Dec 05. The final leg of the journey has arrived and really all I am going to do is cycle 32 miles along perfectly flat roads, there should have been some great climb at the end of the route followed by a glorious 10 mile hair-raising descent to the ocean but its not the destination its the journey eh. The weather is very kind, another brisk but sunny morning and I'm away from Palatka by 8.30am, the journey is pretty uneventful and before I know it I am in St Augustine. The claim to fame of St Augustine is that is [View Full Entry]

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Dec 4 Its the penultimate day of the trip and again a great day for cycling, the warmer temperatures make for a very pleasant ride along the traffic free Gainsville Hawthorne tail which has a canopy of golden autumnal foliage. In Hawthorne I stray once again from the ACA route and take the 20 through Interlachen to Palatka on the banks of the St Johns River. In order to have a shorter journey tomorrow I head on to East Palatka where I intend to camp one last time, however on the way to the campsite I spot a group of seedy [View Full Entry]

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Dec 3. Its far too cold to get an early start , I dont even venture out of the tent till after 8am by which time the first rays of the sun are banishing the frost, by 10.30 its warm enough to cycle under a fleece. Todays journey is along pleasant though busy roads passing through High Springs and Alachua. Gainsville, the home of 'The Gators' football team and Florida University, which beat the Tallahassee rivals last week, is a real college town and consequently very bicycle friendly. Its interesting how much of an influence the presence of a big college [View Full Entry]

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Dec 2. A big day like yesterday ensures a great nights sleep. Today I will take it a bit easier and set my sights on some campsites around the Itchetucknee Springs State Park, its sunny again but the forecast is for a sharp frost in this area. I dont mind the cold so long as it does'nt rain while I'm camping. The sun may be shinning but temperatures remain in single figures (celsius) so I have to cycle with fleece and jacket which is uncomfortable as you soon get soaked with sweat. I am back on the ACA route which takes [View Full Entry]

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Dec 1st. I have only about 250 to 300 miles to cover to reach the Atlantic depending on which route I take and I had hoped to get into St Augustine by Friday the 5th. These plans were hatched before the enforced three day lay over in Tallahassee. I am positively bursting to get back on the bike after doing little cycling over the weekend so I am pleased to see the sun is shining today and as a bonus the winds are favourable. I decide to take a couple of shortcuts from the ACA route and set an ambitious target [View Full Entry]

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Nov 30 Its still too wet to travel and I debate the possibilities at length before deciding that it is just not worth it to get soaked and miserable , better to hole up here for another day and do a long day tomorrow. Its St. Andrews day. [View Full Entry]

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Nov 29 The big game is upon us here in Tallahassee, the fervor is very remeniscent of European football passions, on the radio people talk of their childhood memories of the post thanksgiving game being the highlight of their year. I venture out at 10.00am some 5 hours before the game to get my spoke fixed and am confronted with 'tailgaters' on every available parking space and patch of land within a mile of the stadium. The tailgater opens the trunk of his car, full of booze and snacks, gets out his deck chairs, puts on his radio and has a [View Full Entry]

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Nov 28. Too wet to travel today and its the eve of the BIG game, Florida v Florida State or the 'Gatores v Seminoles' . This is the biggest college football game of the year here in Tallahassee. There are two big college towns in Florida, the one I'm in which is the home of Florida State University, the Seminoles being their team and Gainsville some 150 miles east of here which is the home of Florida University (the fifth biggest in the USA) and their team is the Gators. The rivalry is on a par with Rangers-Celtic or Barca-Madrid, and [View Full Entry]

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Nov 27 Thanksgiving day ! Thanks to the change of time zone I'm am not awake till 8.00am though for me it is still really 7.00am. My first impression of thanksgiving is a procession of hunters, many with kids turning up at the garage in camouflage while I'm having my coffee and danish. I have seen many posters advertising turkey shoots so there could be some synergy there if dad and the kids go out and bag a turkey which mom cooks for dinner. Great roads again and little wind make it a pleasant ride through Gretna and on towards Quincy. [View Full Entry]

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Nov 26 I aim to be in Tallahassee by the time the rain comes again on Friday and the only viable camping area between here and there is in Chattahoochee on the banks of Lake Seminole and the Apalachecola river. Its a short journey so there is no need to set off early. If they were not closed on Tuesday and Wednesday I would have visited Florida Caverns State Park. The journey today is through thickly forested terrain but on good roads with decent shoulders. I come across an accident on the way where a pick up has managed to bring [View Full Entry]

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