her. Boy was she surprised. It was great! I told her that I had been lying to her for several wks. And everytime I lied I had to call someone to confess. About that time Dugan called. He and Sonnie were on their way down. He asked where we were and I told him that we weren't there yet, we were about 4 miles from Rio. Yes, I lied to him also. But I'm confessing it to all of you! The rest of the family showed up a short time later. It was great to see them. The best part was seeing the twins, Reed and Rowdy. If you have been following us you know that they were born last November.

We spent a wonderful weekend with family. The worst part of this last year is being away from them. Mom and Dad came down. Dugan and Sonnie were there. We shared lots of stories, ate alot of great food and just enjoyed being together again. I tried to show everyone where my shingles were but no one seemed interested.

Yesterday we reluctantly let go of the twins and road away from Rio Grande. It was cool and sunny. We took a different route to Gallipolis that was alot better than the other day. We crossed the Ohio River and then the Kanawa River. We had planned to camp in Point Pleasant WV. But when we called they said sorry we don't allow tents. Then why do you call it a campground! We thought there was a hotel in Buffalo, WV so we headed south on Rt 62 on the Kanawa River. It was a beautiful route. When we got to Buffalo we were surprised to find that the hotel only rented by the week. Whoops! We asked about camping down the road and no one seemed to know of anything. So we just bought a gallon jug of water and planned to camp along the river. We stopped at a convenience store for a snack. When we were talking to some locals they said they wouldn't camp along the river. OK so now what? We didn't have any choice so we kept going south toward Charleston. We stopped in Eleanor at a convenience store. There was a local policeman in the store. We asked the clerk if she knew of a place to camp and she said why don't you camp in the city park. The cop said it closes at 10pm. Hap said can't you look the other way for one night? He said no! For the record, in alot of the towns we have been through they will let you camp in the park. We have many times. But I guess in WV you have to keep out the riff raff! I looked in my AAA book and found an Econolodge in Nitro. I called, made a reservation and we headed on down the road. We got to the Econolodge after a long day. Hap walked next door for spaghetti dinners.

This morning we had a short ride into Charleston. It was warmer today. I had been dreading riding into Charleston but it actually wasn't bad. We stopped at a Shoney's for lunch. We also stopped for haircuts. Are you wondering why we are going to Charleston, which by the way isn't on the way to Circleville from Gallipolis? We had an opportunity to raise some awareness for Alpha One. We are doing a fund raiser ride for the American Lung Association the weekend of May 15. Which is the weekend after we get home. We decided to hand deliver our donation for the ride to the main office of the ALA, in Charleston. They have arranged some media coverage for Alpha. We'll let you know how it goes next time.

Little Hocking, Ohio

We left Wheeling on a cold overcast rainy morning. And because we are in West Virginia we started with a climb. We finally had our first view of Ohio across the river. Our plan was to ride south down the WV side of the river hoping that Rt 2 wouldn't be as busy as Rt 7 on the Ohio side. Before leaving Wheeling we stopped at AAA to pick up more maps. While we were in AAA they mentioned a bike trail along the river. It took alittle bit of trial and error but we managed to find it. It was only maybe five miles long but it did get us out of the busy downtown section of Wheeling. When we got off the trail we stopped at a KFC/Taco Bell for lunch. Then we got back on Rt 2. Or at least we thought we were going to. The road became a limited access freeway. When we headed up the entrance ramp we saw the sign (the dreaded sign) that said No Bicycles. Mmm.... well look at that! We sure didn't expect that. We checked the map and our options were to go back into Wheeling, go across the bridge into Ohio and take Rt 7. Or get on the freeway to the next exit which was only 1/4 mile and then climb the ridge and loop way out south and then get back on Rt 2. We decided that was the best choice. We were only on the freeway for a few minutes so I don't really think it was a foul. We got off and wound our way through the small towns of Benwood and McMechen. On the south side of McMechen we discovered that the freeway was no longer limited access and was ok to ride on. Thank goodness. There was some construction but traffic wasn't bad. Just before we got to the town of New Martinsville traffic really picked up. Not sure why. We couldn't find a campground so we stayed at the Plaza Inn. Next door was a grocery store so we bought some dinner fixins. Tonight we had beef vegetable soup and salad.

We left the next morning once again on a cold day. But at least the sun shined off and on. We decided to go across the river and ride down the Ohio side and hopefully the traffic would be less. On the other side of the bridge we saw a sign that said Rt 7 is closed 25 miles ahead. Uh oh, that's not good! We stopped in a gas station to see if maybe we could get through. They were all so helpful. Even the customers got into helping us see if we could get through. Hap called the sheriff and he said no way. Does anyone find it ironic that we have traveled almost 10,000 miles all around the US and now that we are within 100 miles or so of home we can't get there! What we ended up doing was ride 15 miles south on the Ohio side and take a ferry back across to Sisterville WV. The funniest thing happened on the ferry. We walked onto the ferry with our bike and were standing behind a pickup truck. A lady got out of the truck, looked at me and said, "Do you know Darlene?" (which is my mom's name!) then she said, "Are you Diane?" It scared me for a minute. I thought something had happened at home and people were out looking for us. She then said "I'm Rita do you remember me?" As it turned out it was my Aunt Rita that I had not seen for over 20 years! Small world! She knew about our bike ride from emails from my mom. What a shock. When we got off the ferry, she and her husband asked if we wanted to stay with them. We said sure and rode 15 miles to St Mary's. It was really great to see her after all this time. And we really appreciated the hospitality and opening up their home.

