April 10

From Silsbee Texas to Lake Charles, Louisana
81.1 miles
Roadkill: armadillo, raccoon, oppossum, frog

We are no longer in Texas.  20 days in Texas really sped by for me.  I does really seem all down hill from here.  The highest places from here on, will be the bridges we cross.
The roads were flat and unendingly straight today.  The terrain continues with lots of greenery and trees.

I got lost today...due to poor directions on the cue sheets, just went some extra miles, but it turned out not to be too bad.  Had to be on some busy roads with no shoulder at the end of the ride. Fortunately Louisiana drivers were very polite.

I'll add some pictures after our Margarita party and dinner.  Not much time, since I didn't get in until 4:10.

April 9

From to Silsbee Texas
63.0 mi

Last night in Texas.  It hasn't been as long as I thought it might be.  Since Kerrville the time and miles are speeding by.  At the end of each day, it feels good to get off the bike and get into the room.  Then I get out my computer and realize that my mind is totally blank and I have to really concentrate to remember where we were last night and what I did all day.  I try to think of things to write about on the ride, but it takes a huge amount of effort to think about it at the end of the day.
Rode with Mike, Rita and Alayne for 30 miles today at a 14+ avg, but decided to slow way down the second half and rode alone.  I'll always be a slow rider, just not much interested in speeding by everything.  I probably stay on my bike longer than most and take fewer, shorter breaks.  I'm a "tortoise".

Today's ride took us through The Big Thicket.  I could hear lots of noise from logging operations off the highway and out-of-sight.  Logging trucks going both directions.  Thought most of the activity would settle when we passed the Georgia Pacific operation in Cleveland, but the trucks full of logs and piles of chips just kept on coming by.  Guess, more than Georgia Pacific operate in the area.  I thought about my mom, as I rode by and her job working at Georgia Pacific when they had their headquarters in Portland.  She knew where all their operations were, as I recall, so she would have loved it knowing that I rode by the Cleveland plant.

After the first 20 miles of traffic, but good shoulder, we had less traffic and less shoulder.  We ended with wide shoulder and lots of traffic.

Most our motels are on the east side of town, so when we leave in the morning were head out of town quickly.  Looks like the PineWood Motel is on the eastern edge.

Tried to wait before opening pecans that Laurence and Pat gave to me, but Laurence said they are good 'fat' and he studied fat (lipids) for his career in research (he is an expert on pecans), so I'm adding them to my snack bag for the road.  A wonderful treat along the way.

April 8

From Navasota to Cleveland, Texas
75.0 mi
Roadkill: armadillo, skunk, opossum

Road through Anderson, Richards, then through Sam Houston National Forest, New Waverly, and then after an 8 mile stretch of busy hwy (150) we turned onto a 22 mile stretch of road to Cleveland that was made in "bicyclist heaven."  It was flawlessly smooth and without much traffic.  What a pleasure to ride.

We are staying at a Super 8 with soft beds and very nice family at the reception desk.  I would recommend this, to anyone driving through Cleveland, TX.

April 7

Rest day

Stayed overnight in College Station with Laurence and Pat, two of the most interesting people that I've known over the years.  Laurence is a retired botanist who worked at Texas A&M and now works at a Therapeutic Massage specialist.  Not sure if that is what he calls himself, but he is certainly a miracle worker for his patients.  Pat works as a pediatric nurse, helping babies and their mother's survive difficult births.  She also lives a double life through her obsession with American Idol winner Adam Lambert.  They both love to travel, party and live life to its fullest. They are fearless adventurers. What fun to get reacquainted with them, since we only communicate once a year exchanging holiday greetings.  I met Laurence at a Methodist conference for students in Lincoln Nebraska in 1964.   Life is such an exciting journey. 
They took me to see the Texas A&M Bonfire memorial and George Bush Library complex, where George and Barbara live occasionally.  I returned to finish my relaxing day with a bag of the best Texas pecans. 

Tomorrow we continue our ride through Texas.

April 6

From La Grange to Navasota, Texas
69.9 miles
Roadkill: Amadillo,
Lovely ride...everything is beginning to run together so much I can hardly remember what I did.  It was a long ride, but fairly flat compared to the other most recent rides.  Still lots of rollers but they didn't seem to take so much effort...am I finally getting stronger or was it really flatter?

We started the day by going through fields covered with tents that had been used for a giant antique show over the weekend.  Lucky we didn't have to ride through that event over the weekend. 


I also got to see another longhorn cattle...couldn't get very close though.  Everyone stopped to take pictures.


There have been lots of Texas wildflowers along the road, but today was particularly a standout for whole fields of wildflowers in bloom.  I saw groups of people stopped along the road taking pictures and their cars had Texas license plates so this might be a particularly beautiful year for wildflowers.  Everyone has said that they have had lots of rain this year.

To me the scenery is beginning to look more like what I remember about Mobile.  There were several big old white two story mansions along the way that could have been plantations at one time.  We went through Burton that had flags out to advertise that is it the location for the Cotton Gin festival. 

April 5

From Bastrop to La Grange Texas
41.1 miles
Roadkill:  opposum, armadillo (sure looked like one, anyway)

Sue, Lynn, Pam and Mike tale a look at the maps for today.

Pretty easy day.  Humid and hot, but the wind made it all do-able. Started with a ride, first 17 miles, through the Bastrop State Park. Then onto a less traveled highway.  We ended with a nice wide shoulder on a very busy road. 

 

The only wildlife on the ride today

Saw signs that said "Don't slow Texas down" and "Drive clean through Texas".

April 4

From Blanco to Bastrop, TX
90 plus miles (my calculator went bonkers today so I'm not sure)

Roadkill: various birds, frog, turtle

Any traffic we haven't had on other days was out on our route today.  Started in steamy hot mist that was sometimes a tail wind, and ended with so much traffic I can hardly tell you want the weather or scenery was like.  Didn't take any pictures had to concentrate on the road.  Last 20 miles was heavy traffic with no shoulder.  Interesting that some riders loved it...

Our Comfort Inn is a wonderful place to be at the end of a hard day.