With all the dogs Bob encountered on our cross-country ride, this one I’m sure he’d want to take home with him. I know I would. I can’t believe those little legs did so much. What heart!
Update on the blog: More photos and videos have been added to the blog (and still working on adding more details to the posts). If you want to see what’s been added, you can re-visit the posts or just click on the links in the menu (or here) for PHOTOS and VIDEOS.
Cheryl posting for Chuck tonight.
Note about the blog:
Some of you may have noticed the site was down for quite a few hours today. My apologies. Seems the company that hosts our website had a problem with one of their servers — the one that contains all of our websites and blogs — and took it off-line today to do a major overhaul. Hopefully the problem is solved…
Black Water River State Forest to Pensacola, FL
52 miles
While talking with Chuck on the phone tonight, I overheard Bob tell the host at Pensacola Naval Air station’s campground, “It’s the heat that kills ya,”when he asked Chuck and Bob about their ride.
“So you haven’t been in Florida in the summer?”
Chuck and Bob laughed. “We’re from Florida.”
“I feel sorry for you guys. I’ve done that trip and its hard enough going by motorcycle!”
Chuck told me their host is a great guy and is really helping them out. He’s even charging Chuck’s GPS for him tonight because their tent site tonight is ‘primitive’ which means no water and electric, just a place to pitch their tents. The campground does have nice shower and laundry facilities, though and Chuck said, “the place is packed” with RVers.
Chuck said they rode 52 miles today. “It was a hard day. The first 25 to 30 miles were okay, but the last 6 were torture! But I’m not complaining,” he laughed.
Oak Grove Park at Pensacola NAS, where the guys are staying, is nicely located near the beach and the museum on base. Because Chuck is a retired Marine, he still has base privileges and today it came in handy when looking for a campground in the area.
They did need to do some shopping tonight, though, and ended up at Walmart. Chuck said he needed to replace a strobe light and a water bottle and cage that were broken when he fell a couple of days ago. I asked him why they went to Walmart instead of the base exchange, as he told me last night that Bob was looking forward to checking out the BX.
“The BX was 5 miles from the campground and Walmart was 2. We already put in a long day and didn’t want to ride another 10 miles round trip. Walmart was closer!”
As they left Walmart, they did have another mishap. Bob’s chain popped while at an intersection and he couldn’t go forward or backward and hit the pavement hard. Chuck said he’s okay, but it’s another case of equipment malfunction and working out all the kinks as they go along.
The boys plan to relax tonight and stay over tomorrow. They have some chores to take care of with maintenance and fixes on their bikes and some laundry to take care of, but they’re also going to watch the Blue Angels put on a show in the morning and then check out the Air Museum. Chuck said there is also a lighthouse “somewhere around here” and that “the beach is beautiful with that white sand” so I bet they’ll spend some time checking it out too.
The plan now is to head out again on Wednesday, and within a couple of days they should all be crossing the border into Alabama and leaving Florida behind.
52 miles to Pensacola
Saw this online and wanted to share:
Cheryl reporting again this evening. I think Chuck prefers the interview method of blogging. 😉
Chipley to DeFuniak Springs, FL
44 miles
The plan this morning was to take the trail to Florida’s Highest Waterfall at Falling Waters State Park before leaving the campground, but after being told by fellow campers that the hike was 25 minutes each way and that the ‘waterfall’ was bone dry, as it is dependent upon rainfall, the guys decided to just break camp and start riding.
According to Chuck, the most exciting thing that happened today was meeting a cycling couple heading east from Austin, Texas.
Another rider heading East
Chuck was impressed that the woman riding was using a rubber belt type of chain, as he’d never seen one before. He said he definitely wants to check it out once he gets a chance, as it looked like a good idea.
Belt Drive?
While they were talking about their travels, Chuck said she complained about the headwind she and her partner were experiencing. Chuck was incredulous. Headwinds? They were heading east and should have had a killer tailwind from the headwinds Chuck and Bob were fighting all day while heading west. But as we’ve learned from all our thousands of miles riding the Withlacoochee Trail, sometimes it feels like you’ve got a headwind no matter what direction you’re riding.
Tonight they’re staying in DeFuniak Springs, enjoying a rare night in a motel room. There weren’t any campgrounds close enough to the route today to take advantage of today, so it was the best choice. I was told that no one’s complaining about the accommodations.
Chuck spent part of the evening recharging all his gadgets before they had some dinner and settled into bed.
Charging away
Cheryl updating again tonight for Chuck with info from his phone call.
Day 2: Keystone Heights to Gainesville, FL
53 miles
Chuck called tonight with news that they guys didn’t make it to their original destination of Alachua today due to rain and bike repairs. They had to take advantage of the accommodations provided by Warm Showers, a network of cyclists for reciprocal hospitality for touring bicyclists.
