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Tentist and the Teapot

Day 6

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.

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Tentist and the Teapot

Day 5

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.

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Tentist and the Teapot

Days 3 & 4

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!

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Tentist and the Teapot

Day 2

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.

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Tentist and the Teapot

Day 1

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.

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Tentist and the Teapot

The beginning

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!

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Rides

Coffee beans, bread

What a perfectly timed day to run out of coffee and bread! Elbow Room Coffee and Bread Euphoria were open and the morning felt like summer. With no reason to hurry, my ride happily included visits with friends and neighbors also out in the fresh air.

Once my bags were filled with food I started my round-about return route, doubling the distance to extend the ride home. Stopping to talk with people out walking the country roads also doubled my paused time. A great, leisurely, friendly day.

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Rides

Doctor’s Orders

With the promise of temps reaching 60° and feeling fresh after yesterday’s ride, I knew while sipping the last drop of coffee that today would be a ride day. Ride days really don’t need reasons but finding one is satisfying. The more off the wall the reason, the better so today I picked my old standby “doctor’s orders.”

The ride up into Hawley was relaxing as I turned the pedals up the long steady climb. My thoughts of sitting by the cemetery and eating a snack in the warm sun were as peaceful as I had imagined.

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Rides Tentist and the Teapot

First picnic this year

I had been getting anxious for a long ride and today was the day. Most of the things that I need to finish up before the tour are out of the way. Today’s weather was close to perfect, so after a lazy morning enjoying my coffee, I readied my bike and myself for a six hour adventure.

I set out just before noon, thinking that I would eat somewhere on the route. The day being so warm and fresh, I chose to pick up a sandwich, drink, and chips, and sit on a bank above the Deerfield River. Lunch was unhurried, as I listened to the water pass by heading out to sea.

My ride ended a bit later than expected. I came across a few friends also enjoying the day on their bikes, so I paused my ride for pleasant conversations. In the end, the ride ended as the sun set below the trees, and I’m now settled at home.

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Rides

Cookie day

Yesterday crumpled my brain and tossed it in the wastebasket. Spending most of the morning on the phone with tech support because my secure blog site was showing as a non secure site on my browser. The problem was eventually fixed, the https site had been entered as http. Now, after lunch, I began to tweak and play with the look and workability of the blog pages. Next, I found the sun had set and it was dinner time.

This morning was again more time addressing a few other site issues. I finally got ready to ride a bit later than noon. Anxious to get out riding I opted to forgo lunch. The stop at the Creamery for an oatmeal raisin cookie was deserved and greatly appreciated.

Fueled with a few tasty calories, I made it back to my hometown and picked up a grinder to carry home for dinner. Now I’m putting my day into a few words on virtual paper. The day ended with another tired brain.