Author: russloomis

I left camp in Newport News and rode to the Victory Monument in Yorktown, VA. This added seven miles, but the ride was a good warmup. After taking a few photos, I followed the route west. The parkways are great to ride, with low traffic. I rode through the streets of Williamsburg and headed to Christiansburg. This is when I started thinking about food and a place to pitch a tent for the night.

At the only convenience store in town, I ate a meal of corn dogs and ice cream. I also bought chili and peach cobbler for dinner at camp. While I was there, a man asked where I was going, and this started a long, pleasant conversation and an offer to stay the night at his place. He is in the process of opening an Airbnb. We swapped contact information, but I missed the turn, and when I realized my mistake I decided to continue to a wilderness campsite instead of turning back.

Camp is set up, I’ve eaten, and now it’s time to wind down for the night, as I need to be out of camp by eight AM.

Waking up in Kiptopeke State Park, I began with breakfast and coffee, then moved supplies around so my bike, Ms. Eve R. Green, could fit into the car for the drive across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel to Newport News for the last night before heading west.

Our campsite is very nice and quiet within a small loop surrounded by woods. Nancy took the dogs for a walk as I rearranged my bags to more easily find items and to lighten and balance the load. Determining necessary items and finding the best arrangement for my bags will continue to be a learning curve as the days go by.

Today was my last day riding with CK. He is now home and tomorrow I will cross the bay and head to Yorktown, VA to start my journey west. We slept in a motel the night before: it had been a long day riding 76 miles, and there were no camping options. Sleeping inside is not close to the peaceful deep rest and the cool fresh air of a night in a tent.

The low traffic, rolling country roads were quiet and scenic. We carried our lunch to eat in a field midway through the day. We stopped at the edge of a field to heat up beef stew, and this fueled us to our meeting with Nancy at Kiptopeke State Park and to CK’s end of his tour. Those first five days were precious and I’ll carry the memories with me for all of my tour.

On Friday morning we packed up and left Cape Henlopen for Assateague Island. The day started cold with some wind, but not as severe as the day before. It warmed up nicely, and we arrived at Nancy’s campsite in time to set up tents before enjoying a great home cooked meal in the Teapot.

Friday night was cold, but with less wind than the previous night, and we had some shelter in the brush. Saturday morning I warmed my hands by the cook stove while waiting for the water to boil for coffee—a comforting feeling on a cold morning. The route to Onley, VA was nice; cinder trails and quiet country roads that meandered through trees and along fields. This was a long day—76miles. CK and I are now relaxing in a comfy motel room waiting for dinner delivery. The luxury of comfort!

We woke to a windy day and ate breakfast before breaking camp. Elbow Room coffee started the day. Once packed up we headed into the wind, grinding our way to tonight’s camp.

The wind was brutal and forced us into the drops to move forward at a snail’s pace. Open space and the ocean do not slow the wind, so it hit full force. Call it practice for riding across Kansas.

We made it to camp and set the tents before the rain and I sat under shelter posting on Strava and eating a grinder that was carried to Cape Henlopen State Park. The rain stopped and we toured the military base and saw the ocean. It is now raining again as I write this post.

What a way to start a tour! We show up to the start and get ready to ride, I put on my helmet: the clasp breaks as I click it into place. I dig out my spare helmet and ride off with my friend CK. Two miles later my rear tire is flat. 25,000+ miles and I get a flat now with a new tire. Luckily Nancy is only a few miles up the road with all my extra stash. She comes back and I change the tire. Now I remember that I might have nipped the sidewall while cutting the zip tie—it’s a small, clean paper cut like slice.

We head over to Bombay Hook Wildlife Sanctuary and take in the views. It is so nice there.

We finally get into camp and set up before dark. Hopefully all this bad luck is over and the rest of the tour will be free of setbacks.

I had been watching the weather in Delaware for the past week, hoping for a warm and dry start. I check, it’s warm and sunny. I check again, it’s in the 20’s and freezing rain. The start of the tour will be a crap shoot! We hitched up the Teapot and headed off packed on a cold Ashfield day. Our first stop was lunch at the Creamery in Cummington, my cookie stop. It is snowing. We arrived late and tired at CK and Erin’s home, our friends in Delaware.

I will start the tour from here on Wednesday with CK’s company, riding along the Delmarva coast to meet up with Nancy five days later. CK will head home, Nancy and I will cross the Chesapeake Bay and camp in Yorktown for the night. Then, we head west!