Day 31 - La Grange, TX to Richards, TX

88.3 miles today
1,740.6 total trip miles
12.7 mph average
FF - 8
MP - sister-in-law Sue Heiden & family.  She has always been willing to chart her own course in life with various careers,  raising 4 successful children & moving out of the busy suburban life to a quiet place up north at a young age.  She’s shown me that following “normal” paths in life isn’t necessary, or maybe even best.

For those of you expecting a blog post by 10 PM every day, I apologize.  Yesterday was a long day - we are in tents - I knew we had a day off coming today so I could catch up & by the time we were done with dinner it was already under 40 degrees.  So I put on 2 layers of clothes, crawled inside my sleeping bag, zipped it up all the way, covered my head & went to sleep.  I am happy to report that I was warm & comfortable all night.  I woke up this morning to clear skies so the sunshine is already warming things up nicely.  Now to yesterday’s ride.

I knew it was going to be a long day, so I forced myself to get going early.  It was another day of cold, so I had on all my layers.  It was also another day of Texas Hill Country, which meant a lot of up & down.  As I’ve mentioned before, my Cruzbike recumbent helps me in these conditions because I can get a lot of momentum on the downhill & unless it’s a really long uphill I don’t suffer quite as much as other riders climbing.  It is still exhausting.  I didn’t count, but there must have been 50 hills.  It seemed like every time I turned a corner, another one appeared.

We also had a new road surface appear for the 1st time on this trip.  The route clearly showed a right turn, but when I got there it was a dirt road.  At first I wondered if it was right, but when I got on it, the surface was smooth, so I kept going.  That lasted about 1/4 of a mile.  Then it was filled with cracks & pot holes.  This went on for about 5 miles & it was worst was when a car would go by resulting in a dust storm.  Fortunately there were no real hills in this section.  I spent the time deciding whether I preferred dirt road or hills.  Answer is: I prefer hills & I was rewarded after the 5 miles with 30 miles of them.

It was really a day of 1st’s because we had a weather condition that I have never experienced on this trip, or even ever on a bike - hail!  It wasn’t heavy or big, but it sounded like ping pong balls hitting my helmet.  This happened 2 or 3 different times during the day.  Our last check-in spot along the route was at a Dairy Queen, so of course I had a Blizzard to maintain the weather theme.

I have taken enough pictures of Texas Hill Country & wildflowers along the route, so I have stopped doing that, but I continue to stop & get a pic at every little green city sign.  There were a record of 6 today.  Sometimes there is a sign, but no real city.  Here is an example of that.

I almost wish I would have taken more pictures of entrance gates to ranches.  The variety is endless.  I might have to make that a priority on a future trip.  I do continue to stop at every historical marker.  Here is an interesting one.

The riding day came to an interesting end.  We have 43 riders of different capabilities.  I estimate that about 10 of them decided they couldn’t finish the day, so they got a ride in one of the SAG vehicles.  Some riders aren’t the strongest, but really put out extra effort to complete the day.  Just before 6 PM, one of the staff called out “Join us at the driveway to welcome our last riders of the day.”  Most everyone appeared to cheer them on.  I felt the emotion of their accomplishment, and they appreciated the support.

I just realized that even though this post is late, it is probably the longest one I have written.  Hope you have found it interesting.  The place we are staying is a working ranch that welcomes bike riders to stay overnight.  They have showers & laundry available.  They also have an interesting sign with a couple of bikes welded above & below the sign.

Apparently they get a lot of riders doing the Coast 2 Coast route from San Diego to St Augustine because they give you the distances to each.  Doesn’t quite match my odometer, but close enough!

WDYLT - ILT I have been dreaming more during this trip than any time in memory.  As my family knows, I don’t remember my dreams, but I am always aware when I have been dreaming.  I don’t know why I am dreaming more, but I find it interesting.