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South Carolina #25

South Carolina February 28 – March 3, 2017 101 miles

We had such a good time on Tybee Island that we were a bit reluctant to leave but we had our sites set on our South Carolina 100. The first trail we have planned is the Spanish Moss Trail. Found a trail head in Port Royale and enjoyed a wonderful ride past rivers, marshes and mud flats. It was a good sampling of the low country. The trail traveled past the Marine Air Base in Beaufort. While passing the end of the air field several fighter jets flew over. I have never experienced anything like this before – it was an awesome sight, the sound was overwhelming – I was in tears. Speechless!!

We planned to camp at Hunting State Park, but were told by a jogger that it had been closed since being damaged in hurricane Matthew. Apparently Beaufort was one of the hardest hit areas! So, we headed for Edisto Island – we had been here years ago with the kids and my mom and dad. Arrived after dark and found there was no camping on beach due to hurricane damage but we were able to find a campsite at Liv-Oak Campground. No phone, no internet, no satellite. No problem!

We awoke to a beautiful campground. We rode our bikes on a dirt trail and across boardwalks into town. Walked on the beach, road through Wyndham timeshare which was only 30% open due to hurricane Matthew damage. We stopped at Dockside for a beer, a place we’d had dinner many years ago. Next stop was Fins for Bam Bam shrimp and another beer! We certainly wouldn’t get many miles under our tires if we only rode around these beach towns. It was fun and relaxing though.

Left Edisto Island and headed for Charleston area to ride West Ashley Greenway – a nice trail through pine forests and mud flats. Most of the trail was gravel, some smooth, some not so smooth.

We stayed at a Wal-Mart on James Island and found a bike shop just down the road. Lenny purchased a new Giant Cypress with front suspension. We headed for James Island County Park to test his new ride. This park is for bikers and dog lovers. They have a huge off the leash dog park with a lake for dogs to swim. Flo loved it and we loved the biking. We checked on camping but it was over our budget so we cooked our dinner in the park and headed for Summerville.

We rode the Sawmill Branch Trail in Summerville. The trail head was at a soccer complex – yes, soccer day in America. We did enjoy watching the soccer games while getting ready to ride. The trail followed a canal and was smooth and flat, a good trail for Lenny testing his new blue bike.

We headed for Traveler’s Rest (cool name for a town) to ride the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Traveler’s Rest is a nice little town with some nice eateries and outfitters for hiking and kayaking. We rode along the Reedy River, past Furman University and Falls Park in Greenville. Falls Park was a pleasant surprise – nice view of Reedy Falls. There were restaurants overlooking the park and the falls – very busy with Sunday strollers. It’s well worth the trip to Greenville to see this beautiful area!

On our return I dropped by new water bottle (purchased on the Silver Comet Trail). Lenny climbed down an embankment and under a bridge to retrieve it. Had to drop it on a bridge!

From Traveler’s Rest we headed for Denver, NC to meet up with our niece Natalie. We had a good Mexican meal and then she introduced us to Cookout. They have fantastic shakes – any flavor you can think of.

Enjoying a shake at Cookout with Natalie.

Spanish Moss Trail – Port Royale
Edisto Island
West Ashley Greenway
James Island
Sawmill Branch Trail – Summerville
Swamp Rabbit Trail

Georgia #24

Georgia February 20 – 26, 2017 106 miles

We left the Chief Ladiga Campground in Alabama in the rain and drove in rain most of way to Rockmart, GA. We found a campsite close to the Silver Comet Trail. We road a bit of this trail earlier because the Chief Ladiga Trail ends at the western end of the Silver Comet Trail on the Alabama/Georgia state line.

State line – Western end of Silver Comet Trail

We road three days on the Silver Comet. The western section passed through cattle farms, a wildlife habitat area, and areas of tall pine stands. There were some long climbs at about mile 45. The view from the top was awesome – once we caught our breath. The middle section was a beautiful ride through tall pines, farmland. We loved riding on trail high above the valley. This was a classic rail trail – long grades up and long grades down.

