Day 44: Sunday 04/17/16, Dauphin island, FL to Milton, FL

A roadside scene shortly after riding through Pensacola, Florida, on our way to Milton, Florida.

 Day 44 distance: 86 miles

Total miles:  2388 miles

Elevation gain: 1163 feet

Map of today's ride:

Today was one of the harder rides on this year's C2C, due to 25-30 mph headwinds for about 50 miles of today's ride. But, lets back up to the start of the day.

We spent our second night at the Dauphin Island Campground, once again listening to the strong wind blowing all night. The ferry had not run on our day off due to wind, and if the ferry didn't run today, we would have been shuttled close to 2 hours by car to get to where the ferry could deliver us in about 45 minutes. Fortunately, the ferry captain is one of  Bubba's many friends, and determined it was safe to transfer us across the bay. With that said, the crossing for this year's C2C group was the only crossing made for the entire day as the ferry was immediately shut down for the day once we were across.

Once across, the work began, We faced 25 to 30 mph headwinds for about the first 50 miles before they settled down to a more manageable strength. In the first hour of hard pedaling, I covered 8,5 miles, versus a more typical 14-15 miles. We were bicycling right along the ocean where the wind is always the strongest. There is a reason people go to the ocean edge to fly kites!

If there was an upside to the ride, it was that the sun was out and the views along the ride were interesting. About 30 miles into the ride, we crossed into our 8th and last state we will be riding in on this C2C, Florida.

Some of the coasters waiting for the Ferry Captain to arrive for our 8:00 am departure. Note the sign stating "Ferry Closed." Bubba's business is successful, in part based upon friends and acquaintances along the route, with the ferry Captain being one example. (No, our safety was not compromised during the crossing.)

Bubba and "Curly" (John McIntyre), or is it Moe and Curly?  Waiting for the ferry.

The coasters rolling their bicycles onto the small ferry. The small Penske truck that travels with us, and Bubba's motor home were already loaded. As it happened, there was one pickup with two people that happened along as we were loading, and they were the only non-coasters who also got a lift from the island to the mainland.

As this picture shows, the water was rough!

The ocean side of historic Fort Gaines.

Darned if this seagull floating along in the air with the ferry doesn't look like an owl.

Again, I thought I was taking a picture of two seagulls, but what is the leading bird?

A closer look at a natural gas extraction platform.

A couple "classic" looking sea-side homes.

On the bicycle, riding up the Alabama coast.

Hmm, Bubba never mentioned this enterprise, although he has had about a half dozen of the homes he owns across the US marked on our cue sheets to look at as we ride by. :)

Almost the entire coastline along the Alabama coastline consists of high-rise residences.

About 30 miles into the ride we crossed the border into Florida.

The sand along the coast in both Alabama and Florida is very white. There are areas with many of the homes as shown above, built on stilts for high tides during storms. In many instances, it felt like we were riding in a sand blaster as the wind was picking up and blowing the fine sand into our faces and bodies as we rode into the wind.

The Florida coastline consists of many inlets with marinas and expensive residences.

We saw several of these very long causeways and bridges built over vast expanses of water around Pensacola.

Another inlet along the road about 20 miles before reaching Milton, Florida, where we camped for the night.

Day 43: Saturday 04/16/16, Rest Day at Dauphin Island, FL

The focus of this picture is the natural gas platform in the background, not the flowers. (But I thought the flowers were pretty. :)) There are 50 of these platforms off Dauphin Island in the Mobile Bay and the Alabama Coastline in the Gulf of Mexico, extracting natural gas from the largest natural gas field discovered in the continental United States. The platforms stand in only 11 feet of water, but extract natural gas from 20,000 feet below the surface.

 Day 43 distance: 0 miles (Rest day)

Total miles:  2302 miles 

 

 

Day Off Musings

 

 The wind never stops on Dauphin Island. All night long, whenever I woke up, I could hear the wind blowing (roaring) in the large trees at the campground. It was a high wind, as the tents themselves rarely made a rustle. A couple coasters were going to take the ferry to Florida this morning to visit friends, but then found out the ferry was not operating today because of the strong wind.

 

After our late 8:00 am breakfast this morning, I returned to the tent to decide what I was going to do today. An hour later when I woke up from my first nap :), I decided I was going to clean my bicycle and oil the chain. While doing that, I noticed a cut in my front tire, so rather than chance a tire problem on the road, I replaced both tires with two new spares I had along. I would like to end the C2C with no other tire problems than the three flat tires I have experienced to-date.

