So we finally reached dc last night at 7 pm after 17.5 hours on the train. Whew! Dean(my cousin) dropped us off at 9pm for the 11pm departure which ended up being 1:30am because of mechanical issues. Then while we were enroute the ETA kept getting later and later until we got to union station at 7pm. Then we hopped on our bikes to ride over to my house about a 2 mile ride.
Palatka, FL to St Augustine, FL. 36 miles.
Southern Tier Cycling route. Mission Accomplished!!!
The Sleep Inn served us a good breakfast despite the rude staffer that stocked the food. The carpeting in the hotel was grimy and dirty. Not a hotel I can recommend!
We quickly got on a bike path and were on it for about 25 of the final 36 miles. Several alligator sightings and a ultralight glider were the entertainment on the way. Entering St Augustine we decided to stop where the route needed at the town center and take some photos. But then to continue another 3.5 miles to the outer beach to place our wheels in the Atlantic Ocean to make the ride official!
My cousin soon picked us up took us to his house for a few hours for showers and to relax. We then were invited to the family’s weekly outing to the local restaurant for trivia night. Unfortunately we missed the final question which knocked us from second place to fourth😩
We are now at the train station experiencing a 2 hour delay. Ugh!
This will be my last post so I will say thanks for following along! I may add some more photos and details later.
Alachua, FL to Palatka, FL. 76 miles. 1500 ft. 32 miles to go.
We had our free breakfast at quality inn before heading out. One problem, by the time we got there at 6:30 all of the workers had already eaten and they had not restocked. We ended up with waffles and juice! And coffee of course.
Anyway we headed out by 7:45 and rode on some side roads and then got on bike paths for most of the afternoon. We did see several black snakes on the path and a few alligators off in the distant pond.
I had some quad muscle pain after mile 50 but managed it by going slower and keeping ice on it.
The final 30 tomorrow is mostly flat bike paths.
Suwannee State park to Alachua, FL. 79 miles. 105 miles to go!
I got out of our tent at 6:30 in the morning and was immediately greeted by tons of mosquitoes!!🦟 we were right next to the river and they were hungry! We covered our bodies with jackets and long pants to protect ourselves while we ate breakfast and were soon on our way.
We rode mostly back country roads through still-water swampy forests. Later on we passed more farmland with endless beautiful wildflowers!
I kept ice on my quad as often as possible along with ibuprofen and I had no problems! We still rode a bit slower than normal but it was a good day for the sore muscle.
Our plan the next few days is to ride about 75 miles tomorrow. Wednesday finish the final 30 or so in the morning. I have a wonderful cousin in Jacksonville who has agreed to come pick us up when we finish and take us to the train station. We have already booked train tickets from Jacksonville at 11pm that evening.
Tallahassee,FL to Suwannee River state park. 75 miles
Our warmshowers hosts Kevin and susan sent us off with an excellent breakfast. Kevin also took several departing photos to send to us.
Thanks to their advice we rode on a tree covered road the first ten miles before joining the regular bike route on some country roads. Eventually we made it back to route 90 for the rest of the day.
My quad muscle was better today. Most of the morning it was quiet but by noon I started to feel discomfort again. It got bad again in the afternoon but I began to ice it and take plenty of ibuprofen. We almost stopped after 60 miles on Madison but I was determined to make the Suwanee River at 75 miles. Pattly due to the flat terrain and light winds we made it!
Chatahootchee, FL to East Tallahassee. 46 miles. 260 miles to go to the Atlantic! 1400 ft climbing.
We found out this morning that the river that we crossed right before we set up camp, the Apalachicola, is the border between eastern and central time zones. I woke up at 6 EST while Craig’s phone was still on central(5am) I was wondering why it was so dark lol. Anyway we left around 7:45.
My quad muscle get much better and I tried to go as easy as possible so ams not to aggravate it. It still was hurting and after about 30 miles we decided to cut the day short and look for warmshowers in Tallahassee. We found a wonderful place at 46 miles near Florida state university. After arriving I was able get some ice on my quad. Hoping for a better day tomorrow.
I have to apologize for the lack of photos today. I was not in a good mood to take pictures. 🤕
Ponce de Leon, FL to Chattahoochee, FL 73 miles. 1600 ft climbing
So today I found out I’m not invincible. My right quadriceps muscle began to hurt around mid morning and by early afternoon I was having trouble even pedaling with it. I took some Motrin and raised my seat a bit to reduce the pressure a bit and it got a bit better. I still had to nurse it the final 25 miles. Hoping it will be better with some rest tonight and we’ll try going easy on it tomorrow.
Other than that bummer it was a nice day. Leaving our campground it was a bit foggy to start off. So we stopped in town for breakfast.
North pennsicola, FL to Ponce De Leon, Fl. 90 miles. 1800 ft climbing.
News alert; the Florida panhandle is not flat like central Florida. It’s basically south Alabama. We did rolling hills most of the day but had a tailwind which made the 90 miles easier. We also were able to get on the road by 7:30.
We also were on the Blackwater bicycle trail for a while along with some back country roads which was a nice respite from the busy route 90. We will be following 90 most of the way to the end of tbe route. 90 is an official bike route in the highway system so it has a wide shoulder for bikes.
The RV park we are at is no cost! I called ahead and the manager, Tommy, said that cyclists are free. It’s not the most deluxe but had decent showers.
Dauphin Island to Pensacola, FL 68 miles.
Up early we caught the 8:00am ferry off the island. While we were waiting for it another group of 25 cyclists joined us for the ferry ride. They are a part of the timberline tours group that are also riding cross country. One difference is that they are supported so they don’t have to carry their own gear. A pleasant but busy ride ride up the peninsula in sunny 70 reg temps brought us to gulf shores and Perdido Beach. Several more bridges to cross and we made it to Pensacola.
We worked our way through the busy city traffic and ended up at a hotel on the north side of town.
We had a great breakfast at the holiday inn and cycled along the beach towards Biloxi, MS. it was a clear and cool and calm morning. We made good time as we continued along the coast.
We stopped at a bike shop that was right on the route and picked up a few things. They even had free beer on tap for long distance cyclists!
Our luck ran out with closed bridges. We tried to go one way and this time the bridge was completely gone! Workers were there fixing it but we had no way to cross! Backtracking added another 4-5 miles. We pushed on to Grand Bay before stopping for lunch. About 55 miles in. Another 30 miles that included the long bridge to Dauphin island got us to our campsite.
Graber cycling 