Trail Sign – Atlanta to east and Rockmart to west. Further west Anniston, Alabama

The last day we rode was the eastern end, closer to Atlanta. The trail was much busier – many more intersections but still beautiful ride among tall pines. We stopped at Silver Comet Bicycles right on trail and purchased some water bottles. After our ride we stopped at Performance Bikes in Marietta. I needed some new gloves and Lenny has a new bike on his mind. We have over 3700 miles on our bikes!

We headed for a Wal-Mart in Forsythe, GA to spend night on way to Savannah. We planned to stay at visitors center in Savannah for the night. It was a challenging adventure getting there, with the narrow streets and low hanging moss covered trees. A good place to spend the night ($8.00) and centrally located.

The next day we were off to Tybee Island for a couple days. “Sisters on the Fly”, an outdoor women’s group, was having an event at the campground. We really enjoyed seeing their old vintage trailers

Example of Vintage trailers. “Sisters on the Fly”

We had a great time on Tybee – toured the island on our bikes, and found some good places to have a beer and peel and eat shrimp. We walked the beach, investigated the tide pools and visited a couple of the shops selling works by local artists. Mary Kay Andrews, an author who lives on Tybee, was at Seaside Sisters when we stopped in. I have read some of her books – good beach reads, so I purchased “Summer Rental” and had her autograph it. That was cool!!

Silver Comet Trail
Tybee Island

Alabama #23

Alabama – February 19th – 20th 101 miles

We traveled through four states yesterday. We left Arkansas drove to Tennessee then to Mississippi and finally Alabama to ride the Chief Ladiga Trail. This trail travels from Anniston, AL to the Georgia state line where it connects to the Silver Comet Trail. The Silver Comet Trail goes all the way to Atlanta.

We spent our first night in Alabama at a Wal-Mart in Oxford. It was an interesting night, people asking for money and a women with 2 children wanting a tour of our motorhome. We had a quiet night once the townies with loud engines called it a night. Good Wi-Fi from nearby hotel.

After our long travel day yesterday we got a late start from the trail head in Anniston. We had a good ride through small towns and quiet countryside. Trail was not busy especially for a Sunday. We traveled out 15 miles which was about the half way mark of the trail. We arrived back at the motorhome about 5 PM and headed for Chief Ladiga Campground.

Getting to the Chief Ladiga Campground was a real adventure. It was dark, narrow roads, some dirt and a bridge out. Lenny had to turn the motorhome around on a very dark and narrow road. Lenny drove and I prayed. We finally found the correct road, still dark and narrow. When we arrived at the campground there was a narrow bridge crossing a stream which we would not have crossed if another camper had not told us it was safe. We found a fire pit and picnic table and leveled the motorhome for the night. Charlie, the owner, who seemed to be a real character stopped by with his dog, Sugar, to welcome us. The next morning we awoke to find ourselves in a beautiful valley surrounded by the southern Appalachians. Directly out our front window was Terrapin Creek. Flo loved this campground – she could run free with Sugar and swim in the creek.

Chief Ladiga Campground along Terrapin Creek. Rustic camping

We took a short ride in the morning to the Georgia state line. This end of the trail is much more scenic. We saw fields of flowers and a large beaver dam. The trail followed the mountains most of the way – sometimes wide valleys, other times narrow – farms, green meadows and areas of logging.

We returned to camp and had a relaxing afternoon – reading for me and napping for Lenny. A large flock of sandhill cranes landed in the field near our campsite. Lenny and Flo saw them take flight in the morning. Awesome site.

We visited Alabama in early January. Camped at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, AL- almost 500 campsites. There was a network of bike trails directly outside the campground. Very scenic trails, tall pines and bayou. Weather was cool but really comfortable for riding. It was 1 1/2 miles from our motorhome to end of campsite and start of bike trails.

One of my favorite pictures of Old Glory, along Fort Morgan Trail.

We ended up leaving Alabama because of the weather and headed for New Orleans. We finished our Alabama 100 on the Chief Ladiga Trail.

