April 20, 2018
WE DID IT......
Palatka to St. Augustine, Fl. Day 57
The knights of the Southern Tier have completed their journey.
Miles: 33.5 Elevation: 210 ft Winds: major issue with head winds of 20-25 mph from the East, gusting up to 35mph on the bridges.
We arrived in St. Augustine today after a final ride of 33.5 miles. We left Palaka at our usual 8 am: and rode bike trails, county roads and state highways into St. Augustine.
We passed through rich farm land near Hastings and Spuds and learned that Hastings was the potato capital of Florida.
St. Augustine was busy but a very welcome site. We traveled over the Lion Bridge onto Anastasia Island and Anastasia State Beach. A rousting reception awaited us at the finish line. A large gathering of our friends welcomed us with horns, leis, flags and finish line tape. It was a wonderful heart warming site. With our large group of supporters we traveled onto the beach and dip our ceremonial tire dip in the Atlantic Ocean. We all travelled back to our place at the Villages only to find the neighbors had decorated our living room with balloons and congratulation banners. We are blessed.
Maggie, Tim, Jeff and I all have mixed feelings , pride in what we had just accomplished, happy to have finished the ride, and a little emptiness as well. We will miss the companionship and friendship that we have forged over the last two months. We are glad that Abby Noon was with us for the last two days and got to finish the trek with us. We have enjoyed getting to know what this remarkable 25 year old lady. We wish her all the best in her future and hope one day to see her again.
Today's ride: 34 miles (55 km)
Total: 2,728 miles (4,390 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 3 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 6 |
6 years ago
So glad you followed along, it was an amazing journey.
5 years ago