May 25th- PT- 4:13 Avg- 13.4 Miles- 56

Kitty Hawk to Elizabeth City

Pam and Melinda are gone. It was a tough decision for the group but one that needed to be made. There was so much dissension and hurt feelings. We have had a very happy and relieved day of riding. I am sure that everyone is better off.

We stopped at the GraveYard Diner and had a great meal. They have Monster Truck competitoins here. Very cool and wish I could have ridden in one of the trucks but they only have rides on weekends...dang ! I had a 3 egg omlette and grits and 2 slices of toast and jam and coffee. I went to the library after we got to Eliz City and was cut off before I could finish the post that is why I am backing up one day.

We passed a very cool little town on the way here. It had the Weeping Radish Brewery and the Cotten Gin...a very beautiful garden center. I sure wish they had been open. Will hopefully get back to this part of NC some day.

We are at a Traveler's Inn. We rode the Albemarle Hwy 158 most of the way here. It is a historic hwy. There is a college here by the same name.

Pete and I walked to the Red Lion grocery and I got a Milano fresh pasta dinner. It was wonderful. Had a boxed Pinot Grigio. Yum !! Got a great email from my son G...a Johnny Cash you tube of I've Been Everywhere....how appropriate !

Pete has a bad cold and is really coughing up stuff. Hope I don't get it.

MAY 26th- PT 4 Avg 12.5 Miles 49

Eliz City - Suffolk VA

good riding and cool and humid. took short cut and saved 6 miles. Saw beautiful winter wheat fields and passed a wonderful marker for the VA state line. Got a good pic. We got to Suffolk at 11:15 AM ..wow... we had lunch at George's. A great place. Had a steak sub and baked potato. We are at Econolodge. Took a 2 hr nap. Had computer but it was problematic. Got more rice pudding to eat in the AM...goes down better than yogurt.

May 27th PT- 5:54 Avg- 12 Miles 70 approx

Suffolk to Petersburg

Beautiful countryside. wheat, corn and soy bean fields. beautiful swamp pics. and creeks and bridges. HILLS ! Stopped at the Dendron Grocery. This wide place in the road used to be a very major roal crossing for the lumber industry in the 1800's. I walked over to see an old house. Inside it was collapsing but I spotted a wonderful ceiling fixture. Got pic. Talked to store owner. He called the man that keeps the grounds mowed. He said he would remove the fixture and send to me. I left my number and address. ( I talked to him later that day and he said he would get the light and mail to me. I promised to pay him well. Since then his number no longer answers....sigh...it was a great story and I wish that I had pulled the light down myself or gotten the store owner's number. Next time I am in Dendron VA.

May 28th PT 3:40 Avg 10.5 Miles 40

Petersburg to Richmond

Very historic area all the way. We passed the turn off for Drewry's Bluff . Butler's army figured prominently in this area in 1864. Prospect Creek and the Half-Way House, so named becuse it is halfway between Petersburg and Richmond. It is now a hotel and restaurant.

We have had to ride on US 1 a number of times. It is always a problem due to traffic and no shoulder. We crossed the Appamattox River and the James River. We went to 2 different bike shops. Posted pic of the memorial bike flat site that we created after Allen's mega flat. Read his blog to get a very funny account of that. Had lunch at Bailey's and that was fabulous. A Black and Bleu burger and fries. They were having a corn toss tournament in the parking lot. I never would have known what this was but thanks to my visit back to my birthplace in Ohio last Summer I got to play this cool game !! Very competetive.

HILLS and Pete is getting sicker. Has slept all afternoon. This is his last day with us. Good thing. Bill will join us in a couple days and Pete flies to Sarasota . He will start his next asventure the end of June. Dinner at Olive Garden...pretty good and nice to meet Bill.

May 29th PT 5 Avg 11 Miles 55

Richmond to KOA at Fredricksburg.

Hills and cloudy and misty. Wde took mostly back roads. Pretty creeks. The worst part about rural VA is that there is nothing...not a gas station or store anywhere. We are desperate for fluids and food most of the time and not eating and drinking as well as we have been used to doing.

We passed a wonderful restored log cabin built by Sally Thornton. It is said that she gave Stonewall Jackson a drink of water from a pitcher and that she then put up the pitcher and never let anyone ever use it again. Great story...wonder where it is ?? We are in Spotsylvania County. Very important in the Civil War. It is considered the Crossroads of the CW. I have 3 broken spokes. Sigh only have 2 good ones left. The guy didn't reture the wheel when he replaced the last ones...he was too busy trying to up sell me stuff I didn't need...bah on him. I am exhausted and just keft my sunglasses back about 5 miles on the side of the road...no need to say what I was doing...sigh...sigh...

We are at a very nice KOA but hugely busy due to the holiday. Very noisy. Got laundry done and had dinner in camp. Just canned soup and....a pint of Edy's Strawberry...very much less fat :)

May 30th Miles 45

KOA to Garrisonburg Quality INN

Very very nice motel. I have a room alone since I am now sick...yuck. Taking Vit C in mega doses but still coughing and stopped up. Hoping that we get to rest days before I really get sick. HOT !! HILLS !! Bob had another rear flat. A rear flat on a recumbent bike is a big deal. Lose an hour . We got behind and he was feeling very ill. Got quite shaking and scared for his health. Too much heat and stress and not enough Gator Ade and too much plain water...all combined with being 71. He has way over 50,000 miles of riding so knows how things stand. We ended up having to ride back 9 miles off route to get to the motel. Will have to get back on route tomorrow . More important for Bob to be well and us safe. Traffic is horrible.

We passed the Fredricksburg Battlefield. I got one pic. There is nothing to see but a very large mowed field. Very quiet and when the hot wind blew I was sure I could hear the moan of fallen soldiers....very sad. Crossed the Rappahannock River and rode Caroline St in Fredricksburg. Beautiful homes !!

When we got to Garrisonville I slept 2 hrs and Bob started drinking fluids and slept too. He and I went to dinner at an Appleby's. Only thing available are chains. We had a nice long talk. Allen went to a Pirate's movie...haha.

May 31st PT 7 Avg 9 Miles 67

Garrisonburg to Falls Church VA

We had a darn hard day. We rode US 1 and some other roads to get back on course to Occoquan VA. Beautiful little town on a river of the same name. Unfortunately nothing open so we eat a bagel and some of my rice pudding and drink gatorade on a bench in the shade. Bob still feels rocky and we have a lot of hot hot hot miles to go.

We finally get to Mt Vernon parking lot. We aren't going to be able to go in as it is an all day tour kind of thing and it is 100 degrees and we don't want to walk around in the gardens. Allen called his friend in Falls Church and he is coming with a van to get Bob. Allen and I leave on the Mt Vernon Bike trail. It is well maintained and is an amazing testament to cycling in this area. We are on it into Alexandria VA. Then it is on streets and then back onto the path. I was riding back up the curb area to get back on the path and the trailer caught on the curb...,bang crash and I was on the ground under the bike with the pedal in my left calf. Two bruised palms...thank goodness I had on my gloves. Allen helped me up and on we went. 110 degree heat index and very little to eat or drink. we are completely worn out. The hills on this trail are amazing and the humidity is stiffling.

After 36 miles give or take we pulled into Allen's friend's driveway. I have never been so glad to get off the bike. We remained cheerful and joking the whole time...probably delusional !! Anyway they have private baths/bedrooms for us and a steak dinner...YUM !!! 2 whole days here to R and R. Get bike cleaned up and me too...spokes fixed and tummy filled...sleep and sleep...sleep....see you in a couple days :) c