Day 9. We meet up with Paula.

This building is right across from the park we camped at. The fire station where we showered is to the right, just out of view. Sorry, I didn't get a good shot of it.
This is a relic of one of the box cars from the historic era when trains were the main mode of moving the economy. This one sits in the city park where we camped.

Early morning in the park before anyone was there. It must have been in the low 30's.

Virginia is one of the most bicycle friendly states in the country. This is proof.

We were rolling along, and Lisa said, "Look Ted, that colt looks like it was just born."

Paula met up with us on the route. She drove 3.5 hours from South Carolina. And then spent another hour looking for us. She offered to carry some of our stuff in the car. Thank you Paula.

One of the many brooks we crossed along the route. This one meandered for miles along this valley that we followed. It was near here that we saw the fox.

Lisa after she ate everything in sight. Mostly candy, brownies, and diet coke.

Lisa took a picture of me, so I took a picture of her.

Isn't this beautiful country? This valley went on for miles and miles. Every inch as beautiful as this.


Day 9, May 20. 52.08 mi.

As nice as the Troutville City Park was. We almost froze to death last night. I had on a Tee shirt, long sleeve flannel shirt, a sweater, and jacket. Socks, fleece pants, gloves, baclava, a sleeping bag, and emergency blanket, and that was still not enough. Lisa had on everything she brought with her, and she still froze her behind. Despite not getting much sleep, we felt lucky to make it though the night alive.

Once on our bikes though, things became much more routine. The sun was out, and it looked like another excellent day. We left the park at about 8:30AM. James was still asleep, he didn’t seem to be in any rush to get going, so Lisa and I went on our way. First stop, McDonnell’s for breakfast. Got to get fueled up you know. Then on the road again. The route today was similar to yesterday’s , with plenty of climbing and descending. The roads were not nearly as winding, or as forested. Today, there was a lot of open valleys, with streams and farms lining the roadside. The scenery was magnificent. We paralleled the Appellation Trail for a few miles, and ran into a gentleman by the name of Dellwood. He is what they call a “Trail Angel”. The people who patrol the Appellation Trail assisting hikers in distress. He was a very friendly individual who was very interested in what Lisa and I were doing. I told him that I also would like to hike part of the A/T in the future.

We didn’t run into any touring cyclist today, but at mile 32, Paula found us. Paula was my girl friend when I was 21 years old, I haven’t seen her in over 30 years. This was a joyous occasion indeed. I was all sweaty and probably smelled worse than a horse. But we hugged and exchanged greetings all the same. Then, she offered to transport our bags and trailers for us to Christiansburg, our destination. This was just too good to be true. Lisa and I rode the last 20 miles free as a bird. Once at Christiansburg, we settled in at the Supper 8 motel, They had a special rate. $58.00 a night for 3 people, and they have guest laundry, and wifi. Since Paula is off till Friday, we decided to make Thursday a rest day. This way we can catch up on blog stuff and e-mail

Sweet dreams everybody. Alooooha, Ted.