This morning we left on a warm sunny day. Finally back into the 70's instead of the 50's. We stopped at Subway for breakfast before crossing the river (AGAIN!) back into Ohio. Rt 7 was a good cycling road. It is great to be back in our home state. After traveling all over the country we realize how pretty our state really is. The Ohio River Valley is beautiful. Everything is green and the flowers are blooming. We got a call on the way into Marietta from a TV reporter from WTAP in Parkersburg. She met us at Walmart and did an interview. Check it out at http://www.wtap.com/.

We had planned to ride to a State park south of Belpre OH. When we were riding through Belpre we stopped to call the State Park. We thought we had about 20 miles to ride but when we asked her how far it was she said "It's a 40 minute drive". Umm... we didn't think that we could get there before dark so we decided to punt. We stopped in Belpre, got something to eat, and looked in a phone book for campgrounds or motels. We found a motel in the town of Little Hocking that was only about 5 miles south. The bonus!? It was only $25. When we got there we were very happy to find a small, very clean place to stay. See? Sometimes you don't know where you are going to end up? Look what happened to us the last two nights! I can't wait to see what happens next! Can you?

Wheeling, WVA The 27th state!

We had a wonderful breakfast at the B & B. Then we started out our day by climbing a steep hill to get to Rt 136. I love to climb hills, but not first thing in the morning especially on a full stomach. It was a beautiful sunny day with temps in the 70's. The day turned out to be hilly all day but then it was pretty much what we expected. The traffic wasn't too bad but there were a few drivers who were just annoying. Hap asked me if I had my target shirt on today. At times it felt like it. There was one ol' guy in a pick up truck who was trying to pass us just as we were crossing some railroad tracks, with another car coming toward us. There was no shoulder. He was right on the trailer. He was going really slow just sort of following us. I could see what was happening and I did the math and realized that all three of us (four counting Hap!) wasn't going to fit at the same time over the tracks. I yelled at Hap and he just pulled off the road and stopped. It was pretty exciting. And it just made no sense. But we made it safely over the tracks and headed down the road. We are back on the "S" route which was a really nice route. In the hotel Hap spent alot of the evening cleaning up the bike. It was pretty dirty from the time on the trail.

This morning we left Washington on National Route 40 paralleling Interstate 70. But this time we left in the pouring rain. It stopped during the day but was overcast and in the 50's all day. When we crossed into West Virginia it was our 26 state of the trip! That's amazing. It sure doesn't seem like we have gone that far. When we arrived in Wheeling it began to rain again. It was a very pretty ride today. Not much traffic and the weather didn't bother us much. Thank goodness for gortex raingear. We checked into a Super 8 and took a hot shower. Then walked across the street to a Wendy's. In the hotel we did our laundry, did some reading and watched TV. Nothing too exciting today. For dinner we ordered a pizza. Tomorrow we plan to ride south down the Ohio River toward Portsmouth, OH. Later.

West Newton, PA

We left Somerset on a beautiful sunny day. The temps were already the 70's by the time we left. We had about a 10 mile ride to Rockwood where we get on the Alleghany Passage trail. You can check out their website at http://www.atatrail.org/ We have ridden a section of the trail on another trip from Cumberland, MD to Washington DC. We were looking forward to getting out of the line of fire of the cars/trucks. We rode into Rockwood to the start of the trail and stopped at a bike shop. As we got off we noticed we had a flat tire. Hap fixed it and then noticed that the rear rack wasn't right. He discovered a broken bolt on the rack. He bought one from the bike shop and we were on our way. We stopped on the trail for a lunch of peanut butter and bananas. The trail is not paved but was packed down enough that it wasn't a problem at all on our tandem. It was alot smoother than the section that we had ridden from MD to Wash. DC. thank goodness. There are several little towns that you go through on this route. Lots of B&B's and places to eat. We stopped in Confluence to get something to eat. We ended up camping at the Outflow campground. Unfortunately the shower house wasn't open until next weekend so we didn't get that shower that I look forward to. Oh well! We set up camp and walked over to an ice cream stand. But then we both decided we were hungry and ate fish and chips. How could we be hungry when we just ate?? When we got in the tent we watched a movie that I had downloaded off the internet. That's the first time that I had done that and it worked pretty well. I think I'll try it again.

The next morning was another beautiful sunny morning. We fixed our oatmeal and bananas for breakfast and got back on the trail. One thing for sure we aren't blazing a lot of miles lately! But we sure are enjoying the trail. We are riding next to the Youghiogheny River. It is a big rafting, kayaking, fishing river. We saw lots of fisherman standin in the water. I can't figure it out. I always see them casting but I don't think I've ever seen one catchin'. We loved watching them fly fishing out west in MT, WA, ID. Same deal out there. Lots of castin goin on...... When we went through Ohiopyle we stopped for lunch and had a great Hummus sandwich. Or was it so good only because we were so hungry....again.... We stopped on one of the bridges and watched some kayakers for awhile. Then we saw an upside down kayak. Hey Hap? How long can that guy hold his breath?" Finally we realized or hoped that he wasn't in the boat. That can't be good. Eventually we saw him sitting on the rock way upstream. I guess it's not like snow skiing where we put brakes on our skis. While we were standing there another cyclist rode up and said that he had just seen a black bear run across the trail. Cool! But we didn't see him. He was probably so scared he is still running. We saw lots of cyclists, runners and walkers using the trail. People of all ages. Even people as old as Ol' Hap and me! I love to see people out and doing something. We rode into the town of Connelsville and stopped at the bike shop to ask about camping. A lady told us that there was a campground about 3 miles out of town. We started to head that way and then decided since it was going to rain to stay inside. And of course the motel was at the TOP of the hill (one of those bicycle laws!). We checked in and walked across the street to Walmart to buy some dinner groceries. Anyone seeing a theme here? At the motel there was a small group of cyclists that we started talking to. It turns out that Tom runs a company that leads bicycle tours on the C & O and the Great Alleghany Passage. You can check out his webite at http://www.getoutandgo.biz/ Oh, and we also discovered another flat tire on the rear. Wassup with all these flat tires?? When Hap checked the rear tire he noticed a pinch in the sidewall. And we were so hoping that we could get through without having to buy another tire.

