Crawfordville, FL to Perry, FL

 55 miles of pretty boring riding today.  The weather was partly cloudy & in the 75 - 85 degree range with some wind in our faces.  Sometimes you have to have a day like this to get from one highlight to another.  The bonus was no bridges to climb!  We started out on about 15 miles of paved trail.  Most of it looked like this:

After that we rode a two lane road with a shoulder that mostly looked like this:

It is interesting that the road surface changes when you cross from one county to another.  Some are rougher, some have wider shoulders, none of them have much interesting to see.

One of our fellow riders got this nice picture of the two recumbents making this trip:

Very different bikes, but both of us ride in comfort!

I’ve talked about this before, but today I want to give special attention to our support crew.  Priscilla, Carol & Carol are all spouses of riders & they spend their days following us along the road.  There are specified locations where they stop to provide us with sandwiches, snacks & cold water.  They are our heroes!  Thanks to all of them

There is one more support person that I will include a picture of in a future post.  Our mechanic and truck/trailer driver.

Port St Joe, FL to Crawfordville, FL

 74 miles today.  The longest day of our whole trip they say.  We got out extra early to be sure we could get it done before the hottest part of the day.  Had a little fog this morning, but then it cleared up nicely.  The first part of the ride was in the woods, then after our first rest stop, we were riding right along the gulf.  The thing different today was rocky shore lines rather than sand beaches in a lot of areas.

We did have a couple of bridges to cross, but they seem to be less steep. Or am I getting in good enough shape that they don’t wipe me out as bad?  I think less steep. 

We also came across some pretty nice paved trails, which I like because there’s no traffic.  The road wasn’t very busy, so some riders stay out there.  It did give an opportunity for Sue to take this nice picture of me & one of our tandem couples, Mark & Debby.

Here’s a picture of the two recumbent bikes on this trip

Some of you may be wondering what bikers eat and drink all day, especially when riding a day like today with 74 miles.  The number one rule is drink a 20 oz bottle of liquid every hour.  I drink straight water, but lots of riders mix in Gatorade or other liquids with supplements.

When we stop for breaks, everyone has their own desired snack.  One of the most common (which I stay away from) is

See the jar next to the big one with pickles in?  They drink just the pickle juice too.  Other favorites I have seen on this trip are red licorice, peanut butter filled pretzels, M & M’s, bananas & oranges.  What is my favorite?

If we stop at a gas station/convenience store to use the bathroom, I usually like to buy at least something & often the peach rings are my choice.

A question was asked about the Forgotten Coast Sea Turtle Center.  How can they help Sea Turtles if they don’t have any?  The answer is that the Center is mostly about education so the general public does fewer things that put the turtles in jeopardy.  They have a pretty good website if you are interested: 

Floridacc.org

Check it out!

Panama City, FL to Port St Joe, FL

 43 miles today, which is 3 more than routed for a detour to see some turtles.  More on that later.  Things were pretty desolate for 20 miles out of Panama City, going past Tyndall Air Force Base:

When we reached Mexico Beach, things changed a lot.  Newer homes & condos, but didn’t feel as touristy as a lot of the places we have ridden through.  There was a major hurricane that came through, causing the new construction.  There also appeared to be some nice beach areas:

As we got a little past town, we were supposed to pick up a trail, but things didn’t seem quite right.  Our navigation computers said we were off course.  One rider walked a wooden boardwalk toward the gulf and found a nice road that was closed to the public.  It also turned into a decent bike path.

A number of us followed him on the boardwalk with our bikes and had a nice ride.  Some others were impatient & just went back to the busier road.

When we reached Port St Joe, some of us toured the “Forgotten Coast Sea Turtle Center”.  A combination of museum, educational experience & opportunities to visit their gift shop.

The most interesting thing I learned is that they don’t actually have any sea turtles there.  The turtles they have in tanks are different varieties that had originally been pets.  They are working diligently to maintain the population & it is not uncommon for a female sea turtle to lay over 100 eggs.  After that, it was a short trip to our hotel for the evening.

I didn’t post yesterday on our off day, but some of us did get an opportunity to get into historic downtown Panama City, and even got our feet wet at the city beach:

I do want to address a couple of questions I’ve received from previous posts.

1.  I only brought one bike with me, my Q45 Cruzbike.  I plan to ride it all the way to Key West.  It may be confusing because in an early picture you may have seen another recumbent bike.  It is green in color and much longer than mine.  Another biker rides that one.  

2.  Yes, I do have a neck rest that I use regularly.  If you look closely in the picture I posted of me on the bike, you will see it.  It is mostly clear plastic, which makes it harder to see.  Actually the bikers riding traditional bikes normally have more trouble with neck pain because they are hunched over their bikes & to see forward they have to crane their necks.  They also experience more back, butt and wrist pain because of their bike’s design.  In comparison, I ride in comfort.

Destin, Fl to Panama City, FL

 54 miles today with about 45 of it looking like what you see in the pictures below.

Some of you movie buffs might recognize these images from “The Truman Show”. That movie was filmed in a little town named Seaside, FL & it was on our route today.  I think the name of the town in the movie was the same.  It is mostly a walking town, and I have never seen so many pedestrians except in places like New York or Chicago.  That all made it a little more difficult to navigate the bikes around, but everyone was very friendly about it.  Before and after Seaside were a constant row of hotels & condos right on the beach.

