Home stretch

Baton Rouge to Opelousas, LA – 65 miles, sunny, motel
Opelousas, LA to Kinder, LA – 45 miles, cloudy, motel
Kinder, LA to Beaumont, TX – 100 miles, sunny, motel
Beaumont to Houston, TX – 90 miles, sunny, home

Louisiana - Texas

Pensacola, FL to Dauphin Island, AL – 62 miles, sunny, camped
Dauphin Island to Biloxi, MS – 65 miles, cloudy and drizzly, motel
Biloxi to Slidell, LA – 70 miles, cloudy, motel
Slidell to Baton Rouge, LA – 90 miles, rainy, hitched-hike, motel

Georgia

Hinesville, GA to Homerville, GA – 92 miles, sunny and hot, motel
Homerville to Thomasville, GA – 78 miles, sunny, camped
Thomasville to Chatahoochee, FL – 60 miles, cloudy and rainy, picked up by my dad

Meeting Neil

Meeting Neil
What was a chance encounter with another biker on the road became a great friendship.

While in Fredricksburg, Virginia, I had stopped to consult my map when another biker approached me to chat. He saw my bike and my gear and inquired what kind of ride I was doing. I told him of my cross country itinerary and he nonchalantly responded that he was doing the same ride. I was a little reluctant at first because Neil was an older man (in his late 60s). He was clean shaven, looked very spry, and didn’t have any kind of saddlebags on his bike. (whereas I was not clean shaven, looked tired, and had a dirty beat down fully-loaded bike). I thought how could this older man be doing a cross country bike ride and look so much more energetic than me? Well it turns out this wasn’t Neil’s first rodeo; in fact this was Neil’s third cross country bike ride. He was also an avid outdoorsman who had hiked Mount Kilimanjaro and the Pacific Crest Trail. A recently retired pediatrician from Georgia, Neil told me that his goal was to bike the four corners of the country, of which he only had the northern US/Canadian route left to do. It turned out that on this particular trip, Neil was following the same exact route as myself biking from Maine to his home in Savannah, GA. He also revealed that his wife, Vivian, was taking the same ride with him, but in their SUV carrying all his food, gear, etc. We had a nice talk, exchanged contact information, and thought that would probably be the last time we’d run into each other.

5 days and 350 miles later, I was biking in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and who approaches me, but Neil. Chatty and energetic as usual, Neil was riding at about an 18-19 mph pace (Granted we had a good tailwind). Neil was motivated to get me going faster that day and with him riding in front of me he “pulled me” for about 70 miles that day. Time really flew with the company and the conversation of another person. In the afternoon, we went our separate ways, as I got off to a late start and he stopped for a little afternoon sightseeing. However, we ran into each other again the next day and decided to ride together for the next two days. Neil invited me to his beach home in Tybee Island, GA (near Savannah, GA) and spent the day showing me around Savannah and Tybee. I enjoyed the comfort of some good home cooking and good company.

Coinjock to Rodanthe, NC – 65 miles, beautiful and sunny, camped
Rodanthe to Cedar Island Bay, NC -78 miles, cloudy to rainy, very windy, motel
Cedar Island Bay to Onslow Bay, NC –74 miles, sunny, invited to stay at someone’s home
Wilmington, Nc to North Myrtle Beach, SC – 87 miles, cloudy and rainy, hotel
Charleston, Sc to Savannah, GA – 90 miles, sunny, invited to stay at someone’s home