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chilly on
the descents so it was probably an ideal compromise.
Most of
our riding today was on Rt 33, a scenic highway that
winds its way over the Appalachian mountains into
Virginia. There were some cars and trucks on the road,
but overall the traffic was fairly light. We did take
one short detour for about 10 miles on a small
single-lane road through the German Valley. This was one
of the most fun parts of the day, as the road twisted
and turned through the countryside with virtually no car
traffic.
We had
about a half dozen significant climbs, culminating with
the largest up Shenandoah mountain to the Virginia
border. At least with regards to climbing, the ride
reminded me of a century ride in my area called the
Torture 10,000 which I did last year. A couple of my
friends just did this year's version, so they'll have
some idea of what my day was like today.
Our crew
had an unusual and unwelcome adventure this morning.
Dena was driving the van with the lunch trailer and as
she came around a corner on one of the descents, a full
grown bear was in the road right in front of her. She
had no choice but to hit it square on. The bear was
still alive but badly injured after being run over by
van and trailer and the animal control officer was
called to deal with it. Miraculously, the van and
occupants were unharmed although Dena was understandably
shaken. The only damage was to the license plate as seen
in the photo below.
We're now in our last state and on the home stretch.
Tomorrow's ride should be another beautiful one as we
pass through Shenandoah National Park. |
