Day 2: St Augustine to Palatka

February 16, 2025

Where the stuff goes. Saves lots of work.

She won't be my traveling buddy on this leg.

Wheel wetted with Atlantic Ocean sand. I have to figure out how to get my helmet to sit on my head straight.

St. Augustine Palatka trail. Not all of it was this shielded from the wind.

If my yard looked like this I wouldn't have a wife.

Sigh. Another day of waking up early. This time at about 4:30 am.

I ate breakfast at 6:30 at the hotel: a waffle 2 scrambled egg patties, yogurt and a small glass of milk.

I got my stuff down to the trailer around 7:45. Esther helped with my bike. I was a little unorganized. I decided to try my fenders because there was rain in the forecast. I couldn’t get the rear one to fit with my seat bag, so I didn't use it. The front one was a bit of a pain: my wheel hits it when I anything more than a small turn. Fortunately I didn’t need it. I think it would be worth it if it was really wet.

We went to Anastasia State Park to dip our wheels in the Atlantic and take pictures. I dipped mine the wet sand. I didn't want salt anywhere near any working parts. Crossing the sand to get to the water was scary enough. Bill had a pinch flat on his way in.

Esther came and took the group photo, and then left to drive back to MD. I am really lucky that she likes to ride and put up with all my training and prep for this tour.

We left the beach about 9. The wind was from the WSW and so was pretty near a direct headwind. The Windsock site says 13-20 mph and 79% headwind.

The route went by Flagler college, over the Bridge of Lions, then out route 207. The latter had a bike lane but there was lots of crap in it. Bill said it looked like there had been an accident in every intersection. It was about 6 miles on that and the headwind was brutal. We got on the St Augustine Palatka rail trail; it was nice to be out of traffic. Some of it was shielded from the wind, but nowhere near most of it. There were signs about the railroad builders and an AME church.

In East Palatka the trail was on the sidewalk including over the St John’s River. The wind was super strong over the bridge. I spent some time exploring Palatka on my bike. There are lots of murals and a park by the river. However a strong line of thunderstorms was coming so I didn’t stay long. I got to the hotel about 12:50. The wind was cold and strong. The van and Bill were here. It started to rain about 1:15 or so. I am very glad we aren’t camping. About 4 of the riders got wet. I think Arlen stopped to get a milkshake.

On the route I saw what I think was a bobcat roadkill. Sad. I've only ever seen one other feline in the wild. There was also a dead aardvark on the trail.

We sat around in the hotel lobby for a couple of hours waiting for our rooms to be ready and I worked on this journal.

The cooking schedule came out and I am not scheduled for 3 more days. I'm rooming with BW tonight. I'm glad we didn't have to set up tents in the rain.

Today's ride: 44 miles (71 km)
Total: 44 miles (71 km)

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DAVE BENDERSONI am very much interested in the wind conditions, so thanks for including that info.
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