Day 7: Crawfordville to Mexico Beach

February 21, 2025

I didn't get to sleep until after 11 last night as I was working on journaling. It was forecast to be in the low 30s, so I got my cold gear out. I woke up about 5:30 and got out of bed at 6:15 so I could be ready for breakfast at 6:30. We ate in the hotel. I ate a waffle, yogurt, two egg patties and an orange. I had a bit of a headache, but thought riding would get rid of it.

I wore my Velocchio merino long-sleeve base layer, one of the Canari long-sleeved jerseys, leg warmers and tights, Perlizumi Pro shorts, a heavy and a light pair of Sock Guy wool socks, a merino wool neck gaiter, a headband that has ear covers, 45North fingered gloves with silk glove liners, toe and shoe covers, and my cycling jacket. I took an apple, nuts and bars, and 2 cheese slices for lunch. I did not take bread as it takes up a lot of space.

I left about 10 after 8. The headache turned into a migraine so I took a maxalt. I got my first glimpse of the gulf on the route before we got to Carrabelle. Some riders, I think JW, BW, BD, and JF (I'm not sure about JF) took the boost, which was to about mile 25. DS left early. PB, JE, and SR left shortly before I did. It turns out they made a wrong turn so I never saw them. I saw the van go by before I got to the drop-off point. I passed DS and JF before the bridge over the Appalachicola Bay. I caught JW and BD just before the bridge, but stopped to go to the bathroom, take some pictures, and take off some clothes. By then it was about 48 degrees. I took of my jacket and switched the gloves for the medium weight perlizumi ones. It was plenty warm.

Early in the ride there was a nice tailwind. As we turned toward the north it turned into a headwind. My legs were really tired. I tried to make myself drink every 30 minutes and take a little break to eat something about every 20 miles. I stopped in Carrabelle to get some water and also bought a Payday. I total I ate 1 white chocolate bar, a kind bar, and the payday during the ride. I also used a packet of Go Far in one bottle. At Port St. Joe I stopped at the beach to eat my lunch. When I headed out I stopped to take a picture of the lighthouse, but found that I didn't have my phone. I panicked. I rode back to wear I ate and it wasn't on the bench. I didn't remember hear anything fall, so looked along the route that I took back to the road, which was over dirt. Thank God, I found it. I then went to a park to use a bathroom and saw BW's bike there. We sat for a while and enjoyed the sun while the building blocked the wind. It was about 12 miles to the campground. My legs were dead, and there was a bridge out of Port St. Joe that was a bit painful. There was also a definite headwind.

The campground is not a very nice place to stay for 2 nights. It doesn't have a building for us to use and the bathroom and showers are the worst we have had.

I unpacked my stuff, locked my bike, started things charging, and took a shower. I also set my clothes out to dry in the wind.

We had appetizer (cheese and crackers) at the usual time (5:00). We then went out to a sports bar/seafood restaurant for dinner. I had oysters, cheese grits, and broccoli.

Back at camp I spent some time organizing things (a seemingly endless job). Yesterday I labeled the packing cubes, but that doesn't keep me from misplacing them. I currently can't find the one with my gloves in it.

We are now on Central time, so it will be darker in the morning. (Port St. Joe is on Eastern time.) Breakfast is at 8:00 so we can sleep in. We will go out to Port St. Joe at 10:45 and come back at 3:00 (Eastern time).

Today's ride: 88 miles (142 km)
Total: 347 miles (558 km)

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