Day 22 - Wilmington to Topsail Beach - Two Far 2022 Reunion Bound (the long way around)

May 1, 2022

Day 22 - Wilmington to Topsail Beach

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We had a pleasant ride out of Wilmington this morning. The first several miles were through a nice residential area and then on River Road. The first time we were on River Road (2016), parts of it were under construction. The construction is now all done, and the landscaping has really grown.

These Magnolias are much bigger than they were in 2016.

As a comparison, this is what River Road looked like in 2016

Also growing along River Road are houses and apartments. Back in 2016 the area was mostly undeveloped. Now Del Webb has several huge developments in progress.

In addition to single family home communities, there were also condos and what looked like rental apartments.

Once we passed the Del Webb development, we entered an industrial area and the North Carolina Port at Wilmington.

A tank farm - we assumed that the rusted one was no longer in use.

Tanker rail cars. We didn't learn what was being stored in the tanks.

There was also a huge container facility.

It's hard to make out, but there is a loaded ship in this picture. We weren't able to tell if it was being loaded or unloaded.

And here is coal ready to take a ride on the conveyor system to be loaded onto ships.

It seems that we have written a lot about farms and crops in recent blogs. I have no idea what has been planted here, but it is the first crop growing that we have noticed on this trip.

After our early pleasant roads, we encountered some bad cycling roads. We had heavy traffic, no shoulders, poor pavement and generally uncomfortable riding for a significant part of the route today. We also continue to encounter more rude, obnoxious drivers than we have in the past. I didn't try to take any pictures during those miles.

We rode across a beautiful bridge onto Topsail Island. You can see a cyclist on the protected bike/pedestrian path on the other side of the bridge. We had a wide, smooth bike lane on our side, so we didn't cross over to that path.

We'll be on Topsail for two nights. I'll get some pictures when we're out walking around tomorrow.

Today's ride: 53 miles (85 km)
Total: 821 miles (1,321 km)

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Kari BrinsonWe met you yesterday at Jersey Mike’s. So excited to follow your journey!
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1 year ago

Jeanna & Kerry SmithTo Kari BrinsonThanks for checking out our blog. It was nice meeting y'all yesterday. Meeting people like you is one of the parts of our trip that we enjoy most. I hope you'll enjoy following along with us.
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1 year ago