Woot

Replica of Lincoln's birthplace (he was in KY the first few years of his life). The state park had a replica and the actual house of his mom; the national site may have taken the real childhood cabin

There have been a ton of barns with different quilt patterns - it makes for an awesome ride/distraction

One of the great things about Kentucky - these have been everywhere

Cow going for a swim - sounded like a great idea

Good weather today. Sunny and hot, but there was a gentle enough breeze (5mph rather than the 12-15 we had yesterday) to keep us cool. We had a lovely 57 mile ride through more gently rolling stuff - we are definitely out of the mountains until the Ozarks. Dad was a bit tired, and food is increasingly difficult to get. We went of the trail after seeing Lincoln's Homestead (the state park as opposed to the national site we'll visit in a few days) to get some food in Springfield. That, however, meant we had to take US150 in to Bardstown, which started out without much traffic. We eventually ran out of shoulder and ran into a plateau, and cars started getting backed up behind us. Still, aside from one yelling dude (who amusingly enough told us to get to the side of the road as he was pulling up in a right hand turn lane), a person who flipped us off (because bicyclists are very horrible people), and two loose dogs, the day was darn near perfect. Lovely meadows, lots of flowers, and way more polite people than usual make biking pretty fun. Dad is having some dental issues, though, so we may be zeroing tomorrow (hopefully not much more than a day). If we do zero, I'm going to see Up. Have no clue if/where there's a movie theater, but I'll bike until I find one.

Wind and Sun

Short-ish day at 45 miles into Harrodsburg, KY today. Nothing crazy-hard terrain wise, but neither my dad or I felt like pushing it another 40 miles to the next town. The wind was kicking, and I was getting blown all over the road (including across the yellow line on a few turns). I also found myself going at least a mile per hour slower than I knew I was pedaling. Tis never fun pedalling downhill and only getting 9mph. Wind just isn't my favorite, even if it did keep us cool. We had gently rolling hills today (sort of SW Virginia-like), lots of barns with quilt patterns, plently of livestock/hay/lovely smelling weeds, and not enough rest built up. We went about 30 miles before we found an open food place, but it was one of those places that had a table full of good ol' boys going through the latest small town gossip. Those are fun :) Twas nice visiting w/ the fam yesterday and getting some more snacks for the road.

Also, Ted and Lisa (who we passed earlier) have a pretty good blog that explains what we're doing a lot better than this one (alack). Thus, I recommend checking out http://bikerted-theadventuresofted.blogspot.com or crazyguyonabike.com if you're wondering about bike touring related things. (Or ask in the comments, I'll usually answer that).

Berea!!!

We have finished the second map set!! Hurrah!!! And we're within a week of out 1000 mile mark. We took a chill 24 mile ride into Berea (and out of the mountains) today. Rode out of the beautiful valley after a great breakfast with good converstaion, climbed a big hill (nowhere near mountain status) by the creatively named Big Hill, KY, and got to the hotel to get showers, laundry, and bike maintanance in. The ride was cool and overcast, but the sun came out for our afternoon activities. Met up with the grandparents, had good dinner, and will head off tomorrow. Both my dad's legs and mine felt great today, and hopefully shall continue to for a while.

This is what our maps look like:

Buckhorn to the Middle of Nowhere

So my dad had a rough day, and then it was my turn. We took a 57 mile day over 2 mountains that felt a lot more like one mountain with some killer rollers up top (we're talking at least double digit % grades). We climbed out of Buckhorn, went over some smallish hills, and then the elevation profiile said we went over 3 more majorish climbs. While May 27th's hills felt huge to my dad, these hills felt huge to me. (They probably weren't that bad). I started out dehydrated, and at the low point of the day, I was quite dehydrated and pretty hungry. On the climb out of Buckhorn, my dad got snipy again, so I started sprinting off - simply because I couldn't manage more negativity at that point in the climb. My deraileurs haven't been set well since Charlottesville, and though we've attempted to play with them, I still can't get into first gear well and 1-2 and 1-1 are completely out of the question. That means I can't climb in my two lowest gears (which sucks). So I sprinted off toward Booneville (which would be a 20 mile ride), expecting my dad to stay in his funky mood and expecting us to stop in Booneville for the day. I passed a coal truck that had gone off the road, a bunch more loose dogs (a given in KY), and was climbing the next ridge before my dad caught sight of me. Apparently, the truck and dogs combined with my extended absense scared him, and he had worked out of the funky mood. So while I was worn out by lunch, he was just warming up. We got a large, good lunch in Booneville and set out for the next 30+ miles to a B&B 20 miles out of Berea. We started climbing, and at the top of the hill, got into the steep, rolling stuff. While I charged the first few little hills successfully, they started wearing on my knees, and so I began riding the downhills, coasting up the first half of the steep little hills, and walking the second half. Snickers and an electrolyte additive thing kept me going until we reached the down part of the mountain. At the end off the day, we had beautiful valley riding until we were picked up by a neighbor of the Snug Hollow B&B. We had a luxurious evening with a supplemented supper, a full library, and pretty awesome other visitors. Good sleep for a second night in a row finally caught me back up from the Hindman night. Yay.

