Nine Degrees of Separation

This morning began with a bit of a surprise. Actually, it began with more than a bit of surprise. One might even call it a shock. A cold shock. In fact, that’s exactly what I would call it. And what was that shock? The shock was stepping outside to be greeted by a nine degree breath of cold air (that’s 48F). Nine degrees? Seriously? Clearly South Carolina is not far enough south to suit my needs.

I made my way over to the lobby for a quick continental breakfast – which was lacking in both Frosted Flakes and Mini-Wheats – before returning to my room to pack up. By 9:15 I had scraped the ice off my bike, loaded up my gear, and was ready to roll on down the highway. The only thing left to do was to figure where I would be going today – other than south.

I’m at another slightly awkward part of the map where preferred destinations are either too far or too close for an ideal riding day. As I began the day, Savannah was only 32 km away. Clearly I would have to go further than that. Richmond Hill was another 30 km away. Certainly doable. But beyond that things get a little more uncertain. I could go further, but the question of accommodations needed to be answered. I had sent a couple of Warm Showers inquiries late last night but as of this morning had yet to get a reply. I decided to head out with no set destination and see what happens.

What happened was that by 10:15 I had officially left South Carolina and had crossed into Georgia. Forty-five minutes later I was in Savannah.

Usually traveling by bicycle is a great way to go, but sometimes a fully loaded bicycle can be a bit of a hindrance. There was a bit of that today. As I made my way through Savannah, there were a couple of roads I would’ve liked to explore but to say they weren’t bicycle-friendly would be a gross understatement. So, I stayed on the friendlier roads.

After a few somewhat brief photo stops and a somewhat leisurely lunch stop, I decided it was time to move on. With no Warm Showers replies, I had decided that today was going to be a ridiculously short riding day. Almost embarrassingly short. But maybe that’s not such a bad thing considering I haven’t taken a day off since Greenville – nine days ago. I should probably plan a full day off at some point but the closer I get to Florida the harder it feels to take a day off. So close, and yet so far.

The ride after lunch was both very easy and very short. Only 26 km. It was also very easy from a navigational standpoint as I was on Highway 17 the entire time. And, unlike yesterday, there was actually a shoulder on which I could ride. At one point there was actually a ridiculous shoulder which seemed to be more than a little excessive but a much better alternative to the non-shoulder rides of the previous days. The shoulder in question only lasted for a couple of kilometres but what a nice couple of kilometres it was.

I arrived in Richmond Hill around 2:30 and checked into a motel where I promptly had a not so brief nap. It would seem I was a little more tired than I thought.

Rejuvenated from my nap, I headed out again – this time by foot – to the Food Lion grocery store I had seen when I was first pedalling to the motel. I stocked up with some supplies for both tonight’s snacks and tomorrow’s ride and headed back to the motel, but not before stopping in for a pizza to go. Special thanks to Aunt Marilyn (my godmother) and Uncle Jack for today’s feast and groceries. This used just a portion of their donation but it’s a tasty start.

I’m still working on a plan for tomorrow (and beyond) but at the moment it looks like I’ll be heading to Brunswick next. About 120 km (73 miles) away.

Today’s lowly totals:
Distance travelled: 65.41 km
Time on bike: 2:56:29
Maximum speed: 40.40 km/h
Average speed: 22.22 km/h

Oh, and after arriving at the motel today I noticed I had received a couple of Warm Showers responses. Neither host was available so it looks like my decision to stop in Richmond Hill was a good one.