Backcountry Trail
Cotton Bayou
Rosemary Dunes
Twin Bridges
Coyote Crossing
Fort Morgan Trail
Chief Ladiga Trail

Arkansas #22

Arkansas February 12 – 18, 2017 – 112 miles

We headed for Arkansas on February 8th after our ride on the Pedego electric bikes. It is a 1280 mile trek to Fort Smith, Arkansas where we plan to be on Sunday February 12th to watch a double header at University of Arkansas Fort Smith.

Doing the friendly WalMart overnight stops on our way east. We took a side trip to the Grand Canyon. It was a beautiful day, only needed a light jacket. They had snow a week or so ago and there were drifts still melting in the sun. We were able to use their dump station. Many changes here since our visit 35 or more years ago. It is an incredible sight, but there is nothing like seeing for the first time.

This is our third trip to Arkansas with our bikes and have not yet finished our 100 miles. We love being in Arkansas as it is home to the Pittmans!

The Pittmans – This is why we love Arkansas.

We made our first ride in Arkansas in April 2016 on the Razorback Regional Greenway from Bentonville to Rogers. Traveling past Crystal Bridges and the beautiful gardens there was a highlight of this part of the trail. It was prom time and there were many couples having photos taken along the trail and in the gardens.

We returned to Arkansas in October 2016 and camped in the Pittman’s driveway. The best camp hosts ever!! We rode the Lake Fayetteville Trail and the southern portion of the Razorback Greenway. It was a very cool day, wore jackets and gloves the entire time. Rainy weather prevented us from riding the Little Rock area until our return trip at this time.

We left the Pittman “camping area” on Valentine’s Day. April gave us brownies and bacon for our Valentine breakfast. Yum!! We headed for Little Rock where we had appointment for an oil change. It rained all day!

We camped at Maumelle Park which is a Corp of Engineers campground. It was only a short pedal down the road to the Arkansas River Trail. We spent 3 nights here. It was very quiet, low key place, right on the river. The weather cleared so we were able to ride 2 days on the trail.

We were able to ride on the road a short distance to Two Rivers Park and the start of the Arkansas River Trail. The trail signs said Arkansas River Trail, “Rollin and Strollin”. There were four bridges on the trail. Two Rivers Park Bridge is beautiful and one we could see from the highway on our way to campground. The Big Dam Bridge was really awesome and a highlight of this trail.

Big Dam Bridge - Arkansas River Trail — Big Dam Bridge -Aakansas River Trail

This bridge is 90 feet above the Arkansas River, spanning 4,226 feet. It is the longest pedestrian bridge in North America that has not been previously used by trains or motor vehicles. It is a good climb getting up and over from both sides. Beautiful views of river. On way back to camp we stopped at local café for a late lunch of cat fish. Gotta try the local favorites.

We have Alabama in our sights but need to stop for a ride along the Mississippi River. We stopped in Memphis, TN and rode the Big River Crossing. This is a pedestrian and bicycle bridge from Memphis, TN to West Memphis in Arkansas. Views from bridge were beautiful but really very busy with walkers, joggers, strollers and tourists. That completes our Arkansas and Tennessee rides along the Mississippi River.

View from Big River Crossing - Pyramid building is Bass Pro Shop and Ducks Unlimited — View from Big River Crossing- Pyramid is Bass Pro Shop

Razorback Regional Greenway
Lake Fayetteville Trail
Arkansas River Trail
Big River Crossing

Nevada #21

February 4 – 8, 2017 – 101 miles

Lake Mead – our beautiful campsite overlooking lake.

Lake Mead from River Mountain Loop Trail.

Traveled from Mesa, AZ to Lake Mead, NV arriving about 5 PM, we are now in Pacific Time Zone. It was a beautiful drive and we were able to get a campsite at Lake Mead RV in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area and on the bike trail. Good Wifi tonight!

