The View From Day 95

At this point in the tour the view is quite nice. I have 95 days of journeying behind me--95 days and over 4,100 miles. In front of me is the possibility of the last 230 miles. Only 230 miles until I reach Yorktown. 230 miles and this bike tour will technically be over. But some journeys seem to go on forever, and I have a feeling that this may be one of them.

I know I'll be thinking about this tour for quite some time. 100 days of traveling and millions of memories do not just disappear. They never have and they never will. A journey can live for a long time, as long as it is cared for and loved.

I have seen and felt so much. I have heard the songs of birds and the accents from different regions. I have tasted the sweetness of the morning air. I have stood in people's homes and looked at the pictures on their walls. I have smelled old books and fresh basil. I have heard people's likes and dislikes, their cares and concerns, and sometimes, even their dreams. I have drank cold water from old wells. I have slept soundly as the night turned back into the day. I have felt the wind, and the rain, and the hot touch of the summer sun--the touch that warms us from over 91 million miles away. I have traded paper money for food and shelter, and I have always tried to remember my thank yous.

The last 95 days have been good. Sometimes tiring, sometimes long, but always good. My muscles work hard to move me across the land. My mind works hard to keep up with all the details, for there are many, many details. From the West to the East. From coast to coast. From the flatlands, to the mountains, and back to the flatlands again. This is a large and fragrant country. Our people are creative and resourceful. We are proud and free, kind and caring. We are young and old, wise but sometimes foolish, diverse but sometimes afraid to embrace our own diversity. There is great beauty and great promise here, but there is also greed and pollution. This is a large and fragrant country, hard to define but easy to enjoy.

Yes, over the course of this bicycle tour I have seen and felt so much. I have spent many hours writing in my journal, and many more hours working on this blog. I have always thought of this blog not as a summary of my entire tour--because that would just not be possible--but as a window into the last 3 months of my life. I have shared different aspects of the tour and different thoughts. And I have included photographs so you can see some of the things that I have seen. And now, I will open the window a little farther.



This is an old sign that still marks the route of the TransAmerica Trail. The 76 is there because this route was first established in 1976 (back then it was called Bikecentennial).

In the summer of '76, approximately 4,000 cyclists followed the trail across the country.

This is a newer sign. Most of the signs look like this.

Some people I've talked to along the way still remember the summer of '76. But there are many people living on or near the route that have no idea that the TransAmerica Trail exists. They just see the cyclists and figure that's what cyclists do.

But the old man that worked at this garage knew about the TransAm.










Dave, Brian, Roger, and me.

I've had the good fortune to end up at the same campground (or motel) as these fine gentlemen for 9 out of the last 14 nights.

Me and the Appalachian Mountains.

For the last couple weeks, Dave, Brian, Roger and Me have been traveling through these mountains. The roads in the Appalachians have provided some of the steepest grades of the entire tour. Going up these roads is hard, sweaty work. Luckily the uphills never last more than a few miles.

Mirrors like this make it easier to see around these steep and curvy roads.

I stopped here to let my engine cool down.





When no one else is around, I have to make myself laugh.







I've taken many turtles off the road and placed them safely in the in the grass, but this is the first snake I've saved. (Most snakes I pass have already been run over.) Using my frame pump, I gently prodded this snake until it got the idea and slithered away from the road.

View from the Blue Ridge Parkway.

I rode on the parkway for about 30 miles, and then my friend Laura picked me up. She picked me up and drove me back to her home in Staunton (pronounced Stan-tin) Virginia. For the last 2 days and 3 nights I've been visiting with Laura and her husband Sampsa. We've been relaxing, and listening to music, and talking about our summers. A big Thank You to Laura and Sampsa for housing me and feeding me for the last couple days! I've been traveling by myself for the last 32 days, and it's really nice to see a couple of familiar faces. When I finally get home and see my family and friends again I predict that I'll be smiling constantly.

If the names Laura and Sampsa seem familiar, it's because I mentioned them in a previous post (the post is titled "East Of The Mississippi"). Laura and Sampsa's wedding was the wedding that my sister Janice went to after she left the tour.

I'd also like to thank Thaddeus and Sarah Lee for letting Dave, Brian, Roger, and me stay at their home in Radford, Virginia. It's always incredible to go from the road to someone's home, and this was no exception. Thaddeus rode the TransAm back in '98 (with his two oldest sons) and it was really fun to swap stories from the road. Thanks again Thaddeus and Sarah!

Tomorrow Laura will drive me back to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and I'll continue traveling on my route. As always, thanks for stopping by and reading--I appreciate your interest.