Day 6 May 9, 2013 Chris went on the internet and found a great place to eat breakfast called “the Deli” about six blocks away from where wee are staying. The menu looked good and the prices were surprisingly reasonable. The weather was perfect – mid 70’s light breeze, sunny skies, it doesn’t get much better than this. When we arrived at the restaurant we discovered that “The Deli” had metamorphed into “Better than Sex”. We couldn’t find out if it was indeed better than sex because it only serves desserts and didn’t open until 4 pm. This is yet another example that the internet is not to be taken at face value. We ended up eating at Denny’s because it was nearby and we were hungry. After breakfast Chris & I decided to take ... read more

Day 4 The sky looked ominous, so I donned my raingear (it is getting a little easier to put on and take off because I have gotten a lot of practice). It drizzled on and off for most of the morning and part of the afternoon. It cleared up around 2 o’clock and got sunny and warm. I stopped at Fort Pulaski National Monument to get stamps then headed south for St. Mary’s to get more stamps. The rest of the day was just riding on 95 at 70 – 80 mph (Floridians don’t obey the speed limit like their neighbors to the north). I didn’t make it to Fort Lauderdale; I got too sore and tired too go that far. I stopped in St. Lucie for the night after riding 476 miles in 11 ½ ... read more

Day 2 Today started out dreary; a bit chilly and cloudy, and threatening rain. As I approached the Outer Banks after about an hour of riding it looked like it was clearing up little towards the east. The south and west still looked ominous, though. It was warmer than yesterday, so I wasn’t as cold, but it still wasn’t what I would call warm. I went to the Wright Brothers National Memorial to get a stamp but didn’t stay very long because of the impending storm. I then went to Fort Raleigh on Roanoke Island to get three more stamps bringing my total to 41 stamps from 14 states. I would have liked to have spent more time visiting these parks, but I have to be in Key West by Wednesday, which means I have to ... read more

The bike is ready and I am all packed and ready to go. The weather looks good for the first few days. I will be traveling alone this time, I am curious to see how it is different and whether or not I like it. I have to be in Key West by Wednesday the 8th of May, so I will have to average 350 miles a day - shouldn't be too hard except that I have only been on the bike 3 rimes since I got back from the cross country trip last September so I expect that the first few days I will be very, very sore.... read more

Day 32 Yesterday, when we stopped at a rest stop outside of Memphis, I checked my tires and wondered how much further we had to go. So I plugged my home address into the navigation app on my phone and found out we were around 800 miles form home. While we rode to Lebanon, I mulled the possibility of doing two 400 mile days and getting home on Monday instead of Tuesday. I suggested that to Bill and Rick and they both thought it was a great idea. When I got to the room and mapped a route, I discovered that going to the Tail of the Dragon would add almost 200 miles to our trip. The Tail of the Dragon is a 12 mile stretch of route 129 between Tennessee and North Carolina. It is ... read more