Super Bowl Sunday and we are off to ride the River Mountains Loop Trail. It’s a loop so we road clockwise which we found out later was the correct decision since that seems to be the least strenuous . The scenery was beautiful, trail was paved, wide and very difficult. We considered turning around at 10 miles but pushed on to complete the 35 miles. This was a tough ride with a 2000 plus elevation change. Long, long uphill from Lake Mead to Boulder City.

We then had a long down hill to Henderson and onto the infamous Three Sisters. I have to confess we walked over the crest of two of those sisters. Then we had lots of steep uphill and downhill twists and turns until we returned to camp. We were exhausted and spent the next day recuperating.

After our rest day we were up early to ride the scenic Historic Railroad Trail which is in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. The trail travels several hundred feet above Lake Mead and through five tunnels to end at Hoover Dam. The tunnels were blasted out in 1930 for trains to pass through carrying stone to the dam site. Views of Lake Mead were amazing and each tunnel had its own unique features.

That same afternoon we went into Henderson, NV and road Pacific Railroad Trail and the 215 Trail. While this was a good ride it seemed a bit blah after the beautiful scenery in National Rec Area. One highlight – on our return it was a slight downhill for about 8 miles. Fast and fun!!

Lenny had been wanting to try electric bikes and found Pedego Bikes in Henderson that rented them by the day. So the next day we headed out for an electric bike adventure. We loaded the bikes on our rack and went off to ride the River Mountains Loop Trail again. I was a skeptic but this was fun! When we finished we were tired and felt like we had a good work out. We were concerned that the batteries may not last for the challenging 35 miles so we probably worked harder then necessary. Howard, the owner was really excited that we had ridden the entire trail and only used half of the charge.

Boulder City again – Pedego electric bikes.

River Mountains Trail Loop
Historic Railroad Trail
Pacific Railroad Trail and 275 Trail

Arizona #20

Arizona # 20 January 30 – February 3, 2017 102 Miles

Headed for Oro Valley north of Tucson. It was a long trip from Big Bend in Texas to Tucson. Oh yeah, Texas is BIG!! Guess we are spoiled because the scenery along the way seemed a bit boring.

We planned to camp at Catalina State Park, once again a campground right on the bike path. There weren’t any campsites available the first night so we stayed at a Wal-Mart that was across the street. Bonus was dinner out. Yay!! Cold nights so we were thankful that we have a really good heater.

Entrance to Catalina State Park in Oro Valley, AZ

Catalina is a beautiful park, cacti of all shapes and sizes. We saw a Cooper Hawk one morning sitting on top of a saguaro cactus and one evening we saw a huge owl fly into a nearby tree. Flo loved running in the shallow, sandy river bottom. I think she was surprised there was no salt taste in the water. While hiking with Flo one morning I saw a women riding a horse called a “Gypsy”. She said he was from the British Isles – beautiful with feathering on lower legs similar to what you see on a Clydesdale. Very unusual.

We rode two days on the Canada del Oro River Park Trail. The first day we connected to the Santa Cruz River Park Trail for a total of 34 miles. The second day we road the Canada del Oro and the Rittolo River Park Trail for 37 miles. We saw several roadrunners. They are the quickest little birds!! Beep! Beep! There were only a couple of street crossing as there were undercrossings at most of the roads. Both days we fought the wind on our return. Tired!! Found a really nice local restaurant that was having $1.00 taco night. We love $1.00 tacos!!

There was frost on the ground the morning we left to head for Mesa, AZ. We plan to visit my cousin Carol and her husband Ron. Fortunately we were able to park right beside their home. We had a wonderful visit, caught up on our laundry. Yay! Carol and I went to the movies one afternoon and saw “A Dog’s Purpose”. (Take Kleenex!) Nice to have a couple of days off the bikes.

We took an afternoon to ride Rio Saldo Paths and Indian Bend Wash. The start of the Rio Salado Paths was in Mesa at Wrigleyville West, the Cubs spring training facilities. We followed the trail along the Salt River in Tempe, past Arizona State University campus and across a really nice bridge to the Indian Bend Wash trail.