This morning it was raining when we woke up but then cleared off and was another beautiful day. This would be our last day on the trail so we planned a short day to West Newton. We made reservations at a B & B. A little unusual for us but hey were just trying to be like all our friends! And we only have two more weeks before we have to live in the real world again. Our first stop was at the bike shop again to buy a new tire and another tube. Hopefully it will be the last! Tom had told us that the trail was alittle softer but it turned out to not be so bad. We just enjoyed the trail and the quiet before heading back to the road tomorrow. In West Newton we ate a sandwich at the Trailside Inn before going to the B & B. It was really a nice place. I especially liked the shower! We walked back to the laundromat and to the drugstore for another bottle of sunscreen. For dinner we got some spaghetti and salad to take back to the B & B. We only ate again to go with the wine that they had at the B & B. We spent most of the evening planning our last two weeks. I can't believe it is almost over. A year ago we were just getting ready to leave. It will be very strange to have a car to drive again. Mmmm....maybe I won't want to. We'll see! Later.

Somerset, PA

We spent three nights in Breezewood with Bing and Susie. And their family of dogs. Hooter, Stoney and Elton. They are on their way to the National Poodle Show in MD. It was so great to see them again. If you have been following our journey you may remember that they drove out to Glacier National Park and spent several days with. We didn't do much in Breezewood except relax, watch movies, play cards and eat. It was great!

We left Breezewood and rode to Bedford. We are still following the PA "S" bicycle route. The route was beautiful. Everything is so green and the trees are just starting to bud. We saw a brand new baby calf. It must have just been born. It was still wet and was trying to stand for the first time. The mom even still had the afterbirth attached. We had quite a few short steep climbs today. But we have been expecting the crossing of the Alleghany Mts to be pretty tough. We have climbed them before on a couple of bike tours. The biggest difference between crossing the Rockies or western mts and the eastern mts is outwest you might climb for 20 miles or more but at a 5-6% grade. In the east you might climb 1-7 miles at a 7-10% grade. Which would YOU pick? We found a few of those 10% grades today. Ah well, that's bikin! As we were entering Bedford we noticed a big factory with the name Cannondale on the outside. Wonder if that is the bicycle factory Cannondale. We pulled in and Hap went in and asked. As it turned out it was. He set us up for a tour in the morning. There was a campground just down the road so we headed down there and set up camp. For dinner we had rice, peas and chicken. Does that sound good to anyone else? We played a game of cards and someone won but we don't need to go into that! Bing had loaned us a movie "Mystery Alaska" so we watched it on the computer. It was really a good one. Thanks Bing!!

This morning we got up at 7a, I know ..... guess I better get used to it since my date to get back to work at the hospital is getting close! I am really looking forward to it too. Not the getting up early part! The being a part of a great team at Berger Health System. That's what I miss. The tour at Cannondale was awesome. It almost wants someone to add to our stable of bikes. But not quite. It is nice to know that an American made bicycle is a quality machine. We saw alot of pretty bikes and learned alot about how they were made. They had one bike that was made special for President Bush who is an avid cyclist. The tour guide said they got tired of seeing him ride a TREK bike! When we left Bedford we decided to take a slight detour from the "S" route. We opted to take Rt 30 to see the Memorial to Flight 93 that went down near Shanksville on 9-1-1. Route 30 is known as the Lincoln Highway. It was a good riding road. Some berm and not much traffic. It was a pretty ride once again. Who knew that PA was such a pretty state. We had lots of climbing. One climb was 7 miles long. We climbed up to over 2000 feet. The memorial was really a special place. It is just a temporary one for now. They are working to put a permament one up. There was a lady there who lived in Shanksville and told us about that day. She said the explosion shattered windows. I just cannot imagine what it must have been like for a large jet plane to hit the ground at over 500 mph. There wasn't much left. While we were there I looked over and saw a familiar face. It was my cousin Wayne from Dublin, OH. What a surprise. It was good to see him! After we left the site we rode into Somerset. We thought we were going to see a campground on the way into town but somehow it wasn't where we thought it was. So we ended up at a Days Inn. Which worked out just as well since it started raining as soon as we checked in. I washed out our clothes while Hap worked on the bike. The gears have not been shifting like we like. Or let's say that I kept having to jump off the bike and "help" us get into the lowest gear. And with all the hills it got alittle tiring. He cleaned everything up and hopefully tomorrow it will work better. Dinner was pizza and salad from Pizza Hut. Tomorrow we plan to get back on the "S" route and ride to the Great Alleghany rail/trail. That connects Washington DC with Pittsburgh. Until then...............

Breezewood, PA

We had breakfast at the Twin Bridges Campground. Our standard oatmeal and fruit. In the picture above you might notice the "racing stripe" on our cantalope. It had a little accident on the ride to the campground last night. Ooopps..... We left the campground at Chambersburg on a beautiful sunny day. This is the warmest temperatures we have had in awhile. We had to ride east on Rt 30 which was a fairly busy road. Thank goodness there was a nice shoulder / berm for us to ride on. We stopped and had lunch and sandwiches. We could see the Appalacian mountains getting closer. We know we have to climb them somewhere. In Fort Loudon we stopped at a restaurant and had some lunch. Then went across the street to a grocery store that was going out of business for dinner stuff. They didn't have much. So we ended up just buying a can of green beans and chicken to go with our rice for dinner. After leaving Fort Loudon we started climbing up to Cowens Gap State Park. The real climb was three miles long up to the "gap". We found a nice campsite. And tonight we got to have a hot shower! The bugs were kindof bad but we had some skin so soft that worked pretty well. Dinner turned out pretty good tonight. At least we didn't go to bed hungry! One good thing about camping is you for sure get to bed early. We were in the tent and listening to music at dark. We had a flat tire today. We also developed a new noise on the bike. When we got to the campground Hap spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out our extra noise. He finally discovered a loose bolt on the rear wheel and our rear rack has developed a small crack. Thank goodness it is not in a critical place. We'll just keep an eye on it.

