The Blue Ridge Mountains, Day 13 -19

I'm currently biking along the Blue Ridge Mountains to Asheville, NC and they are kicking my my butt. I'm seeing some amazing views though and really challenging myself.

Day 13
I left Waynesboro, VA after a full days rest with my legs feeling much fresher than when I arrived. After staying in a hotel, my mind and body was feels relaxed, at ease and ready to take on the mountains. Some decent climbs today, but nothing too strenuous. Found a nice hidden place along the parkway to camp for the night.

Day 14

Woke up early and was at it again. Rode down into the valley of the James River(elevation 649ft) then immediately climbed back up Apple Orchard Mountain(elevation 3950ft) over the course of ~7 miles. One of the longest most difficult climbs so far! Made it about 60 miles through the mountains to a campground called Peaks of Otter.

Day 15

Got up at the crack of dawn headed for Roanoke, VA. I made it to Roanoke around two and sat down on the sidewalk at a random outlet to charge my phone and eat some grub. It turned out I was sitting outside an Optometrist's office and when he came out for a smoke we ended up talking for about an hour and a half. He lived about 30 miles down along the parkway in the town of Floyd and invited me to stop by for a burger the next day. I told him I'd see him tomorrow and continued on

for another 15 miles before finding a place to camp out.

Day 16
John the Optometrist ended up offering me a ride to Floyd in the morning after a cold rainy night. I accepted and ended up spending a most of the day with John and his black lab Maggie. He offered me a much needed warm shower, which I accepted. I then helped him with some yard work

while he smoked a turkey breast and some burgers. He was an intelligent guy and very interesting person to talk with. He didn't go to school until he was in his 40s and drove home the importance of education. He was also into HAM radio which was cool to see. He very generously gave me some food for the road and a place to camp for the night at a friends country store along the parkway.

Day 17
I set out with the goal of making it to the Doughton Park Campground, which was 65 miles away. I passed the Blue Ridge Music Center, which happened to be having live music going at the time, so listened for a bit while I warmed up inside. I biked hard all day and made it to the campground as the sun was starting to set. It was on top of Bluff Mountain and snow was starting to fall when I biked in. I knew I was in for a cold night.

Day 18
I woke up surrounded by snow, not wanting to leave the warmth of my sleeping bag. I knew I had to get moving, which would in turn warm me up, but Imust not have warmed me up much since I soon discovered the awkward sensation of biking with numb feet. I knew if I stopped it would only get worse, so I had to keep moving. There was a town along the parkway about 55 miles away. It was supposed to get down to 22 degrees the next

night so a hotel room sounded almost necessary at that point. Riding was not very enjoyable throughout the day and when I was 5 miles from the town I broke a spoke in my rear tire. I was still able to ride, but the tire was way out of balance. I found a hotel to warm up and called it a night.

Day 19
Feeling warm and clean again I headed down to the local bike shop. They weren't able to replace the broken spoke, but they did re-balance the tire. In reality I should get a new rear wheelset, but they didn't have a replacement for me. The tire as it is should get me to Asheville where I can get the parts I need. I'm planning a very light riding day today to recover a bit and get ready for Mount Mitchell in couple days. Blowing rock has been a really nice town to stay, I really like the vibe of it.

Days 6-12

Well guys, I'm still alive and pushing South. It's been a while since I've had a chance to update so I've got a lot of catching up to do. I'm currently in Waynesboro, Virginia considering my route options.

Day 6
I was about 62 miles to Cumberland, Maryland, where I had a warm place to stay for night, so I got an early start and started cruising. I passed through some really nice small towns along the trail. The first forty miles were uphill and the last twenty were downhill into Cumberland. At the peak was the Eastern Continental Divide where all water East of that point goes to the Atlantic Ocean and West goes to the Gulf of Mexico. As I started

my descent it started to rain and continued for most of the twenty miles. There were a few long tunnels that I took some breaks in, but the warm house and shower kept me going. The shower felt great. Had dinner, and walked around the town with my host. Turned out to be a nice little town.

Day 7
Got a late start today. After taking a look around my hosts small farm and looking at maps trying to

plan my route, I was on my way South. Biked up and down some of the steepest mountains yet, which was pretty brutal. Biked until the sun started to set. I saw a nice looking farm, so walked down the driveway and asked if I could pitch a tent in their back yard. They said sure and ended up serving me dinner and being a very nice couple.

Day 8
The farmers wife gave me a few apples for the

road and I was off for the Blue Ridge Mountain Range. I made it to the foot of the mountain before dark and stopped at a coffee shop to recharge my electronics(and myself). Sadly, they didn't have wifi though. I biked a couple miles up the mountain and camped out.

