HeatherNow that we have a few weeks and over 600 miles of pedaling on the Underground Railroad under our belts the routines are kicking in, and the days have taken on a sort of routine that we thought you all might be interested in learning more about.
Each day starts with a freshly made cup of instant decaffeinated coffee. It is ok to be jealous of this…. I have struggled a bit with the caffeine withdrawals, but the fact that Matt gets out of the tent first to make this somehow makes up for the lack of punch in the cup. After we eat a delicious breakfast of instant oatmeal and brush our teeth etc.. we begin the steps to pack up. I will say that the food on the trail is not as delicious as it was in Mobile, but it does keep us full of energy.
It is taking us less and less time to get everything into our panniers as things all have their spot. I carry the food, the tent, the camera equipment, and therm-a-rests. Matt has the kitchen, our clothes, sleeping bags, computer and games. To slow him down a bit we also throw a 3 litre water bladder on his bike part way through the day which is enough for dinner, and breakfast. Each bike also has 2 litres of water on board to keep us hydrated.
Once we are on the road, we are either riding together on slow country roads or I am chasing Matt up and down hills. Most of the roads don’t have lots of traffic, and it is an assault to the senses when we hit a busier highway. For the most part drivers have been very gracious, giving us lots of space and waiting to pass until they can see what’s over the next bend. I haven’t had much of a death grip on the handlebars, and am feeling pretty comfortable on all sorts of roads.
We typically take a mid day break to eat lunch, have a nap and check the map to see what is coming up next. We need to plan for where we can get water, how much food we need to stock up on, or if we need to find a town with a hotel or warm shower to wait out a rain storm. The rest of the afternoon we usually bike for an hour in between bum breaks to give our backsides a bit of respite. If it’s a hot day another nap is called for at 3 or 4 pm in the shade!
Once we get to a country store or dollar general we re-fill water, buy whatever is needed and head on down the road. These small stores are where we have met so many wonderful people who are quick to offer advice (“be careful of the snakes- they are just coming out now,” “that road up ahead has a good number of hills,” “look for [insert church name] it will be a great place to camp”) I like to think of them as our own personal ‘underground railroad conductors.’
At some points in the day I lose myself in my thoughts, either writing a blog post, dreaming about where we will spend the winter or just marveling at the beautiful countryside. These moments are sometimes interrupted by loose dogs which are managed by either throwing rocks or stopping the bike completely. Other times I can’t wait to catch up to Matt to share my observations with him, like the time the large hawk flew directly over my head, or the dead armadillo I saw in the ditch.
Cycle touring is a slow way to travel and we are often entertained by the things we see along the road. I can tell what the next town has in the way of fast food based upon the garbage in the ditch. I wonder if the guy running for Sheriff also has a motel in town and if so will that impact his chances? I was particularly entertained by the headstone I saw at one cemetery which had large letters that said GUEST. I figured it was proactive to say the least!
We have found that churches, graveyards and funeral homes make for great places to stay. There seems to be lots of forests in the areas we have pedaled so far, so it is also easy to find something just a little back from the road that hides our campsite. We typically pull off at 5pm which gives us lots of time to set up camp and make dinner before the sun sets at 7:30.
Once in the tent, we play a game of Crib which involves some trash talking by whomever won the night before (I won last night). Then we read for a while and fall asleep so we are ready to do it all over again the next day.
This is an easy life and while the days have become predictable they aren’t dull or boring. Each road has a unique set of challenges – lots of traffic or hills, or wonderful scenery to gawk at. It is almost exciting to turn the next corner to see what lies ahead of us. We know there is no shortage of adventure and learning to come. Until then, it’s time to get back into the saddle.