Fort Gaines is a historic fort on Dauphin Island, Alabama, about 2 blocks beyond our campground. Established in 1821, it is best known for its role in the Battle of Mobile Bay during the American Civil War.

Looking down the island side wall of Fort Gaines. It is a popular spot to visit if the number of people touring the site was an indication.

Another picture of a natural gas extraction platform off Dauphin Island.

The ferry terminal was closed today due to the high winds. A past coaster and Bubba commented that a couple years ago, the ferry made only one trip that year, the day the coasters left, only to transport the coasters across the bay.

A Coast Guard Patrol boat was sitting off the public launch,  probably to discourage any boaters from going out on the water due to the wind.

When you live off a coastline that is in the path of hurricanes, I guess you build up to allow for the flooding that will come some day.

This was the first bicycle trail air and repair station I have seen (on a Dauphin Island bicycle trail), although some of the coasters were familiar with them. Pretty slick with an air pump, a place to hang your bicycle, and all the tools needed for basic bicycle repair. The tools are secured by a cable in the open sided tube .

Meet Anne, our Culinary Insider owner:

Anne Steinbach, owner of Culinary Insider, Inc.

Anne Steinbach is the owner of Culinary Insider, Inc, the food service Bubba uses for his extended bicycle rides including this C2C trip. Culinary Insider specializes in catering for cycling trips and other clients, all across the USA. Anne mentioned that another industry that she works with is the Motion Picture industry, providing food services at remote shoot sites.

Anne has a state of the art mobile kitchen trailer in which she prepares all the outstanding dishes she serves each day. We are currently on Day 43 of the tour, and the only item I can recall that has been served twice are hamburgers...and, I think most of us wouldn't mind burgers even more frequently. Anne buys her food locally whenever a source is available. She has to time her food purchases with her menu and the size of town on our route that can provide the quantities of foods required for feeding over 50 people each day. On a trip such as we are taking, that requires a lot of menu planning. She also uses locally grown and specialty items that are found in the areas we are traveling.

It is amazing that Anne, and her husband Serge, are the only two involved each day in the food preparation and serving. Imagine the following schedule for most all of 52 consecutive days: Have coffee made and ready every morning at 6:00 am, with a complete breakfast served at 7:00 am. By 8:00 am, Anne and Serge are cleaning up from  breakfast and packing up, getting ready to move the cooking trailer and motor home to that night's new location, up to 95 miles away. Once they arrive at that location, they have to set up the kitchen and prepare the evening's menu for the same 50 plus people for the 5:30 pm dinner. The next day this is repeated. If our food is prepared by a church group or some outside group one evening, that is not a day off for Anne, but rather the day that Anne will be shopping and preparing for the next series of meals. It is a grueling 52 day schedule that takes a special talent to organize and deal with the never ending logistics. Very few people could stand up to the demands and stress involved!

Day 42: Friday 04/15/16, Ocean Springs, MS to Dauphin Island, FL

 

The scene from Dauphin Island Parkway leading to the Dauphin Island Bridge. Note the long causeway prior to the Dauphin Island Bridge in the background. The flying birds are pelicans.

Day 42 distance: 82 miles

Total miles:  2302 miles

Elevation gain: 1419 feet

Map of today's ride:

Today we rode the 82 miles from Ocean Springs, Mississippi to Dauphin Island, Alabama. Last night everyone was concerned as the winds were predicted to be out of the east at 25 mph, the general direction we were headed. The wind prediction appeared correct, but fortunately there were enough trees along the route to minimize the impact of the wind. The ride itself was nice. About 20 miles out of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, we crossed the state line into Alabama. The next highlight of today's ride was riding across the causeway and bridge over the Gulf of Mexico to Dauphin Island. That several mile stretch was the windiest of the day! We are staying at the Dauphin Island Campground tonight and tomorrow night, which is right across the street from the ferry which will transport us on early Sunday morning to Florida. Tomorrow is another rest day.

With all the rain in the area the ditches along many of the roads in Mississippi we rode on today were filled with water.

This area appeared to be a stand of fire damaged trees. It apparently either gets dry enough around here at some point in the year for forest fires, or, looking at the low burn, it was probably a silvicultural prescribed burn of some sort.

