I left the motel and rounded the corner only to see the trestle that I had come across 2 days earlier... I couldn't help but laugh at myself. My confidence and morale restored I hooked a right on Lowman's Ferry Road and climbed a short hill than eased on down the backside all the way to the river, which was about 3.5 miles. It was so pretty at the river crossing, and there happened to be a little store there so I stopped for some gatorade and a couple of pictures. That's when I had a little conversation with a man and a boy whom I had passed 3 times on the road. See, their truck kept stalling and they would have to wait for it to start again so they could pass me only to have it stall again. They had been trying to get home since early that morning from Christiansburg. At any rate, they informed me that I had chosen the long way around and it was riddled with hard climbs and lots of blind curves. They informed me that Old Route 100 wasn't a deadend as appeared on the map and that I could link back up with HWY11 at Dublin. They both agreed that would be a much better route and I couldn't help but agree. To my luck, and surprise, there were a man and his wife with a pickup that wasn't full of work equipment, atv's or fishing gear who graciously offered to haul me and my rig back up the 3.5-mile hill. They were very nice folks and I appreciate the ride. They dropped me at the corner right by the Pulaski Motel... so, here it is now closing on 1100hrs and I'm right back where I started! Phew! That took some self inspiration to get passed.
After that little SNAFU I was on my way and it was truly a beautiful day. I had a tailwind and traffic was relatively light for a holiday weekend; just a few fishermen hauling their boats to the river. I made Dublin in no time and was in much better spirits after a sandwich, a snickers & a pepsi. At the 3rd light I found HWY11 right where it was supposed to be so I hooked a right and boogied on down the road. After a couple of miles, with my confidence returning I began to sing "Ragged Ol' Flag" by the late, great Johnny Cash. In fact, if you click on the title of this blog entry you'll get to see a great little youtube production by a Navy Pilot of "Ragged Ol' Flag." I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
From Dublin to Radford it was litterally all uphill but that much I had grown used to in the last week or so. Radford was a pretty little college town and they were gearing up for some sort of festival. From Radford to Christiansburg it was more climbing but the roadway was new and there was a bit of a shoulder. At Christiansburg I stopped for a coke and to refill my gatorade and the gentleman behind the counter said I had the tough part whooped and it was all downhill to Roanoke. I smiled and said that I had heard that one before to which he replied that he was serious. He said that I had made the summit of Christiansburg Mountain and Roanoke was in the valley below. That, my friends, was like hearing music from the heavens! And he wasn't ribbing me either... I didn't touch a pedal for over 15 miles! Then there were only a few little hills but it was either flat or downhill and I had a tailwind the entire time. It just doesn't get any better than that!
The traffic in Roanoke was pretty much non-existent given the experiences I had had thus far in my journey. I pedalled on through town on Texas Street and found my way without incident up 117 back to HWY11 and at Troutville found the Travel Lodge exactly where it was supposed to be as well. All was good. I checked in and while stashing my gear I noticed the clock... It read 1741hrs and I figured that somebody must have reset it. I double checked my clock and, well, what do ya know! Even with my little escapade down to the river I still made the 60 miles and in record time! Now I was really happy! I took a shower and did my laundry in the sink then headed across the parking lot for a Mc Donalds... That's when I saw the Taco Bell across the street and couldn't help thinking that it couldn't be going this well... I thought, "watch, I'm gonna get hit by a bus crossing the street to Taco Bell!" But, I managed to get some dinner and cross the street twice without a hitch. After eating my body shut down pretty quick and I was off to bed by 1900hrs.
I tried to take some pictures yesterday, but I'm afraid that they will not do justice to the absolutely beautiful countryside I saw. Coming off the Appalachian Mountains was a real treat. The air was perfumed with the scent of wild flowers and the sun was warm on my face. The breeze was at my back and traffic was light enough that I could really enjoy the view without worrying too much about getting flattened. I hope you enjoy the pictures below. If you click on the viewer it will take you to webshots where you can read the picture captions I added and see them without being cropped to fit the viewer.
Enjoy the Ride!
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