Day 52: Orange Beach, AL

Here is the view from our balcony.

Day off on the beach! Here are some pictures of the sunset.

Day 51: Orange Beach, AL

Today we crossed into Alabama!

We rode 91 miles to the Hilton on Orange Beach on the Gulf Coast.

 
I took off in the morning and rode my own pace (and surprisingly didn't get more slack about it) and met up with everyone on Dauphin Island to take the ferry across Mobil Bay.

Once we got off, we didn't have very much daylight left, so I booked it to the hotel. This place is great. Pictures tomorrow...

Day 50: White Sands RV park, Vancleave, MS

Unlike yesterday, we all rode into camp together today. It was a nice ride, and no one pushed the pace too much. We stayed at a very nice (perhaps the nicest?) RV park yet called White Sands RV Park. The managers drove us to dinner and we had some great Mexican food. They said that the place used to be a big water park but most of it was burned down some years ago. It was pretty chilly again tonight, so Milena shared my tent with me as hers often collapses on her when the temperature drops too much. Beautiful and  clean RV park, and the lake looked a little eerie in the morning with the fog over the water.

  

Day 49: Haascienda, Poplarville

It was a beautiful ride . . . alone. MY version of the story goes something like this.

I started out with Frosty, Milena, and Gunnar at a nice pace. About 5 miles later, Milena started to pick up the pace. I figured it would be temporary, and the boys would stay with me. Wrong. They took off. A few miles later, they stopped to shed some layers, and I caught back up. By now, I had turned some music on because I had no one to ride with (with the exception of Rick, who was blaring his own music and cannot (does not want to?) hear you if you talk to him), and Frost exclaimed, "You've got music!" I replied, "Yes, because you all dropped me." He chuckles to himself, and takes off. The first time they dropped me, it was more of a 'passive' drop. The second time they dropped me like a hot potato.

The remaining 60 miles, Rick and I peddled along through the beautiful forests. We came to the first town (30 miles away) and couldn't find any restaurants, so we rode to the next town (another 20 miles) and finally got something to eat. 25 more miles and we made it in to camp. The funny thing was that we were actually the second ones in to camp. Apparently, after they dropped me, they proceeded to get lost and came in about an hour and a half after us. It reminds me of a little story called "The Totrise and the Hare".

Day 48: Church camp, Kentwood

Still tired.

Day 47: Microtel Baton Rouge

New Orleans is beautiful, and I cannot wait to go back. Despite the fact I am absolutely exhausted from last night, we wandered the French Quarters a little more. We got some tea and sat in a beautiful park, and suddenly a little blues band started playing about 30 yards away. We chilled in the park for a couple hours listening to the music and basking in the sun. I bought a cd from them as we left.

In the afternoon we drove back up to Baton Rouge where we stayed in the Microtel again. It's going to be rough camping again after the last couple of days! Sooooo tired from last night . . . .

Day 46: Hostel New Orleans

New Orleans, here we come! We rented some cars this morning in Baton Rouge and drove to New Orleans. It is only possible to bike to New Orleans from the east (unless you hitchhike, as some fellow Minnesotan cyclists pointed out to me). We got to New Orleans (of course making a stop at a local bike shop), and check in to the India Hostel. Excellent hostel. We headed to the French Quarters and did some sightseeing before the night began...

 

Me on the Mississippi

We all met up and went to Pat O'Brians, home of the famous Hurricane drink.

After some time at the bar, we stumbled down to a resturant that is supposed to have the best fried chicken in New Orleans (delicious chicken). There, we a group of guys and one had on a University of Minnesota shirt. After chatting with them, it turned out they were staying at our hostel as well, and they had just finished biking to New Orleans started in St. Paul! We took off and went to a jazz bar,

where Rick's son (in town for Rick's birthday) and company met us.

Nick works for The Onion, so Rick may have appeared in a few issues. Take a look at this or this - notice any of the same people in the pictures and my pictures?

My crew took off around 11, and I stayed out, umm, kind of late, with Nick and my new biker friends who caught up with us at the jazz club. I want to go back.