theseatpost.co.uk

Day 48 – Daleville to Lexington

Posted by Alan on Sat, 24th Jul, 2010.
Filed under: Virginia

Sat 24th July 2010

With such high temperatures forecast today we were pleased we only had about 50 miles to cover.  The motel we stayed inlast night provided a good breakfast, served at 6:00am, so we were there early and took lots of snacks with us to eat on route.

It certainly was a hot one today and by 8:30am it was already 84 degrees F and the high humidity is still with us just to make it uncomfortable as well. You can almost feel the heat sapping your strength as the miles roll by and the hours we are getting off the bikes is not enough to fully recover from each day. After so long we really need a good long break from the bikes but we know that won’t happen until the end.

Just after 8:30 this morning my phone rang and to my surprise it was BBC Radio Oxford. They had been trying to get me for ages so I did a live ‘on-air’ interview with Wesley Smith while stood on the side of the road. That was quite a bizzare experience to think that my words were being broadcast across Oxford as I spoke. I don’t think I said anything inappropriate!

These cows know how to stay cool

There’s little else to say about today as our cycling was over before midday and there weren’t many good photo opportunities. It was still a hilly ride but with a few more flatish sections than yesterday. The countryside here is good for cycling with few cars and lots of trees to give shade. We saw a few deer today, one with a fawn and rescued another tortoise sunbathing in the middle of the road.

The town of Lexington was unlike other towns we’ve been through. It had lots of old buildings, something we’ve not seen much of and most were built of brick or stone rather than timber. It looked very european in that sense and would be a nice place to spend some time. Twelve miles South of here is the ‘Natural Bridge’, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. It’s a real shame we don’t have time to see that as it’s an impressive sight.

Part of today's route took us over back and fro across this railway line

Tomorrow first thing we have to climb the hill at Vesuvius up to the Blue Ridge Parkway. We expect it to be our most challenging climb of the ride and will also be the last so we’ll be glad to reach the top before the heat becomes too intense. The picture below shows our ride profile for tomorrow. We are currently located where the Maury River is shown and our goal is Charlottesville.

Our ride profile for tomorrow. The small hills on the left are bad enough. Can't wait!

Daily Mileage – 49.7 miles

Time in Saddle – 4 hrs 14 mins

Total Climbing – 2,552 ft