Indian Bend Wash took us to Scottsdale, the spring training facilities for the San Francisco Giants. Their ball fields were beautiful. Part of the Rio Salado Paths was under construction – the workers were very kind in letting us pass through. While putting out bikes back on the motorhome our mild mannered Flo showed some aggressive barking toward a park ranger. He threatened to tase her. We are so thankful he did not! Not certain what set her off, but Lenny was inside and I was outside when he approached. Guess she thought I needed protection.

We said our good-byes to Ron and Carol on February 4, 2017 and headed for Lake Mead, NV.

Canada Del Oro River Park Trail to Santa Cruz River Park Trail
Canada Del Oro to Rittolo River Park
Rio Saldo Paths/Indian Bend Wash

Texas #19

January 17 – 25, 2017 – 101 Miles

We left Mississippi (Jan. 16, 2017) and headed for Galveston Island, Texas to get a few days of rest. Going into Louisiana I actually saw a sign at a small store that read, “fresh coons”. Yuck!!

Had a good time on Galveston Island. Flo loved running on the beach. Rode our bikes to dinner, to the grocery store and to the end of the island. What a great way to tour the island. Fell asleep each night to the sound of waves on the beach. We had the motor home washed and waxed at the campsite. Our next stop was Padre Island National Seashore. We were very fortunate to get a campsite there for only $4.00 a night. It was very secluded with miles of beach to walk. No internet, no phone service and no satellite TV.

Best bike mechanic ever using repair station on our new bike rack.

We left Padre Island after a two night stay as they were expecting heavy winds. We had our sights set on the San Antonio River Walk and were fortunate to find a campsite right on the trail. The trail follows both sides of the river and travels through San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. Our first day on the trail took us past 4 missions. It is a wonderful trail, well maintained and lots of history. We road as far as Mission Espada. On our return we rode into the wind. Exhausting! Walking around the missions was a great way to catch our breath.

Mission Espada, the oldest mission in Texas dating back to 1690.

Our second day on the trail we rode to The Alamo. We were surprised that the city is build right around the Alamo. Also, it was much smaller than we had anticipated. The trail was nice, smooth and looked new in many of the areas.

We actually rode our bikes on the River Walk along the canals in San Antonio. Don’t think we were supposed to be there on bikes …….. we got a little lost. The people riding on boats in the canal seemed to enjoy seeing us.

Our next ride in Texas was on the Leon Creek Greenway on the west side of San Antonio. It was one of the hottest days of riding so far. Nice concrete trail with lots of hills and zig-zags. Dinner at Chuy’s Tex-Mex, huge servings and excellent Margaritas. We were really tired after our hot day of riding so it was off to bed early. Headed for Austin in the morning to ride the Ann and Roy Butler Trail which is a loop along the banks of Lady Bird Lake and the Colorado River. It’s right in the heart of Austin. We always say it’s the city where no one works. It was a Wednesday afternoon and the trail was so crowded in some places we could hardly ride. Pedestrians have the right-of-way and in Austin they stand their ground. That said, there was wonderful scenery along the river, long board walks, great views of the city. We parked in Zilker Park which had a huge off the leash dog park. Lots of happy dogs in Austin.

Recycled lobster rope and paint sculpture by Orly Genger. She hand crochets and paints the rope. You can see the trail and river in the background.

We then headed for San Angelo, Texas to visit 4-wheeling friends, Carl and Glenda. Spent the afternoon and evening with them. Lenny enjoyed seeing Carl’s large shop. We visited Fort San Angelo, learned about “Buffalo soldiers”. Carl and Glenda treated us to a great Mexican meal. Yum! Yum! Flo enjoyed chasing and being chased by their dog Bonnie. On our way to San Angelo we saw many fields with large rolls of cotton. We were both surprised that Texas had such a large cotton industry.