This morning was a another beautiful day. It was in the 80's. We had breakfast at the campground. Oatmeal, peanut butter and bananas and juice. I am starting to worry about Hap though. He is starting to have conversations with odd things. Like bugs. While he was taking the tent down he was telling the bugs that it was their last chance to get out of the tent and be with their friends before he killed them..... should I be concerned?? Maybe too much bike riding?? The ride from Cowens Gap was really pretty. We rode through tree lined areas with little traffic. We are still following the "S" route across Pennsylvania. We were taking a little detour today though through a section of the old Pennsylvania turnpike that is closed to car traffic. It goes through two tunnels. One is a mile long. We did alot of climbing to get their but it was worth it, because it saved us climbing over a couple of mts. We saw lots of cyclists as well. We put on our lights and went through. It was alittle scary but we made it. I had a light in each hand and Hap had a light on the handle bar. Breezewood was right on the other side of the tunnel. What is interesting about the Pike 2 Bike detour is that on their website it says "This route is closed use at your own risk". http://www.pike2bike.com/ We are in a hotel tonight because we couldn't find a campground. We walked across the street and ate dinner at Bob Evan's. Tomorrow we are meeting up with our friends Bing and Susie from Indiana. If you have been following our trip you might remember they drove out to Glacier Park and spent a few days with us there. It will be good to see them.

Chambersburg, PA

Hi everyone, we are now just outside of Chambersburg. I am sorry I haven’t written for awhile. We have just been having way too much fun. It is hard to believe that we are down to out last 24 days of riding!! And the big question is are we tired of riding our bicycle after almost a year of pedaling? That would have to be a great big NO! Would we change anything about the last year? No, when we rode out of our driveway last May, we made the decision that we would do everything that we wanted to, if we wanted to stop and see something we would. We didn’t want to get to the end of the year and say, we wish we would have done…..that! I am happy to report that is just what we have done.
Now, about the last week………..we decided to spend a couple of days in Lancaster with Fred and Will. Fred was the person who hired Hap at RCA back in 1971. It was so good to spend time with him. We are only sorry that Rae Jean, Fred’s wife couldn’t be there. But we promised Fred that we would be back. He took us out for a drive into the Amish area. The first thing we noticed was how huge the Amish farms looked compared to the one’s in Ohio. The scenery was spectacular. While we were there Fred went out of his way to feed us with some great food. It was just a nice and relaxing few days.
We left Fred’s house and retraced our path back to York. We are riding on the S Pennsylvania bicycle route across southern PA. Getting into York was alittle tricky with all of the traffic. We did our usual thing though. If you are riding through a town, usually you can go one street parallel to the main road and find a less traveled route. In this case it ended up being an alley. We took the alley up to Rt 30 where we had a hotel reservation and ended up riding right into the back of the hotel parking lot. Just like we knew where we were going! Right next door there was a grocery store so we walked over and got us a bag of salad and salmon for dinner.
The next morning our goal was to ride to Gettysburg which was off the S Route. But first we had to figure out how to get out of York! Which wasn’t easy….. Somehow we missed our turn, went down a big hill and THEN noticed that we missed our turn. Why is it that you find out about the turn at the BOTTOM of the hill? In York we were constantly going either up or down anyway, we didn’t really need an extra one. Finally we made our way out of town and onto Rt 234 east. It was a beautiful road for riding on. We stopped on top of a big hill and ate our lunch (apples and peanut butter). Once we reached Gettysburg we ran into lots of traffic, and this isn’t even the tourist season. Oh, I have to tell you about this one idiot……driver…..sorry….but …..he….was… Here’s what he did. We were riding on the side of the road, and a car came up beside us going very slow. I was watching him and apparently so was Hap, because both of us at the same time yelled, He’s going to turn right. Remember he was right beside us?? Thank goodness Hap saw him because he hit the brakes and sure enough the idiot…driver..turned right into a parking lot and stopped to park! Do you get the picture? I have no idea what this person was thinking. It makes you wonder doesn’t it?? In Gettysburg we wanted to go to the Visitor Center before going to the campground which was 5 miles out of town. You would think that would be easy wouldn’t you?? Ok, maybe if you are driving a car and not have to climb the hills, watch out for the tour buses, watch out for the idiot in the truck. Finally we found the visitor center, but then we discovered there was a new visitor center and it was on down the road (at the bottom of the hill, do ya know what that means?). We rode to the visitor center and went in to check it out. They had just opened this one yesterday. It was pretty cool. We watched a movie and then decided to come back tomorrow to look at the museum. Now we had to find the campground. We took a shortcut through the battlefield so that we didn’t have to dodge the tour buses again. The ride to the campground was a beautiful ride. Everything is just so green. The battlefield is very impressive. And everyone is driving very slowly so it was a nice ride. We arrived at the campground, set up camp, cooked dinner and went to the rec room to play cards. It got pretty cool at night, down in the low 30’s, but Big Agnes (sleeping bag) came through for us and kept us plenty warm!
The next morning we rode back into town for breakfast. Then we took a bus tour of the battlefield. It was good because it really gave you an idea of what happened in the battle. So many lives lost in such a short period of time. It is hard to imagine what that is like. After our tour we went back to the visitor center to the museum. Then we stopped for groceries before riding back to the campground. For dinner we had stir fry. It was pretty good but I really need to perfect my technique. It is really hard to make stir fry in a 5 inch fry pan!
This morning we got a late start as usual. But we planned a short days ride anyway so that was fine. We cooked oatmeal and had bananas for breakfast. The riding today was tougher than what we have been having. We had some really steep climbs today. It was in the 70’s and felt really hot after all the cool days we have had. But it was a beautiful ride again. I had no idea that PA was such a pretty state. We are starting to see more buds on the trees finally. In Chambersburg we stopped at a grocery store for dinner supplies. I’m going to try something new. I bought frozen salmon, rice and peas. We’ll see how the frozen salmon works in our little fry pan. We rode 5 miles out of town to the campground. It wasn’t much of a campground. And I had to take a COLD shower. So you know how I feel about this place. Later.