At 10:00 am today I crossed the Mississippi border into Alabama. Note all the damage to the sign. It was not only full of bullet holes but also dented from bricks being thrown at it, apparently all due to the cross state football rivalry between Alabama and Mississippi.

When I saw this apparent salt water inlet, I knew I was getting close to the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, I believe that is part of the gulf in the background of the picture.

Leaving land and going over the causeway to the Dauphin Island Bridge.

 

If you look closely, you can see two coasters ahead of me climbing up to the bridge's highest point.

This picture was taken from the top of the bridge looking toward Dauphin Island. One coaster had a flat tire he changed at this exact spot.

These buildings were located right as the bridge ended on Dauphin Island. The sign said these buildings were Yacht Club Condos.

I had no idea that Dauphin Island was known for its bird watching. A few blocks later in a wooded area, I saw dozens of people looking up in the trees with binoculars.

This is the campground we are staying in for the next two nights. Bubba said that the weather forecast is predicting no rain tomorrow nor did it rain today. If that happens, he said it would be the first time in the history of his C2C rides that it did not rain here at least one of the two days the coasters stayed here.

Some of the tents set up in the campground.

Tonight's dinner menu.

Day 41: Thursday 04/14/16, Poplarville, MS to Ocean Springs, MS

 

Several C2C rides past, Bubba had a SAG stop in this church's parking lot, about 20 miles north of Ocean Springs, Mississippi. The church's minister saw the activity and stopped and introduced himself to Bubba. Bubba explained what the C2C ride was, and the minister ended up opening up the church so the coasters could use their bathrooms. The following year and each year since, not only are the bathrooms made available, but a ladies group now makes lunch each year for all the riders and staff. They will not accept any payment, and seem to genuinely enjoy serving us. This year the menu included pulled pork sandwiches, luncheon meats, cheeses, potato salad, chips, and desserts of apple bread pudding and brownies. They also provide sodas, tea, and coffee. They feel they are not only serving God with this endeavor, but also seemed to really enjoy what they were doing.

 

Day 41 distance: 70 miles

Total miles:  2220 miles

Elevation gain: 1947 feet

Map of today's ride:

Last night's forecast for today was a 50% chance of rain all day in Poplarville, Mississippi, and a 40% chance of rain all day at today's destination of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, 70 miles away. No one was looking forward to those conditions as yesterday's ride in the steady rain was still on everyone's mind! How surprised we were when we woke up to heavy clouds and fog, but no rain. Even more surprising was when we were all able to complete the ride with only a few riders feeling any rain drops at all.

The green beauty of Mississippi, the friendliness of the residents, and the considerate drivers continue to impress me. The few Mississippians I have spoken to all seem quite happy and proud of their State. The roads on which Bubba has us routed have been extremely low traffic, with in one ten mile stretch today, I only saw one car. Along with all the forests we rode through today, we also rode past some pretty lake country. All in all, Mississippi is a state I wouldn't mind exploring from an automobile some day.

This was typical of the roads we rode on today in Mississippi. It was like riding thru a park with flat smooth roads and beautiful scenery.

The first of many lakes we rode past today. None of the lakes were large, but they all looked very serene and inviting.

I believe most of the lake homes we rode by were primarily weekend homes.

This was a man-made lake, apparently for flood control. Our route took us over the dike on the left. None of the lakes looked over-developed with houses.

I thought we had left the big ranch gates of Texas behind us until I spotted this one in rural Mississippi!

This is not really a lake but a large pond. Again, note the elaborate pier and Gazebo over the water. Another very pretty spot.

Meet Melissa and Earline, two ladies in service to God at the Ramsey Creek Baptist Church.

Missed putting in the yesterday's blog:

Yesterday, Kurt Frederick thought his bicycle seat had slipped when he got back on it to ride after a short break. What he found instead was a major frame crack in his 2002 Soft Ride Beam custom steel bicycle. He called SAG mechanic Dave Moss who came and picked him up. Dave got on the telephone and found someone nearby who was qualified to weld the frame. A few hours later,  the repair was completed and Kurt's bicycle was reassembled. Dave then drove Kurt back to the location of the break, and Kurt was able to finish the day's ride, without losing a mile! That is an amazing response to a serious bicycle problem. Kurt says he is going to finish the C2C ride with this bicycle, but is then going to remove his components and dispose of the frame in Florida.

I also meant to mention that I experienced my third flat of this C2C ride, a pinch flat caused by some debris I failed to see on the shoulder of the road.