January 4, 2022 to January 6, 2022
Homosassa to Dunnellon
Cycling, swimming and canoeing!
Matt and I were up early, but first coffee and my protein pancakes. Matt didn't know these are a massive energy booster for me. I have been carrying around my Kodiak pancake mix since early December...about time we used it lol. That with pure maple syrup, bacon and eggs. So delicious!
We packed up and rolled down to the (close your eyes when passing the road closed sign) Suncoast trail. We headed North towards SR 44 Lecanto. Then made our way along a few rural roads to a WaWa.
Once there we refueled on coffee and a sub. Matt noticed the power pedaling since we left Homosassa and commented on how well the protein pancakes fueled my pace. Personally, I'm glad to see it working because every variation of oatmeal in the mornings on other tours gets old quick.
We cycled through neighborhoods to find the Withacoochee trail. At its end there was a great multi use trail that led to another trail to another trail! Note to anyone touring this path to Dunnellon: do not take Googles cycling directions to Dunellon near the end of Withacoochee trail. Go with the flow and you will soon find yourself at a park, completely avoiding traffic!
From there we ran an errand the quickly made it to our accommodations for the night in Dunnellon. Evening was upon us as we walked to a sushi spot. Both of us love good sushi!
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We feasted then walked back to hotel. We discussed the option of let's have fun vs the long not so exciting pedal to Tallahassee. We decided to contact Rainbow River State Park in the morning to see what their availability was for that day. The next day they had 1 campsite left! We packed up and meandered to the grocery store then back to the park and rode the trail in the general direction of the state park. The great path dumped us onto a sandy road. We stayed successful and upright until we reached the pavement. Lots of saves and a little walking along the sand filled road, but we made it! Soon we were at the campground via the tram road aka our super secret side road.
We passed an older gentleman on a bicycle with a poodle in his basket. Him and the poodle were out for a toodle when the saw my pink pool noodle. We rhymed and laughed our way to the campground.
We found our site and set up camp. We then made a beeline to rent a pricey canoe by the hour from the recreation center at the state campground. We hopped in for a short paddle upstream. What great fun!! Matt is an amazing man with many skills including canoeing!
My last experience with canoeing was with the father of my boys many years back. That was a past experience that increased the speed of the direction of that relationship. 😲 I hadn't been in a canoe since.
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We made back to the recreation center and paid the piper for the canoe. At camp we prepped dinner. Are your taste buds salivating yet? Ours were!
I popped over to our RV neighbors during dinner prep and borrowed their microwave. Moments later I arrived with our pasta. Tonight's dinner was a very delicious steak, pasta with shredded Romano cheese, sauteed green beans with bacon, sauteed combination of mushrooms, scallions, garlic and of course bread.
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After dinner clean up, we secured our gear out of the grip of Mr. Thumbs. Hung the hammocks and nestled in for the night. It was a wild night filled with the sounds coyotes, raccoons and other humans peeing on the tree our hammocks were hung on. Well hello there could have been a great caption, if one were taking a pic of our neighbors relieving themselves midstream in the middle of the night. I refrained and remained silent. Glad to not hear any ass scratching and farting. Lmao.
Matt woke up in the early morning and retucked me in, then set off to make coffee. He is as sweet as they come.
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Over breakfast, Matt and I decided to avoid the suck, aka as the remaining miles to my house in Tallahassee. We both agreed we needed more downtime on the Rainbow River.
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We reserved a one way 10' uhaul box truck for $120. Packed up and pedaled to our reservation location. Signed the paperwork and put our bikes and gear inside. We made a short jaunt over to a Rainbow River Canoe and Kayak rental. Backed in, changed and took the shuttle to KP hole. We put our canoe in and it was off to the races! Actually we paddled to the head springs of Rainbow River, revisited our side spring. We paddled all the way back and spent some quality time swimming, floating and laughing in this beautiful spot. We made our way down the river to the outfitter by 5ish. What a phenomenal day spent canoeing together!
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Matt and I changed into some dry clothes at the outfitter. Then jumped in the Uhaul and made our way to Tallahassee that night. While we were driving our eyes drifted to the less than interesting scenery and busy traffic. Both of us so glad to have chosen the extra day at the river!
Today's ride: 45 miles (72 km)
Total: 45 miles (72 km)
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You guys sure know how to have fun. That sense of fun is evident on every single page. I like it. Also, you guys obviously know how to cook and eat well.
2 years ago