Day 80: Fort Chiswell

Distance: 72 avg: 11.2

Today I was thinking about a couple of things that are hard to express in this blog. Things that make bike tourism unique. The first is how immersive it is. You are in the environment. It’s quiet, there are no motors, you can hear everything. You can smell everything. I biked through fields of lavender in kansas, an experience I won’t forget. And you can feel the weather, the heat, the snow. You also get a feel for the lay of the land, as you climb up and down.

Which segways into my second point. You really get a feel for the way the land gradually shifts from place to place. From the steep hills of Kentucky to the rolling hills and mountains of Virginia. I’ll never forget going over Lolo Pass and entering Montana. It just felt like a new state.

And today I shifted into Virginia, which seems to be letting off on the verticalness. I diverted from the route and rode the Virginia Creeper trail for 11 miles. It’s a ‘rails to trails’ project, and it took me through some secluded beautiful scenery away from the cars. It was much slower than taking the road, but worth it.

Surprisingly I made up the miles quickly from my snailish morning. The downhills were some of the best of the trip. Light traffic, good roads, and great weather. I was doing 20-30 mph averages after doing a 7mph average for three hours! The uphills were good, the downhills were good, what else can I ask for?