Lancaster, PA

We didn't leave the motel at Hunt Valley until noon. We made a stop at the post office so Hap could get some things mailed off. Then we rode to the North Central rail/trail that we had heard about. It wasn't paved but we were hoping that it was packed down enough for us to ride on. We were also hoping that we could ride on the trail long enough to get away from some of the traffic. Hunt Valley is just off of I - 83, north of Baltimore. A very high traffic area. We found the trail and headed north. This trail runs north all the way to the Pennsylvania border. We were thinking that we would get off of it where it connected with the Adventure Cycling route that we have been following up the east coast. But when we got to that point we found it so nice to ride without having to worry about traffic that we just stayed on the trail. The weather was beautiful finally! It was in the 70's and sunny. We ran into lots of cyclists, joggers and walkers. A couple of cyclists rode along with us for awhile. We saw an interesting sight on the trail. There were some very large trees that some industrious eager beavers were busily eating through. See the pictures above. I think I'm very glad that the beavers weren't around. They must have very large teeth! We crossed into Pennsylvania on the trail at the Mason/Dixon Line. When we got to the town of New Freedom we stopped for ice cream and debated on whether we should continue on to Lancaster or find a place to camp. We ended up riding back down the trail about 3 miles to a campground. The campground wasn't on the trail. It was in Freeland, MD. We had to climb a mile and a half up a steep hill to get to it. On the way we passed a large buffalo farm. At the campground they charged us $28 for a site with no water or electric. Somehow that seems so unreasonable. But what can you do? I guess I won't complain about a hot shower and a picnic table! We set up camp, cooked our pasta, salmon and green beans for supper. See picture above. Then watched a movie on the computer. Or should I say Hap watched a movie....I watched the inside of my eyelids.

It was an overcast morning when we left. We rode back to New Freedom for breakfast. Actually it was lunch since it was 11:30A. There's nothing wrong with hamburgers for breakfast is there? We decided to stay on the trail heading towards York, PA. then getting off the trail to Lancaster. We had a flat front tire so Hap went ahead and put a new tire on while changing it. This is the third tire on the front and we are on the sixth rear tire. That's great tire wear for a ride like this. We have been very happy with the tires that Hap picked when we left. When we got off the trail we ran into another cyclist who helped us with directions. Have you ever noticed how easy people make directions seem. We were able to follow the first four turns...it was the last few that caused the problem. We got all turned around. As we were stopped looking at the map (again) a lady pulled up and asked if we needed help. We told her we wanted to get to Rt 462 headed to Lancaster. Here is what she said "well, if you go right you can go to Rt 24 to get something to eat, because you are probably hungry, there's a pizza place down on the corner, and if you need something to drink there's a .......... so do you want to follow me?" We thanked her for the directions and took a chance and followed the sun! We got to another crossroads and another guy in a car stopped. We asked how to get to Rt 462 and he said "go to the T, turn left and it's right there". See we did know where we were! We got on Rt 462 toward Lancaster and found a very nice shoulder to ride on AND lots of cyclists on the road. That's always reassuring. We made one ice cream stop before we got to Lancaster. Riding through Lancaster wasnt' bad at all. Then we had to find our friend Fred's house. We asked a lady where Landis road was. She said go one mile and it's the next road. By the time we got to Fred's house it was starting to get dark. But we made it. It was great to see Fred. We plan to spend a couple of days here and then make our last left turn towards Ohio.

Hunt Valley, Maryland

The morning we left Fredericksburg was in the pouring rain. Temps were in the 50's. It was a good day to be a duck! Today was the first day of the entire trip that we have had to break out our gortex socks and gloves. So I guess we shouldn't complain about a little rain. Leaving the hotel the first few miles were on a very busy road. Thank goodness it was four lanes for the part we were on. Once we turned off the main route, we were on some nice low traffic roads. The rain stayed with us most of the day. It didn't seem too bad though. We just didn't stop much today so we stayed warm. The terrain is becoming more rolling hills. Guess its time to get our climbing legs in gear again. We ate on the fly today. I guess its called grazing. Our plan was to stay as close to Mt Vernon as we could so that we could visit Mt Vernon tomorrow. In order to get to the motel we had to cross an interchange for I-95. That was exciting. I don't think any of the drivers had a sense of humor at all. But we made it, AND I don't wanna do it again! We got to the motel, did some laundry and cooked some soup and salad for dinner. All of that and it was STILL raining!

