I woke up early, before 7:00 AM. I had slept well and was raring to go . . . but a little concerned about the weather. It was overcast, which I could live with, but winds were expected to kick up again to 20 mph plus by mid-afternoon. Last night I had checked the website for the Mobile Bay Ferry, and they had cancelled service yesterday due to weather concerns, so while I thought I would go for the 1:15 ferry, I was now thinking 11:45 would be safer. And I could get lunch in (or on, the town and island have the same name) Dauphin Island before checking into the hotel.
So doing my head math and allocating an hour for every ten miles, the 27 miles and change would take three hours. That's conservative, especially with the tailwinds I've been getting. And the wind today would continue out of the southeast and, now, south, so I definitely would get some push.
I was out of the hotel door a little after 7:30, swung by the Winn Dixie next door for some bananas, and made a beeline for (what else?) but the Waffle House conveniently located less than 1/2 mile down the road . . . in the direction of travel! I won't bore you with the details, but I was chowing down breakfast by 8:00 and on the road for Fort Morgan a little after 8:30. Three hours later would be 11:30 and enough time to make the 11:45 ferry. Still, I didn't dillydally any, and the wind really was pushing me. My average speed to the ferry was easily 14 mph . . . possibly more because I just missed the 10:15 ferry! More on that later . . .
Heading west on Alabama's Coastal Connection, AL-182, with a nice bike lane and plenty of room. As you can see, the sun was coming out, and it was warm.
I followed the west leg . . . but missed the initial entry point for the bike trail, so traveled on the road for a bit. If you miss the entry point, there are very limited points to get on the trail. I had to bike 3/4 mile before I could get on it, and some of the drivers didn't like that.
In fact, the fenced trail is so poorly designed that at the next intersection, there is no provision to continue straight! You must follow the trail deeper into the park and do, what is effectively, a U-turn! But fortunately, someone is starting to figure this out as sections of the fence have been removed, and I was able to jump back on the road to continue my course . . . which led me into Gulf Shores . . . and the beginning of a bike trail I would follow for about four miles.
The road through Gulf Shores, AL-180, Fort Morgan Road. On the right you can see the start of the bike trail.
At first, I wasn't sure I should ride it, as trails tend to be slower than the main road. But I gave it a try and followed it to the end, although at the time I thought it might take me the whole way.
I do have some issues with it. Tree roots, for one . . . many of them. And the transitions at the cross streets can be jarring. This is one where the trail construction did not bother to rebuild the curb and gutter into a smooth (ADA-compliant) transition. That's a sharp dip to ride through unexpectedly.
At this point, I was toying with whether I would make the 10:15, but I really thought that would be a push. But as I got closer, I convinced myself that, maybe, 10:15 was the loading time and, maybe, I just might make it. So I pushed it a bit. But the weather seemed fine, and I was getting less concerned that the early ferries might get cancelled. The wind typically kicks up in the afternoon. As it turned out, I arrived at the ferry about three minutes after the 10:15 departure, so I missed it. That's OK. There was already one car in line for the next one.
Finally, 11:45 drew near, and unloading and loading of the ferry began. All the walk-ons were warned that return service could be cancelled without notice if weather warranted it. I thought that to be a highly likely prospect.
And the road inland . . . no bike lane needed. Hell, I'm not sure why they need two lanes. Also, I was the last to leave the ferry, so had no traffic most of the way into town.
I wandered around town a bit, trying to decide where to eat, finally settling on a place near my hotel (duh). But it allowed me to see the town a bit. Even though the sun had been out earlier, it was now getting overcast again, and a big storm was predicted for tonight. Better tonight than tomorrow! Fortunately, a good friend happened to be in Mobile on business, so my dinner plans were set. He drove out and picked me up, took me back to the mainland where we met two co-workers of his, and had a great seafood dinner . . . at a hole-in-the-wall place that I can't name for the life of me. I'll get it later, but the fried shrimp was to die for.
Today's ride: 37 miles (60 km) Total: 613 miles (987 km)
