May 2, 2017
Day 5: Folkston, GA to Blackshear, GA
We had a nice stay in Folkston. Ted and Alease at the Inn at Folkston are warm and friendly hosts. Folkston is the home of the famed Folkston Funnel, a section of double track mainline which carries 50-60 trains a day in and out of Florida. Train enthusiasts from around the country visit Folkston just to view the train traffic.
Today was the shortest, but most strenuous ride of the trip so far. After having terrific tailwinds for most of the previous four rides, we had an unrelenting headwind all day. The headwind did push the wildfire smoke away from us and it was several degrees cooler than it has been since we left home. So, it wasn't a bad ride, but we were very glad to get to Blackshear and our very comfortable Comfort Inn.
There wasn't much to see along the way again today. This part of Georgia is mainly timberland. We didn't pass any farms or ranches. The land appeared to have been recently clear cut and the new trees were just starting to grow.
We did pass the egg product facility called the "Humpty Dumpty Hotel" we saw last year. That's such a clever name.
We also encountered the dreaded rumble strips cut into the shoulder of the road. These are very popular in Georgia and South Carolina (and other states, as well) and make cycling safely on the shoulder difficult. There was room for Kerry to ride on the shoulder to the right of the rumble strips much of the way, but it requires his total attention to keep to that narrow line mile after mile. It's just as well that there was nothing much to look at.
Our room at the Comfort Inn was ready when we arrived at 1:00 and has a great feature - a tandem parking spot! We'll be here for two nights and enjoy a rest day tomorrow.
Today's ride: 38 miles (61 km)
Total: 269 miles (433 km)
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