April 10, 2025
Ridgefield to French Camp
Last night the group had dinner at a Mexican restaurant. I ate most of my burrito, rice, and refried beans. The food was meh but I would have eaten an uncooked sombrero I was so hungry. The cold Corona was refreshing.
After dinner we had our nightly logistics meeting. It’s helpful for routing changes, interesting sites, and the location of water and restrooms which are few and far between on the Trace.
My hotel room had a TV that would turn on automatically. I'd turn it off. It would come back on. The front desk clerk tried mightily to fix it. Ultimately, I reached behind the TV and pulled the power cord. No TV. No problem.
After hotel breakfast we gathered in the parking lot where we made sandwiches and grabbed snacks for the ride. (There are no commercial services on the Trace so bring your own y'all.) I made two PB&Js and grabbed two Nutty Buddy bars. The latter being my new go-to food for instant energy.
After 3 miles of bike paths to Jackson, we re-joined the Trace for the next 79 1/2 miles. The total elevation gain for all 83.5 miles was just shy of 1,600 feet, less than 20 feet per mile. It just can’t get any more level than that.
And the weather, including a light tailwind, was perfect.
There wasn’t much in the way of wildlife today. Three downy egrets, a couple of ospreys, and one sunbathing turtle. No gators
The first 20 or so miles was along a 50 square mile reservoir.
A bit later I inadvertently gave a distress signal to Beth Ann in the passing Adventure Cycling van. She pulled over at the next turn out. As it happened, she parked right next to some stairs leading to a walkway into a cypress swamp. So cool!
There were numerous turn outs for signs describing various activities of white settlers, Choctaw Indians, French settlers, and Grant’s Army of the Tennessee: Stuff happened near here. It didn’t last long. There’s not much to see.
The signs get old after a while.
We passed Kosciusko. I didn’t go to the cultural center. All I know is that Oprah Winfrey was born in Kosciusko.
The last twenty miles were something of a grind. Even paradise can get boring. Most of the group was cruising along at 15 mph, give or take.
We finished at a place called French Camp, a rustic B&B spread out among multiple buildings. It is owned by a nearby school for girls on the same name. I’m sharing one house with two other riders. There are two proper beds and a sofa bed. I decided to sleep on the sofa. NBD.
Tonight’s dinner was chicken fajitas, cooked by three group members. Tomorrow my group of three (Denise, David, and me) cook dinner. It will be a 70-mile day with headwinds so the logistics of food shopping are going to be challenging.
We make lunch at 7:30 am and eat breakfast in the camp restaurant at 8. Bike touring life can be like that.
Miles today: 83.5 Tour miles: 205
Today's ride: 83 miles (134 km)
Total: 204 miles (328 km)
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