I thought I'd post this here in commuting since I spend more time here, and I used my commuter bike that makes a daily 33 mile round-trip during the week, so therefore it's commuting relevant
I've been been wanting to go on an overnight bike trip for a long time, but somehow there was always something planned, something that needed fixing at the house, etc. With our nine-month old daughter, I figured it would be next to impossible... but you just have to look for opportunities. My wife's parents are visiting for two weeks from Germany, and we wanted to spend a week at the beach in Destin, FL. I suggested to my wife that I could leave a day earlier than their drive down, and arrive the day after they get there, using three days to go 368 miles and camp two nights.
I mapped out a route that wasn't the shortest, but would take me through a couple of interesting points with overnight options at the right mileage points. I made a few changes to my commuter bike in the days before the trip:
Bike setup:
The route:
Statistics for the ride:
The new cockpit:
Most of the pictures are of the location and my bike. For some reason I feel like taking a picture of the bike is like taking a picture of me. Could be because I've had the bike (well, ok, the frame at this point, nothing else is remotely original) for 17 years now.
Getting ready to head out:
The first day of the trip would be 117 miles, the first half of that being a route I've done several times before to a friend's house. Had some yummy BBQ for lunch, and had a guy say, "ahh, you're going over The Hill" when I told him my route for the day entailed going through the Franklin D Roosevelt State Park. Since I had never been there, I wasn't sure what he was talking about, but figured it out later in the day when I went over a minor mountain in central GA.
Ye Ol' Faithful Commuter Steed at the top of FDR State Park
I arrived at the first campsite with a fair amount of daylight left and set up camp. Didn't sleep that great because when I awoke in the middle of the night to a lit tent, I realized my site was almost right under a light for the handful of parking spots right there, so I pulled my hat over my eyes and slept better until about 8am.
The second day had me doing through Columbus, GA, through Fort Benning, and through Providence Canyon State Park, the "mini Grand Canyon of Georgia." I also rode past FDR's "Little White House" in Warm Springs, a town which also provided some yummy homemade peach ice cream as a snack.
Time got away from me a little on the second day, so the last hour of the ride was in the dark, not a problem with my lights though, was actually peaceful and enjoyable. Nonetheless, I was very happy to arrive at the Blue Springs State Park campsite to set up camp after 130 miles.
The third and final day took me through some very rural bits of Alabama (I hear banjos, pedal faster!) and into Florida. 121 miles of pretty countryside and relatively flat roads later I crossed the bridge over Choctawhatchee Bay and arrived at the condo a few miles later, with my wife, daughter, and in-laws awaiting my arrival at the condo parking lot entrance.
The rest of the week was very relaxing, and I more than made up any weight loss from the trip by eating many donuts and fried, bacon-wrapped, crabmeat-stuffed shrimp, and spending lots of time with someone very precious to me.
I've been been wanting to go on an overnight bike trip for a long time, but somehow there was always something planned, something that needed fixing at the house, etc. With our nine-month old daughter, I figured it would be next to impossible... but you just have to look for opportunities. My wife's parents are visiting for two weeks from Germany, and we wanted to spend a week at the beach in Destin, FL. I suggested to my wife that I could leave a day earlier than their drive down, and arrive the day after they get there, using three days to go 368 miles and camp two nights.
I mapped out a route that wasn't the shortest, but would take me through a couple of interesting points with overnight options at the right mileage points. I made a few changes to my commuter bike in the days before the trip:
- switching out the flat bar with stubby bar-ends for a touring bar
- adding two temporary bottle cages to the fork
- Recently replaced an old XT derailleur and worn-out chain with a short cage 105 derailleur and a 32x11 (same as before) cassette on the 1x9 drivetrain, along with a nice stainless steel Surly 46T front ring. I couldn't get the shifting down for the life of me, which I finally found out was due to the range of the cassette being too big for the derailleur. I had a SRAM X-7 right shifter laying around, so I ordered an X-5 medium-cage derailleur, and the thing shifts flawlessly now.
Bike setup:
- 1x9, 46T front, 11x32 rear
- Super Tourist rear rack, Ortlieb Classic panniers
- Schwalbe 2.15" Big Apples, fenders stayed on
- AirZound horn used once for a car, many times for dogs giving chase
- Taillights: PDW DangerZone light on the helmet, PDF Red Planet on the rack, reflective material on the panniers, fender, rack, helmet, reflective vest
- Headlights: Philips SafeRide with a "900 lumen" light as a backup and daylight "see me now?!" light
The route:
Statistics for the ride:
- A to B: Marietta, GA to Blanton Creek Park, GA:
15.92mph avg, 7:23:08 riding time, 117.59 miles - B to C: Blanton Creek Park, GA to Blue Springs State Park, AL:
15.08mph avg, 8:35:18 riding time, 129.56 miles - C to D: Blue Springs State Park, AL to Miramar Beach, FL:
16.32mph avg, 7:23:01 riding time, 120.54 miles
The new cockpit:
Most of the pictures are of the location and my bike. For some reason I feel like taking a picture of the bike is like taking a picture of me. Could be because I've had the bike (well, ok, the frame at this point, nothing else is remotely original) for 17 years now.
Getting ready to head out:
The first day of the trip would be 117 miles, the first half of that being a route I've done several times before to a friend's house. Had some yummy BBQ for lunch, and had a guy say, "ahh, you're going over The Hill" when I told him my route for the day entailed going through the Franklin D Roosevelt State Park. Since I had never been there, I wasn't sure what he was talking about, but figured it out later in the day when I went over a minor mountain in central GA.
Ye Ol' Faithful Commuter Steed at the top of FDR State Park
I arrived at the first campsite with a fair amount of daylight left and set up camp. Didn't sleep that great because when I awoke in the middle of the night to a lit tent, I realized my site was almost right under a light for the handful of parking spots right there, so I pulled my hat over my eyes and slept better until about 8am.
The second day had me doing through Columbus, GA, through Fort Benning, and through Providence Canyon State Park, the "mini Grand Canyon of Georgia." I also rode past FDR's "Little White House" in Warm Springs, a town which also provided some yummy homemade peach ice cream as a snack.
Time got away from me a little on the second day, so the last hour of the ride was in the dark, not a problem with my lights though, was actually peaceful and enjoyable. Nonetheless, I was very happy to arrive at the Blue Springs State Park campsite to set up camp after 130 miles.
The third and final day took me through some very rural bits of Alabama (I hear banjos, pedal faster!) and into Florida. 121 miles of pretty countryside and relatively flat roads later I crossed the bridge over Choctawhatchee Bay and arrived at the condo a few miles later, with my wife, daughter, and in-laws awaiting my arrival at the condo parking lot entrance.
The rest of the week was very relaxing, and I more than made up any weight loss from the trip by eating many donuts and fried, bacon-wrapped, crabmeat-stuffed shrimp, and spending lots of time with someone very precious to me.