Day 9
The first hundred miles of the mountain range are through Shenendoah National Park and since the

government shutdown was in effect, it was closed. A ranger pointed me towards an alternative route through George Washington State Park which turned out to be pretty beautiful as well. It went through the valley, but then I had to climb a mountain for about an hour to get out of it. I turned the last corner at the top to an AMAZING view that made it completely worth it. On my way down the other side of the mountain I was plagued with tire issues again. I took me about two hours to sort it

all out, and luckily the nearest town had a bike shop to get some much needed gear. Camped out behind a flea market tonight. Luckily I didn't get fleas.

Day 10
Didn't sleep very well, but woke up to this great sunrise over the mountains. Feeling kind of lazy today. It rained off and on most of the morning, and I was feeling kind of lazy so took a pretty long

break. I got word that the government shutdown was over and the mountain was back open, so I grabbed some food and coffee in town and headed up the mountain. The coffee did the trick and I ended up climbing over 2,400ft to camp out atop Loft Mountain at an elevation of 3,340ft.

Day 11
Well, sleeping on top of a mountain officially sucks. It was incredibly windy all night and

freezing cold in the morning. The campground had showers which again felt great! It's amazing how good a warm shower feels sometimes! I biked up and down through the mountains for about 30 miles to The Rockfish Gap, where Skyline Drive meets Blue Ridge Parkway. This Gap is where Waynesboro is located. I decided after 11 days of riding I needed a rest day, so I got a hotel room and am taking a day off.

Day 12
Today is my rest day. Man, day 12, it feels like I've been gone for way longer than twelve days! Taking it easy today before heading back up into the mountains.

Heading into the mountains

I'm finding it to be a challenge to find wifi, so this is a limited post from my cell phone. I thought I'd let everyone know that I'm starting skyline drive tomorrow through Shenandoah followed by blue ridge parkway into Ashville, NC. It's all mountains, so I will have limited cell service and wifi. They are national parks, so they may be closed due to the government shutdown. We'll see how it turns out. Things are going great though and I will do a better update as soon as I can.

And I'm Off! Days 1-5

Day 1
I didn't manage to leave until around 4pm Tuesday afternoon, but even with the late start, still managed to get 30 miles in. I found a nice wooded area along the road, and set up camp. The combination of being too close to the road and coyotes howling in every direction left me with very little sleep. I now know that there's really no need to worry about coyotes, but at the time every noise I heard through the night was perceived as a pack of coyotes circling for the kill.

Day 2

I managed to make it through the night alive, and was on the road by 9. Rode through some nice small towns and a lot of farm country. Not a whole lot to see in mid-East Ohio really. The sun was starting to set so I was looking for a place to camp for the night, when I came across a nice woman named Jen on an atv. We got to talking and it turned out she was a Presbyterian Minister who owned a 200 acre farm. I ended up pitching a tent in her back yard by some flowers which was a much more pleasant place to sleep. Covered 55 miles today.

Day 3
Woke up around 7, had some oatmeal and coffee with Jen and was off. Jen was a joy to talk to, she runs the farm on her own now that her husband died and her two daughters went off to college. I was only 5 miles from the Pennsylvania border, so I crossed that and headed toward Pittsburgh. It was a pleasant ride, but as I neared Pittsburgh my back tire started to feel funny and soon after it popped. It turns out since I didn't get new tires, the old tires disintegrated and were essentially useless. The nearest bike shop was in the city about 5 miles away so I started pushing. The sun was again setting, I was again unsure where I was gonna sleep, when two blocks from the bike shop a guy from warmshowers(a website that gives cyclists a place to sleep) saw me and asked me if I need help. I decided to stay with him. He was hosting another cyclist and was very generous to the both of us. He made us chicken stir fry for dinner and then drove us around the city to see the views. Covered 60 miles today and was happy to find a place to sleep.

Day 4
Got a slow start today. Had breakfast and chatted about cycling, then headed to rei to get a solar power charger for my cell phone. From there I got on the Great Allegheny Passage which runs from Pittsburgh to DC. Had tire problems again, but made it about 40 miles to a nice campsite. Met three couples in their 20s from Pittsburgh who I ended up talking to into the evening. Really enjoyed that, then got to bed.

Day 5
Had breakfast with the group from last night. My right Achilles tendon isn't feeling so good this morning. It seems my seat was slightly too high, so adjusted it and rode out. This trail runs alongside the Yougiogheny River, which made for some very scenic riding today. Overall feeling a little sore, but still managed 50 miles. Planning on camping at a campground tonight that is closed due to the government shutdown.