When we left the motel the next morning we had one goal for the day! Stay off of Rt 1. When we did a tour several years ago from Ohio to Va Beach, we had ridden to Wash. DC, Mt Vernon and then got on Rt 1. That was really scary. We knew that wasn't a good idea. Today we ended up doing a big loop around Rt 1, going through Fort Belvoir on the way to Mt Vernon. Hap took his officer's basic training there (a couple of year's ago......). Oh, I forgot to tell you. It was raining and in the 50's again when we left the motel. Oh well, that's bike touring. What can ya do? Going through the Fort was interesting. I think everyone else decided to drive through at the same time that we did. Wonder why THEY didn't go drive on Rt 1? We finally got to Mt Vernon and took the tour. What a fascinating place! We left Mt Vernon, heading to Alexandria on the Mt Vernon bike trail. The trail runs along the Potomac River. It would've been prettier had it been sunny instead of rainy and overcast. In Alexandria we planned to stay with Jim and Kim from the tandem club. They had a beautiful 200 year old home in Old Alexandria. We walked a few blocks to an italian restaurant for dinner. Great food!

Jim decided to be our tour guide to Washington on the bike trail. Sort of a bike GPS! He had also contacted another tandem couple who was going to meet us and help us get to the Capital Crescent bike trail that went north out of Washington. It was cold again, in the 40's, but at least it wasn't raining! We rode passed the airport and across the 14th street bridge. The cherry blossums were blooming and were beautiful. Washington is actually a great city to see by bicycle. This is the third time we have ridden into Washington. We met up with Gabe and Diana and Jim headed home. Gabe and Diana gave us a short tour of a few monuments before showing us how to get on the trail. As it turned out they live north of the city just off the bike trail and invited us to spend the night. So we made plans to meet them further north. We stopped in Bethesda for some mexican food for lunch. Diana and Thunder rode out and met us on her trike (see picture above) and once again we had a guided tour. We could get used to this! Gabe and Diana took us out for chinese food. Oh, I almost forgot today we entered our 24th state!

This morning we left on the Rock Creek bike trail and headed north towards Baltimore, MD. It was in the 50's and NOT raining. It is supposed to warm up finally. We'll see! The sun did come out briefly in the afternoon. When we got off the trail the terrain was rolling hills again. We had a good ride today. More traffic than we had in southern VA. We stopped for lunch and had some great sandwiches. As we were riding I noticed that my pedal or crank seemed to be getting loose. So we stopped and Hap tightened up my crank. Towards late afternoon the roads really got busier. The last five miles of the day were just ridiculous. We kept pulling over to let people go by. There were no shoulders and traffic was backed up going both directions. But we made it to Hunt Valley. I called the hotel to get directions and the lady asked me where we were. When I told her she said, "Oh, you need to turn around and go back......." What? I'm NOT going back there! We finally figured out she was wrong and we just needed to keep going forward. But the main thing was to get off the road. When we got in the room we both shut the door and said, "now they can't get us!" We walked down to the grocery for our dinner. Our plan now is to ride to Lancaster, PA before turning west to Ohio and home. Later....

Fredericksburg, VA

At the motel in Sandston Hap discovered that somewhere along the way we had broken a rear spoke. We aren't sure how long it had been broken. Usually its pretty obvious when one breaks. Hap spent some time replacing it. This is the first broken spoke we have had the entire trip. On past trips we have broken alot of them so we were prepared. Hap's a gotten very good at fixing them over the years. So it didn't take him long. For dinner we walked across the parking lot to a place called "Soul Food". It was an interesting restaurant. You paid by the pound for buffet food. $5.49/pound. The food was ok.

We left Sandston and planned to skirt around the northeast corner of Richmond. We found a nice four lane road that was great for riding on until we found some road construction. After all the traveling on the bike, it is interesting to see how people/cars react to our bike in traffic. Being on the back of the tandem I can really watch what is going on. Afterall I have to protect our "assets"! One lady drove right up behind us, we were on a 4 lane section, and she had a clear passing lane to move into. But she just stayed on our wheel. Finally she had both lanes of traffic lined up behind her. Eventually she passed us, BUT she kept all four of her wheels on our side of the right lane. Interesting?? Before leaving Richmond we stopped for some sandwiches. Once we got out of town we were on nice low traffic roads again. There wasn't much traffic at all. When we left the hotel it was about 60 degrees and threatening rain. By the time we left Richmond the temps were dropping, eventually down to the 40's and it started to rain very hard. We spent the rest of the day riding in the rain. We were heading for a little town called Beaverdam where a friend of ours lived, Charlotte. The terrain changed today. We are finding more rolling hills. It was a beautiful place to ride. We arrived in the town of Beaverdam and called Charlotte. She said her house was another 4 miles down the road. So off we went again in the rain. When we arrived Charlotte welcomed us with some great hot coffee and a warm, dry house. Thanks Charlotte! She also cooked us a great meal of homemade stew and biscuits. Mmmmm.....

Since the weather was supposed to be bad again the next day we decided to take a day off and spend it with Charlotte and Boo Boo. Ok so we are getting our dog fix again as you can see in the picture above. Charlotte cooked us breakfast and then showed us the sights around town. We stopped by the post office to mail off the maps and things we don't need anymore. We are on our last set of maps. That's so hard to believe. When we left home last May, I collected all of the maps that we would need for our adventure and put them in a huge plastic tub in our living room. Throughout the year someone has been going by the house, getting the maps we need and mailing them all over the country. Now here we are almost a year later having used most of those maps. Wow! Hard to believe. We went out for chinese food for lunch. Then we stopped by the EMS station that Charlotte works at for a look see. By the time we got home we were all pretty tired and just sat around and talked.

This morning we left Charlotte and Boo Boo heading for Fredericksburg. Once again it was threatening rain, but it was warmer in the 60's. We were expecting rain all day. We had a great ride today. Low traffic roads, some rolling hills and pretty scenic views. We also had more color in the trees and bushes. Maybe spring is finally on its way. It seems like it has been a cold winter. When we arrived in Fredericksburg we were trying to find the Motel 6 that I had made a reservation for. I called the motel and asked the lady for directions. When I asked her how far it was to the hotel she said, "I am not sure by bicycle, but if you drive it is about 5 miles!" I am leaving ya'll with that statement. If you figure that one out let me know. I asked her about it when we got to the motel. "Wouldn't the distance be the same if you were riding a bike or driving a car?" She said, (and I quote) "I don't know, I've never ridden a bicycle.........."

