Day 9 – Over The Bay

Wednesday, October 29th

Mobile, AL to Fairhope, AL

After yesterday’s over-eventful day, Dad and I were too exhausted to get an early start this morning.  We woke around 7, enjoyed conversation over a realaxed breakfast, did some research online, examined our route, and generally took a leisurely morning.  We left the hotel around 11 am and headed for a nearby bicycle shop, Cadence 120, to restock on tubes and tires.  Our GPS was unable to find the its satellites, so we had to rely on maps without any global positioning services.

Once again, my knees were hurting today, so I took it easy and used the motor to make up for my lack of power.  After stopping at the bike shop, we had lunch at a nearby Subway, taking advantage of their free wireless network.  We did research on fixing the GPS and buying a new one, but with no significant results.  We gave up and began to head through Mobile.  Through the city, we encountered bad traffic and rough, shoulder-less roads.  My knees kept bugging me again, so we made frequent stops to stretch them out, but gradually made our way out of the city.  Bicycles aren’t allowed in the I10 or I90 tunnels, so we were routed a ways North, through the old industrial area Northwest of the docks to catch Bay Bridge Road where all the truck traffic is sent to cross the bay.

It took us a while to cross the various bridges due to the abundance of debris on the shoulder (I never knew you could find so many giant bolts on the side of the road and Dad saw a garden hose sprayer among other surprises).  When we made it into Daphne we were ready to stop for the night.  The sun was sinking and the temperature suddenly dropped; neither of us were able to really get warmed up, so our progress was painfully slow, but thankfully the motel we booked was not too far away.  We bought food for dinner from a nearby Winn Dixie and called it a night.  It was a very short day; we needed the rest.  Hopefully tomorrow will be warmer.

Today’s Quick Stats:

Bike              Distance (mi)    Average Speed (mph)

MiniWini            39.60                   14.4

Sti(ck/g)           39.44                   14.3

Stampedes: 2

Roadside Pees: 1