So tonight the guys are staying at the home of Tom Harris, who Chuck says is a really nice guy. He also has a cat, Leo, that can do tricks, including jumping through a hoop! Chuck emailed a picture of their host, but says he’ll have to send the rest of his pictures and video of Leo’s tricks later.
Our fantastic host: Tom and his cat, Leo.
Tom’s house and property is very nice are quite large, and it took the guys about 30 minutes of traveling through the woods from the bike trail just to get to it, but he said it was well worth it under the circumstances and they really appreciate Tom’s hospitality.
Bob on the trail to Tom's house
After starting out from Keystone Heights, Chuck and the guys rode part of the way today on the Gainesville-Hawthorne State Park Trail. Around lunch time they stopped in the town of Hampton and ate at Subway. There was a big, black cloud right on top of them, so they thought it was a good time for a break. Bob said, “Come on rain! Rain hard!” Chuck asked him why he was rooting for rain, especially a hard rain. Bob told him that if it rained hard and fast, it would probably rain itself out quicker and they wouldn’t have to worry about it again. Turns out, that’s exactly what happened.
The skies opened up and it poured while they guys ate lunch, staying dry in Subway. It was still raining some when they finished, so they walked over under the overhang in the shopping center to a grocery store and got something for tonight’s dinner.
Bob persuaded Chuck to buy a mircrowave version of Macaroni and Cheese and just use boiling water to prepare it. We tried that before to see how it might work on the road. We were less than impressed and it was barely edible. I’m surprised Chuck agreed. Turns out it worked out perfectly though, because Tom had a microwave and Chuck cooked it the way it’s supposed to be cooked. Again, from experience, Kraft microwavable Mac & Cheese is actually pretty good when cooked per the package instructions.
Once back out on the road, they headed towards Alachua, but when they got into Gainesville they had a mechanical problem.
The guys were stopped at a traffic signal and the road was clear and the light was in their favor, however the crossing signal was red. Chuck slowed to stop, but Bob did not and he tried to stop, but his brake cable was broken. Bob didn’t fall, but they needed to get the brake cable fixed. It wasn’t repairable with their tools and supplies, so they rode around Gainesville in search of a bike shop. They found one on University Avenue and got the cable replaced, but it took a while, putting them behind schedule.
Knowing that they wouldn’t make their destination that night, they checked the Warm Showers network to see if there were any nearby participants. Finding Tom, they had to backtrack to the trail to get to his house — a few extra miles, but necessary under the circumstances.
Everyone is safe and dry and resting up to start again tomorrow morning from Gainesville, FL to (hopefully) Ichetucknee Springs.
Cheryl posting for Chuck today.
Day 1: St. Augustine to Keystone Heights, FL
80 miles
Bob got up early and started getting his gear prepared. Chuck got up soon after and did the same.
Did someone put weights in this bag when I was sleeping?
O-Dark-Thirty - Early Morning Final Preparations
We had breakfast and checked the map again…
Where are we going again?
Then there was more food to get ready…
Nothing like PB&J
Final packing of gear…
We really taking all this?
Got the microwave?
Tightening the straps
Looks good!
Attaching Bob's B.O.B.
And they’re off from the campsite…
Leaving the campsite
Dipping their wheels into the Atlantic…
Atlantic
Final pictures with Cheryl & Shadow…
Chuck and Shadow
Me, Cheryl, and Shadow
Of course, the start this morning couldn’t be without a harried moment or two. As Chuck and Bob rode up to the campground gates, Chuck came to halt and frantically told me he forgot his SPOT GPS tracker. As he unpacked his B.O.B. bag to see if he had packed it away, I drove back to the campsite to see if I could find it there.
Where is SPOT?
Fortunately I found it at the RV and brought it back. Chuck was VERY relieved. Luckily he noticed it was missing before we got too far from the campground.
Once everything was re-packed and everyone was sure they had what they needed for the next two months on the road, I took a ‘starting line’ picture of Bob and Chuck, hugged and kissed Chuck goodbye, and the guys were off and riding their bikes through St. Augustine.
Saying goodbye and so happy to finally get going!
I followed in the car and took some more pictures and videos until they crossed Lion Bridge.
First intersection of many to come.
As they waited for the light to change at the intersection, they were already getting questions from interested strangers. “Where are you headed? How long will it take you?” I’m sure it won’t be the last time they hear that!
So excited
Chuck called this evening to say everyone arrived safely at their first stop. Chuck sounded good and said he felt tired, but not bad. His first call (at around 7pm) he cut short, saying that they had just gotten to the campground and were feeling sprinkles, so they wanted to get their tents up in case it rained. He called back about an hour-and-a-half later to give more details.