Sandston, (Richmond) VA

On the way out of Suffock we stopped at a grocery store for breakfast. While we were sitting there eating outside the rains came. It rained pretty hard for several minutes and then stopped. This was the theme for the day. The temperature was a balmy 70's. We had a good tailwind all day. We were going off the Adventure Cycling route once again today. We decided to make a stop in Jamestown/Williamsburg area. We saw that a free ferry ran across the James River and there was a campground near the ferry stop. The riding was wonderful again today. Not much traffic and excellent roads. We are using the Delorme Virginia atlas to navigate. We arrived in Surry and made our way to the ferry. When we got off the ferry, for some reason several sheriff and police stopped the traffic from unloading and loading the ferry. Then three sheriffs came running up the road to the ferry. We were far enough away that we couldn't see what happened. As we were walking by another sheriff I asked him what happened and he said that they were probably just looking for someone. So I said, we're they lookin for a couple on a bright yellow tandem. He said yeah so you better get outta here. We rode down the road alittle and found the campground was closed. Mmm.... no problem, I'll just call one of the other 3 that I have numbers for. No answer. OK. No problem, we'll just stop in the Jamestown Visitor Center and see if we can get some info. We went in and asked at the desk if they knew anything about campgrounds. No. There's some literature around the corner she said. We went where she said and found a stack of general brochures on Williamsburg. None of them had anything about camping. We went back outside and I called a couple of hotels that I had found the day before. While we were standing there, several people stopped to talk about our trip. It was fun to share our adventure with them. And also talk about Alpha One. As we were standing there, the rains came! By the time we left they had stopped ... for a minute. It started pouring again as we rode to the hotel. We found it finally after calling a couple of times.

This morning we stopped at a pancake house for great banana pecan pancakes. Then we rode through Williamsburg before leaving town. What an interesting place. Definitely worth a revisit in the future! Once again we became our very own tourist attraction! Today the weather changed to cooler temperatures in the 60's and a headwind. The riding was great again. We followed Rt 5 toward Richmond. It was a little odd though that even though there wasn't much traffic, we had several cars either blow the horn at us, yell out the window, or not move over at all. It didn't make sense especially when there just wasnt' that much traffic. Oh well! This is such a beautiful part of our country. I think I will take this beautiful green countryside over the brown desert, rocks of the southwest! We stopped for a snack beside the road. Our snack today was an apple and peanut butter.

Suffock, Virginia STATE NUMBER 23! 9000 MILES!

In Plymouth we walked down the street to a laundry mat. Hap got another beard trim next door at the Barbershop. It sure seemed hot today. It was in the 80's. While we were walking back we found a chicken dinner fundraiser. Hap walked back later and picked up a dinner for us.

When we left Plymouth in the morning we were surprised by a sudden drop in temps! It was 40's and the wind was fierce from the north. We got maybe a mile and decided to put on our tights and another layer. Big change from yesterday! The roads were once again super for cycling! We got alittle confused at one intersection that said "Bicycle Route Port of Call Detour" and it sent us the wrong direction. One trick I have learned over the years, is when you are cycling through a state, if you check with the Dept of Transportation of that state usually they have suggested routes for cycling on. Most states have a State Bicycle Coordinator that can help you with questions. In my looking at North Carolina I came across the Port of Call Route that they were talking about. So we figured that wasnt' the same route we were on, since we are generally following the Adventure Cycling route up the east coast. We continued through the detour sign and found we were on the right path. Just before crossing the Abelemeyer Sound we stopped at a little store for a snack. It was at this point that it started to rain. We knew that we had a 5 mile bridge across the sound. We were alittle concerned about crosswinds, and trying to negotiate the 2 lane bridge in traffic. But it turned out to be not so bad. Not much traffic and the wind wasn't that bad either. After crossing the bridge we turned onto a side road that took us into Edenton, NC. What a pretty town! As we were riding we saw a Kiwanas Fish Fry and decided to stop and eat again. Hey we had to support the town didn't we? The food was excellent and the people doing the cooking were fun to talk to. After a while though it started to spit rain again so we decided to find a hotel and get in a hot shower. We checked into the Super 8, took a hot soak, and then started eating again! It was nice to be out of the rain!

The next day it was still raining and in the 40's so we decided to stay another day. We got up and walked to the Edenton UMC that was just down the street. We met Bill and Gail at church who were kind enough to take us to the grocery store after church and then back to the hotel. We bought lunch and dinner supplies. Most of the rest of the day we spent relaxing and going through our extra maps and stuff. We are going to mail home some things that we don't need anymore since we are on our last leg of the journey. We also got a call from the local newspaper, who did an interview with us about our trip. I think we will definitely be back to Edenton! I wish the weather had cooperated so that we could have seen some of the sights. But we'll be back!

This morning a photographer from the newspaper came by to take a photo of us leaving town. We headed out Rt 32 towards Suffock. It was still overcast but temps had warmed up to the 60's. We road off and on Rt 32 north most of the day. Once again great cycling roads, and low traffic. We are starting to see more farming land. Today wheat and some cotton along with the pine trees. It started to sprinkle when we stopped for a pizza. We had planned to camp tonight but instead will stay in Suffock inside.

