May 6, 2019
Day 12 Beaufort, SC
Rough riding
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On Saturday, we posted a picture of the little ferry boat we could take across the Savannah River this morning with the big Hwy 17 bridge in the background.
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We finally decided that even though the bridge was pretty steep, it would be less stressful than having to get the loaded bike down a steep, very rough cobblestone road the the river level, then maneuver the ramp to the ferry and have to remove the panniers and hope we could manage to wrangle the bike onto the boat. So, we rode the short distance from our hotel the the foot of the bridge, only to see a sign saying bicycles were not allowed. We were already on the on ramp with lots of traffic behind us, so we just kept riding. Once we got up the ramp onto the bridge, we had a nice wide shoulder, but it was a long, steep climb to the top. We were happy to reach the top and coast down the other side. Unfortunately, when the bridge ended, we found ourselves on a narrow, shoulderless, moderately busy road with lots of big trucks. There were miles where the pavement was in really poor condition as well. This lasted for about 15 miles before we finally got a good shoulder to ride. We didn't have any close calls and the drivers were mostly polite, but it was a stressful start to today's ride. The camera remained stowed away during this time, so no pictures of the challenging road conditions. I did sneak it out to get a quick shot of the sign at the South Carolina line - state #3!
After that first 15 miles, things got much better. We had good shoulders most of the way and we were on 4 lane roads, so traffic had a lane to move over to when they passed. There were several miles of properly done rumble strips that gave us a good place to ride to the right of the cuts.
We arrived in Beaufort before 1:30 and were able to check into our room. After a short rest, we got back on the (now unloaded) bike and went out to explore the Beaufort Historic District and waterfront.
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I don't know anything about these homes. I just took a few pictures to show the character of old Beaufort.
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We may not have Internet tomorrow night, so we'll post if we can. Wednesday, we'll start a 3 night stay in Charleston and meet up with some friends from North Carolina.
Today's ride: 48 miles (77 km)
Total: 437 miles (703 km)
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