The guys are camping overnight at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park, where they had made reservations by phone yesterday. They didn’t realize that the park would be an extra ten miles from the destination for the first day of cycling on the Adventure Cycling map, which was Keystone Heights. Turns out the entire day’s mileage was higher than they anticipated and they cycled about 80 miles when they thought they’d be doing about 60.
I asked Chuck where the miscalculation came from. Was it bad mapping; taking a wrong turn; detours? He said they really weren’t sure but they didn’t get lost and that the map, GPS, and actual mileage was all different. Bottom line was, it was a very long day of cycling, and the longest Chuck has done in a very long while. In training, Bob and Chuck’s longest ride was around 60 miles, so they increased they’re mileage by about 35% in one day. Not ideal, but they all seem to be handling it well.
I took a lot of videos today and they are now uploaded on YouTube. Here is one of Bob & Chuck dipping their wheels in the Atlantic to start the ride:
You can see the rest of the videos anytime by clicking the link above or the VIDEOS link in the menu at the top of the blog. I’ll add more videos as I get them.
Cheryl posting for Chuck, as he’s busy getting all his electronic gadgets charged and ready, and getting to bed early to be fresh for the start of the ride tomorrow.
Bob was up VERY early this morning and rode his bike into town and had some breakfast. He came back just as we were having our own breakfast and we all got together for some coffee before heading over to the Salt Run at Anastasia State Park to check out my new Firefly kayak.
On the water
While I paddled out and back for about a half hour, Chuck checked out the oyster beds and all of the tiny crabs running around on the shoreline while Bob caught up on his reading.
Lots of oysters, and all of them sharp
After some lunch at the RV, we toured some of the sights in St. Augustine – the oldest city in the USA. We started with the St. Augustine Lighthouse.
Chuck & Shadow at St. Augustine Lighthouse
Bob said he doesn’t like heights, so he stayed at ground level to check out the lighthouse and museum.
Bob checks out the bottom floor of the lighthouse — and this enormous wrench!
Chuck climbed the 219 steps to the observation deck at the top and tried to figure out which bridge they would have to cycle over tomorrow. There were several bridges to choose from and from high up in the lighthouse, Chuck said it was hard to tell for sure which one it was.
219 steps
Hello down there!
After touring the grounds along with Shadow (they welcome dogs, just not in the buildings or lighthouse, which is much nicer than the Fort — where we were told no dogs allowed) we all drove down to the ‘Old City’ section of St. Augustine and Bob and Chuck toured Fort Matanzas National Monument on their own.
Walking up to Fort Matanzas
Bob checking out one of the canons
Chuck waves from the wall
Together in front of Fort Matanzas Nat'l Monument
After the Fort, and in search of ice cream for Bob, we walked St. George Street, where the prevailing theme was NOT ALLOWED. First, the grounds keeper at a nearby church said their garden was closed and kicked out everyone who was resting and sitting on a bench and locked the gate behind us. As we walked across the street to a city park, we saw this sign in front of a monument:
Monument to the Constitution. But note the sign, "Do Not Enter Inside Chain. Strictly Enforced. Police Dept."
As we continued on St. George Street, Bob pointed out this sign on the entrance to a store. Chuck thought the ‘no photos’ part particularly funny, so he had to test it out with a photo of his own below:
No EVERYTHING?
This sign made up for all the others, though:
Now that's more like it! A welcome sign for cyclists.
The architecture and parks in St. Augustine are really beautiful and a photographer’s dream.
Don Pedro Menendez De Aviles - Founder of St. Augustine statue in front of Lightner Museum
The old buildings are really neat to see, too.
Oldest School House
Bob eventually gave up on ice-cream, as one-scoop was $5 or more everywhere we went and it was just the principal of it all. Eventually we found a little market to get some drinks at near the Lightner Museum where we walked through the beautifully landscaped courtyard.
Just a taste of the visual beauty. The sweet smell of flowers was amazing.
We then headed back to the campground for dinner and final planning for the ride start tomorrow.
We all had a good evening breaking bread together, and I sent the guys off with a last ‘home-cooked’ meal including pot-roast and salad topped off with ice cream and cookies for desert. They need the calories and will burn them off soon enough. Bob keeps saying he’ll have to mail Chuck back to Florida in an envelope if he loses any weight on this trip. Now Chuck has an excuse to eat all he wants, and cave in to his sweet tooth.
Conversation & Ice Cream
After some good conversation and the last bits of final planning (Chuck and Bob plan to dip their tires into the Atlantic before beginning the ride tomorrow morning, as is the custom) we all said goodnight.
I could tell everyone was eager to get going, but the long day and, I’m sure (though they’ll never admit it), some nervousness, seem to have gotten to them as Chuck and Bob both said goodnight early. Won’t be long now…