We had an interesting experience with a hotel room in Suffock, VA. Another first! Hap called a Days Inn in Suffock and told the guy we were cycling through and asked if he had a room tonight? The guy said, (in a foreign language....I'll let you guess which one.....) bicycle? No, no room..... OK. Later in the day, I called Trip Rewards which is an 800 number that represents several different chains, one happens to be the Days Inn (yes, the same Days Inn). They said the Days Inn in Suffock had rooms. Mmmm... ok...we'll take it. We ride into town, well actually we had a heck of a time getting into town. Couldn't find the road...road on the freeway...don't mind the NO bicyclist signs on the onramp...that's just a guideline. Hey Hap, do you think that sheriff noticed us riding on the freeway? We stopped at three gas stations and asked directions. No one seemed to know anything about where the Days Inn was. We finally found it. When I went in the lady said no, we don't have a reservation for you. I said I called Trip Rewards and made it. She said, well they didn't call me. I am full. I went outside and called Trip Rewards. They assured me that we did have a reservation. I said can you call the hotel and talk to them. Trip rewards put me on hold and called the hotel. After speaking with the lady at the hotel. She said I should file a complaint with Trip Rewards. I'll transfer you. No, I just want a room. I will call back for that. When I went back in the lady discovered that she did have a smoking room on the second floor but we couldn't take our bike up because we would get the carpet dirty and besides we had a heavy bike............?? OK, I'll let you guys figure that statement out. We went outside, called another hotel and got ready to leave. Now, the lady comes running out the door. She said I called a lady and she isn't coming. So I do have a room. I couldn't give it to you because I would get in trouble with her. Well, now your in trouble with me cause I also had a reservation. Never mind we don't want a room, we found another. Thanks! After all that we saved $10 by staying at the other hotel. The moral to the story?? I'm not sure yet. But I will figure it out! I wanted to ask her if every person on her list of "reservations" had personally called and made the reservation with her? They must have because she didn't seem to know what the internet or online reservation was. Oh well, we had a big chuckle out of it. And the funny part......it was still raining when we road across town looking for the other hotel!

Plymouth, NC

We ate breakfast in the room at the Days Inn in Jacksonville. The room had a jacuzzi so Mr. Shingles took advantage of a morning soak beofre we left. There was quite a bit of traffic on US 17 through Jacksonville. Luckily we followed the Adventure Cycling route and was able to get on side streets away from the traffic. The weather is beautiful. Sunny and 70's. All of the riding today was on low volume side roads through rural North Carolina. It was beautiful. Lots of pine forests and a few farms starting to pop up. The forests reminded me of riding in Tar Hollow and Scioto Trails near our home in Ohio, but without the hills. Maybe we are getting close to home? We stopped for sandwiches at a little store for lunch. As we were sitting beside the store, all of a sudden a rooster crowed right behind us! Scared us to death! It was pretty funny. Wonder why he was crowing at 1:00pm? We arrived at New Bern on the Nuese River and where we thought we were going to cross the river the road was closed. We called the KOA and found that they were actually in Bridgton which was on the other side of the Nuese River. The lady said just come down US 17 you can't miss it! I hate it when they say "you can't miss it" The bridge over the river was really something. It was almost like 2 or 3 bridges coming together in the middle of the huge river. And of course all of them merged from 3 lanes down to 2 with no berm. It wasn't bad though everyone seemed to move over for us. Once on the other side US 17 divided off of another major route so we had to negotiate a busy interchange. After that we had our 2 miles on US 17. Now the cars and trucks weren't so happy. By the time we got to our turn, a car zipped up beside us, turned on his windshield wipers and finally went around. Hey Hap is it raining? The KOA was very nice. We set up camp and I went to do the laundry while Hap cooked. Beans, rice and green beans for supper. Thanks Hap!

The next morning we stopped at a restaurant for breakfast. As it turned out, if we had ridden into town on the way to the KOA yesterday we wouldn't have had to ride on US 17. Once again the Adventure Cycling route we are following is on low volume backroads that are just great. We stopped and watched some lumbertrucks picking up trees. Who knew there was so much tree cutting being done in North Carolina? It is so nice not to have to keep watching for traffic. And it is so nice to have some piece and quiet while riding. We couldn't find a campground on the AC route so we opted to go into Chocowinity, NC to camp. On the way to the campground we stopped for dinner stuff at the grocery store. A lady came over to us, introduced herself and said "how would you like to buy some auto insurance?" What? "We don't have a car? "No, problem, you can still use it. They pay you if you are in an accident" Now she had my attention. "So what's the difference between this and my car insurance?" "Well, they pay you $10,000 if you die!" Ok, that's enough. She finished by saying "You can sign up anywhere, so if you are interested here is my number and I will come wherever you are and sign you up!" OK, so we're going to call her from every state before we get back to Ohio! Twin Lakes Campground was very nice. We cooked stir fry broccoli and caulifower for supper with rice. For entertainment we watched a DVD on the computer. It was a good night.

This morning we fixed oatmeal for breakfast before heading out. It was even warmer today, in the 80's. We also had a wonderful tailwind. The route was again backroads with little or no traffic. What a joy! This is what riding is all about. We stopped in Pineville NC at a church for lunch. We had our very own smorgesborg. We rode into Plymouth expecting to go another 8 miles or so to a B & B that we had found on the internet. But when we arrived in town we decided to check out the hotels. There were no campgrounds around. We stopped at Wendy's for a Frosty before checking into the Plymouth Inn. We had to walk down the street to do the laundry and Hap also got a beard trim. On the way back we stopped at the store for a barley soda.

The last three days of riding have been some of the best riding we have had in awhile. I think on this trip it is easy to get into the mode of just riding. Sometimes you just need that little nudge to remind you why you love doing what your doing. Thanks Lord for the reminder.

Here is the latest picture of Mr. Shingle. As you can see the spots are clearing up nicely. The three spots on the right are the original three that appeared. I have finished taking all of the anti viral meds. I am still having some pain in the area but it is for sure better than last week.