Day 3: Trader's Hill County Recreation Area to Happy Acres Campground (South of Odum, GA)

May 15, 2008

85.39 miles, 6:04:08 Ride Time, 14.07 Average Speed, 24.4 Maximum Speed

I had the best night's sleep I have ever had in the tent. Unlike yesterday, it was quiet in the night - I could occasionally hear a train off in the distance, but it was actually soothing. I slept with the rainfly off again, and enjoyed a nice breeze. Listened to music on my little battery powered radio for a while before going to sleep. At Dan's and Greg's suggestion, I stored all my toiletries away from the tent, and this time no creatures approached me in the night.

Weirdly, I woke up at exactly the same time (5:20) as yesterday, even though the alarm on my phone wasn't set. I got things together more quickly this morning, and was leaving with Dan and Greg at dawn. While we rode off, the other three cyclists from last night were just getting up.

It was actually chilly this morning, but I didn't bother with the arm warmers, since I assumed it would soon be hot and humid again. It was.

We rode a few miles into Folkston and had breakfast at Burger King, where a couple of old guys in the place gave us the usual unsolicited and conflicting advice about the route we should take.

After a some nice, low-traffic riding, we got on a seventeen mile section of "Old 259", where the three of us took turns drafting, and were able to average probably 17 or 18 miles an hour - pretty fast on a heavy bike. By the time we got to Atkinson, where I downed my usual Gatorade, it was 11:30, hot, and I still had 40+ miles to go. Dan and Greg headed off towards Brunswick, and I rode west.

I was so hot now that I started dumping water on my helmeted head to cool down. When I got to the tiny town of Hortense, I stopped at an air conditioned diner and had a cheeseburger and fries. I felt better after that, but much of the rest of the day was a hot slog.

After stopping in Patterson (pop. 627) for Gatorade, I rode the last twenty miles of the day on lightly traveled back roads, where the scenery finally changed from the "all pine trees, all the time" I'd seen the last few days. I was excited to see the first cornfield of the trip (obviously, "excited" is a relative term in this case).

Happy Acres Campground, about five miles south of Odum, was nice. The price, $10, was reasonable, I thought. There was a small grocery at the campground, and free WiFi. The family that owns the place was very accomodating, and let me hang around with my laptop in their air conditioned office. I had an interesting talk with the owner, an archery instructor and hunting guide.

About three hours after I got there, the younger cyclists from this morning showed up - I had been wondering when/if they would arrive. I briefly kidded them about being slower than an old guy like me, but didn't push it too hard, considering that they had just ridden 85 miles on a hot day, and probably were not in the mood for jocularity at that particular moment.

I used the rainfly for the first time, because there was a chance of rain, and didn't like it - it was much hotter in the tent without a breeze. Still, I slept well.

The preferred - and only - gear of Dan and Greg.

Atkinson, Georgia - Dan and Greg and I parted ways at this point. They were going to Brunswick.

First cornfield of the trip! (Too early in the season to function effectively as a cyclist bathroom, however)

Names of towns in South Georgia, or names of people there? Both, probably.

Dog hungrily eyeing kittens at Happy Acres Campground

Campsite at Happy Acres Campground. I put the rainfly on because there was a chance of storms.

Today's ride: 85 miles (137 km)
Total: 219 miles (352 km)

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