We left the sanctuary of the church with one goal in mind: limp towards Charlottesville and get my bike fixed. I could get into my climbing gears but shifting wasn't good and I had to follow different shifting patterns with such a short chain after my fix yesterday.

The early morning went okay but through the James Monroe and Thomas Jefferson Parkways there was too much traffic and not enough places to stop to let them pass up the hills. It was one of our hilliest days up to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's mansion. We had a bite of lunch there and questioned a bit if it was worth taking a bus or train across the Appalachians if they were gonna be on roads like this. We decided to put off the decision till Charlottesville.

Charlottesville was straight down the hill from Monticello but boy is that town hilly. It's got a great vibe in the downtown and we managed to find a bike shop that suggested some routes up the blue ridge mountains and fixed up my bike. I also got a new pair of padded gloves, since I lost one back in Williamsburg.

With a bike that works properly we rode into downtown and into our hotel room and finally had a spot all by ourselves to relax and shower. Tomorrow will be hard but we can do this step-by-step.