Ughhhh day

One of the Blacksburg kids climbing

So while we didn't have any trouble at the pavilion outside of Hindman's UMC, we also didn't get any sleep. And lacking sleep is never a good thing to have before launching into a 50 mile day with two multi-peak mountains and one other large hill. Especially when the first multi-peak is on a heavily-trafficed road in pretty humid conditions. The morning of the 27th was pretty enough (backroads near creeks all the way to that major road with rolling hills and light rain), but we needed more food than we had in our systems and were struggling by mid-afternoon. If there is one thing that I have picked up through college, it has been getting good at controlling my mind (i.e. convincing myself into continuing to study, finishing the 200 fly, or getting over the next hill). My dad has not had to deal with that, however. And after he realized that he had misread the map and that we did have to go 20 more miles and 2 more mountains before sleeping, he was not an agreeable person in the least. When he went critical, I sent him on toward the campground we were headed toward, and it took me a good 10 minutes (with an attempted call to sister Caci) to get myself back in a biking mood. I'm guessing it was just the lack of sleep and food that got him, but I was none too happy with the results. It rained on and off the entire day, and we got pretty soaked (more so since our sweat wouldn't evaporate - eww). There were lots of loose dogs and lots of coal trucks, and while it was a nice ride (other than the 7 hilly miles on the crowded road, it was still a mentally-tough day for my dad. When we got to the campsite (which was quite lovely) by the flood-control Buckhorn Dam, I ended up picking the site, setting up the tent and clothesline, showering, and cooking while teh dadzorz spazed down. I talked to various members of my family as well as good friends to calm myself; by that point, my dad and I were ok to resume normal human functioning. We got excellent sleep that night and plenty of food, which helped immensely.

Dad before

Dad after

Are my legs starting to work?

Wahoo. We took a shorter day (36 miles) today over 3 mountains and into Hindman, KY. The coal trucks were going today, but I only had one that came way too close. The hills didn't seem as big today; perhaps my legs are finally adapting. The next two nights will be weird to find places to sleep, but in three days we'll be done with another map set and in Berea. Aside from the coal trucks, the scenery was nice. Lost my sunglasses on a descent though, so I had to deal with dust, grit, and pollen a lot more today. Thunderstorm is rolling in tonight. We're camping right by the road, so I hope that goes well.
Pax tecum.

I believe we have Mountains

Whew. We have spent the past two days climbing and being chased by dogs, it seems. We left Damascus Sunday morning, and pedaled 53 miles through familiar territory (btw, Emory people - you need to pull your bikes out and ride down Lindell and Old Saltworks). After going through Meadowview and Hayter's Gap, we started climbing Clinch Mountain and kept climbing for a while. At the top, we ran into some bike-friendly folk. The descent was grand, and we chilled until lunch at Rosedale. We then took 80 over to Honaker, and climbed up Big A mountain (not making the name up). By the time we made Council, VA (an awesome place with an even awesome-er town park that's open to bikers camping), we were beat. We rolled in just as a bunch of folks were finishing pre-Memorial Day picnics, with lots of food to spare - lucky us :) We spent the night with a group of 5 bikers from Blacksburg who had plenty of drama, though they were pretty nice people. Sleep was tough to get with one kid yelling "CUPCAKE" for upwards of an hour and some other people coming in and out of the pavillion we were camping in. Things worked out though, and it sure was a beautiful ride. Once more, Emory folk, you should really try out state route 80.
This morning, we got out pretty early and booked it to Haysi, where we had second breakfast and where the rain started. We waited a short bit and then decided to brave the rain, which made for a very nice first major climb of the day. We biked into the Breaks (gorgeous with the mist coming off the Russel Fork), out of the breaks, into Kentucky (where we were greeted by a not-so-encouraging loose german shepherd), and over two more major climbs to Virgie, KY. The majority of the rain stopped once we made the Breaks, but we did get a few more drops later in the day. One of the awesome outdoors kids from Emory has hooked us up with a very comfy place to sleep and some wonderful food. Thanks!! We rode 64miles total (3 mountains) and are looking at a shorter (but still 2 mountain) day tomorrow.

Zero Time

Pretty, but still interstate riding

Oh, the roaring metropolis

MountainsThey got closer

We've made it to Damascus (and actually did so yesterday). Yesterday we started from Ft. Chiswell and paralleled the interstate until we reached Rural Retreat, which was much cuter than expected. Between the two places, we had three full meals (awesome), and we continued to snack the rest of the way to Damascus. After Rural Retreat, we headed through Sugar Grove, up to Troutdale, and over Whitetop to Konarock. There was plenty of climbing to be had, but thankfully, the roads had a very gradual grade and were very well paved. The day was once more absolutely beautiful, and since we started early and then started gaining elevation, the temperatures were perfect throughout the day. The ride on the mountain was wonderful, with little traffic and picturesque scenery. The end of the day will be very tough to beat, too. We coasted down the mountain, and I hardly had to hit my breaks or pedal. Both up and down, we were carving across the mountain, staying very close to streams. There was a dog that finally convinced me that the Halt (pepper spray) I'm carrying might get some use. This thing tore out of the bushes as I was going 27mph downhill, snapped about 2 inches short of my rear tire, and stayed with me for a good 20-30 yards. Needless to say, I got quite the adrenaline rush and sprinted off. There have been quite a number of other loose dogs on the trip, but this one was the closest call. Still, we got just over 67miles in, climbed to elevations over 3700ft, and made excellent time. I was surprised that we went that far - starting out, I wasn't feeling too hot (interstates never help). The second breakfast in Wytheville was great. Another useful part of the day was the powerade I had filled a bottle with in Rural Retreat. I haven't really had any "sports" drinks on the trip, but the extra sugar and salt on the way up was useful. We've largely been replacing that with OJ, chocolate milk, and V8 at gas stations.
Today I got to hang out with some of the ecohousians, and it was wonderful. My dad's college friends have been graciously providing food and housing, which has also been great. Thanks guys. My legs and butt are very greatful for the day off. Hopefully, I'll be rested enough to make it through the western Appalachians over toward Kentucky. It's odd to think that in another week or so I might be out of these mountains. Sad, actually. Anyhoo, it gets me closer to the Rockies and Glacier.

Dad climbing

The view up topStill up top

Dad was happy w/ his altimeter
Me on the way down