We decided to visit Big Bend National Park, costs for us seniors $0 to enter. We saw a coyote and a roadrunner on our way. The wind was really blowing by the time we arrived in the park. We camped in the Rio Grande Village Area. There was Wi-Fi at the store but no phone and no satellite. Sunset was beautiful but the wind was brutal. We put the slide in on the motorhome because of the wind which blew through the night. In the morning the camp host told us we had experienced a “west Texas wind storm”.

Beautiful Scenery – Big Bend National Park

We took a side trip to Boquillas Canyon. You can cross the Rio Grande at Boquillas Crossing to visit Mexico.

Texas is as advertised – BIG. There is so much to see. We both agree that a return trip is in our future.

Galveston Island
San Antonio River Walk Bike Path
Leon Creek Greenway
Ann and Roy Butler Bike Trail

Mississippi #18

January 13-16, 2017 – 104 miles

Riding in Louisiana one day and Mississippi the next. This is beginning to look like a marathon – 206 miles in seven days. But we feel a bit pressured to ride when the weather is so very good.

We found a great trailhead for the Long Leaf Trace in the small town of Sumrall, MS. We rode the trail into Hattiesburg the first day. One week later Hattiesburg had a devastating tornado.

Longleaf Trace Trailhead Hattiesburg, MS

The second day we took the trail from Sumrall to Prentiss. There was an equestrian trail beside the bike trail and primitive camping areas with stalls for horses. I know my sister, our cousins and friends would have loved to ride a trail like this back in the day.

I enjoy taking pictures of our American flag flying in different places. It’s interesting how people display their patriotism. This flag was hung over the trail out in the forest.

We were only 2 miles from end of trail but feeling worn out so we headed back to Sumrall and finished the day with 43 miles total.

We finished our Mississippi miles on the Ridgeland Natchez Trace Trail. This trail was in need of repair. There were areas with huge holes and roots coming through the asphalt. The scenery was beautiful with many long hills up and down. We started at beautiful Ross Bennet Reservoir. The last of our ride was on the Mississippi River at the Natchez Trace visitors center. Again meeting our goal of riding on the River.

Longleaf Trace
Ridgeland Natchez Trace

Louisiana #17

January 9-12, 2017 – 104

We left Ohio on December 20, 2016 on a very cold morning with the temperature at 8 degrees.

We spent Christmas in Juno Beach with our son and his finace. We celebrated the New Year and wept for the Buckeyes in Valrico, FL with Lenny’s sister and brother-in-law.

Then it was time to head off to do some serious biking. We road about 50 miles around Gulf Shores Alabama but because of weather concerns we headed for Louisiana. So, this is the first state we completed 100 miles in 2017.

The Grand Annabelle – Mississippi River Trail, New Orleans.

We road the Mississippi River Trail in New Orleans which met our goal of riding along the Mississippi River in each state that borders the river. Windy ride atop a levee. Saw this ship named “Grand Annabelle”.

Our next trail was the Tammany Trace, north of New Orleans across Lake Pontchartrain. We were able to camp at Fontainebleau State Park which was right on the trail. Word of caution, this campground had wild hogs which we saw almost every morning.

Fontainebleau State Park, on Tammany Trace

We loved this trail with its moss covered tress traveling through quaint communities like Abita Springs and Covington. There was even a draw bridge. We did get caught in the rain in Covington – 17 miles from camp.

Mississippi River Trail
Tammany Trace

Virginia #16

November 21-27, 2016 – 106 miles

We headed to Williamsburg, VA for Thanksgiving. Staying in a timeshare and not camping this trip. We were looking forward to riding the Virginia Capitol Trail. The trail runs from the Jamestown Settlement to Richmond. We road all 52 miles of the trail. The first day we rode it was cold, long pants day! One of the highlights was biking along the canal in Richmond. It was a great end to our ride.

We passed several plantations and on one of our non -biking days we visited Shirley Plantation, where the mother of General Robert E. Lee was born. It’s the oldest plantation in Virginia. Lenny’s sister and brother-in-law joined us. We enjoyed local restaurants, cheering on the Buckeyes and doing puzzles.

Virginia Capitol Trail