The surprise of the day was this peaceful nature pic:

I’m not sure how that got located right in the middle of all the touristy development, but it was a welcome break.  On the other hand, it was no surprise to see these two buildings:

I know about Ripley’s, but I never heard of Wonderworks.  A quick google search tells me there are about 6 of them around the USA, and they brag about doing “Edu-tainment”.  Might be good for some grandchildren, and I have to admit the upside down building is very intriguing.

Everyone agrees that a day off is coming at just the right time.  We are weary of the headwinds.  I’m not sure if I will be posting tomorrow.  That will depend on if anything interesting happens on the off day.

Pensacola, FL to Destin, FL

 54 miles today on some good & some bad road surfaces.  We started out the day with another bridge climb, and had two more added in later in the day.  I’m thinking this is going to be happening until we cross Florida through the Everglades.  One of our riders is skilled at taking pictures while riding & he got this image of me riding along

It isn’t very often I can get a picture while riding & I think this is a pretty good one thanks to Cory White.

Our trip planners again today found a real interesting & scenic route:

It’s interesting to go from a resort atmosphere to this wild & desolate landscape in just a few miles.  And as soon as the National Seashore ends, we were right back to expensive vacation homes, hotels & condos.  The National Seashore probably runs for 20 miles along the Gulf.  At the top of one of the bridges, I stopped for this picture:

 

The water tower says “Emerald Coast”.  What is the history of that, you say?  Wikipedia tells me that it is all a marketing effort to get people to vacation here.  A high school student won $50 back in the 1950’s for coming up with the name & towns all along the Florida panhandle use it to attract tourists.

One more day of riding & then we get a rest day.

Dauphin Island, AL to Pensacola, FL

 Our path off Dauphin Island today started out with a 6 mile ferry ride across the bay.  Without that ferry ride, we would have needed to climb the bridge we came in on yesterday, and add about 70 miles to our trip.  The ferry ride was an easy decision, and included in the planning from the start.  Here is a look down from the upper deck with assorted vehicles, and our bikes.

Once we got back on our bikes, there is a long peninsula going East-West with a single road.  Fortunately it isn’t heavily travelled, but also isn’t very scenic.  The surprise of the day for me was that our route planners found some nice paved trails that took us off the main roads.

It reminded me of the trails ride I did in Northern Minnesota in the fall of 2023, with different types of vegetation & about 30 degrees warmer.  All of a sudden, the trails ended & here is what we saw:

Gulf Shores, AL.  Lots of development & traffic.  Quite a contrast from the extensive network of trails we had just ridden through.  This is also the Eastern edge of Alabama, and I had to stop in to see the Florabama Lounge.  It is famous in this area for live music, beach front parties & of course multiple bars.  It sits almost at the Alabama-Florida border & here is the only picture I got that proves we are in Florida:

The ride today was 63 miles (including the mileage on the ferry even though we weren’t pedaling). Because there is so much water down here, we continue to have bridges to climb so ships can get underneath.  They are extra work on the bicycle, but nothing as hard as the Dauphin Island bridge I described yesterday.  When I got to the top of one today, I stopped to get a picture of this yacht.  

Can’t even imagine how much that cost.

Another great day of biking, and we normally finish off the day with a group dinner.  Tonight’s choice was  Italian & 7 of us went to the slowest restaurant I’ve ever experienced.  Great food, but my business mind says they could be more successful if they could figure out how to get customers in and out quicker.  We always have something to talk about - getting to know new people & hearing their stories.  Of course we are quite hungry after a day on the bicycle also, but we made it through.

Pascagoula, MS to Dauphin Island, AL

Only 42 miles today, and entered our 3rd state:

 For those of you who followed my Coast to Coast bike ride in 2019, you might remember this bridge:

This is the bridge to Dauphin Island.  You can see it coming up for about 10 miles, and that makes it even more intimidating. In 2019, I was in much better shape, and I was 6 years younger.  I am happy to report that I was able to climb it again today, but it took everything I had to do so.  The wind was manageable today, and except for that bridge, nothing exciting to report about the ride.

Here are some interesting facts about our group.  Average age is 67, with the oldest being 80 (3 of them), and the youngest 37.  11 women, 16 men.  There are 5 husband/wife teams, with 2 of them riding tandem bikes.  2 recumbent bikes (including my Q45 Cruzbike).  All the rest are traditional uprights, with at least one of them including electric assist.  

Unlike my 2019 Coast to Coast trip, this adventure is almost completely run by volunteers.  Everything from route planning to logistics is done by a variety of people who just love to provide this opportunity to others.  Our main leader & his wife ride one of the tandems, and last fall they drove the entire route to check the roads & the quality of the hotels.  We are grateful for their dedication.

The other group that is critical to the success of a trip like this is the support crew.  3 women whose spouses are riding, drive vans or pick up trucks to supply us with rest breaks.  They have water, make us sandwiches, have snacks available every 15 - 20 miles.  Here is what a typical rest stop looks like:

 

There is also one van with a trailer to carry extra bikes and gear.  The driver of that van is also a pretty good bike mechanic, so he is able to help along the way with any equipment problems riders may have.  It is also possible that sometimes a rider needs to take a day off, or maybe just part of a day, and the support crew is able to put their bike in a vehicle & drive them to our destination.  What a blessing this support crew is to us!