Day 44: Jackson to Franklinton 73.4 miles 2,299 feet of climb
Staying at Perry’s Bike Hostel was very nice and Perry was a good host. She did tell a story about a past cycling group who got so mad at one of their leaders that they dropped her luggage off at a bus station, bought her a one way bus ticket home mid-trip and then fired her via text. These trips are stressful and I can see where it would be even more stressful if you did not have good leaders. We are very fortunate to have great, very well organized leaders. Our leaders also share with us that our group bonded quickly and continue to interact well together and support each other. No fist fights over campsites yet!
The hostel that we stayed at is on a country road that Perry said used to be quiet, however, once they opened the new bridge , it didn’t take truckers long to figure out that this same quiet country road makes a great shortcut between two major highways. Trucks rumbled down this road all night.
The next morning it was 43 degrees when we started our ride. I was expecting much warmer temperatures by now. Highs in the low 70s are not a bad thing, but I was more prepared for heat than cold before we started in San Diego. We went by Dixon Correctional Institute (pictured) very soon after we started our ride. It’s not far away from the hostel.
We’ve been spoiled by the flat riding in Louisiana. Today, however, the terrain was more rolling, with smaller descents and steeper climbs. Mark observed that a lot of these little valleys also had a creek at the bottom. The rollers made the 73 mile ride seem even longer. We were mostly on roads without shoulders, too.
Here's two pictures of our lunch stop at the General Store in Easlyville LA and some left over Mardi Gras beads.
Tonight we are the guests of the Franklinton Police Department. We are camping behind the police station in a grassy area and are using the police station’s showers and bathrooms, after providing ID, of course. I was worried that the security lights would be bright in the camping area, but they are not. That's one of their vehicles on the right.
The two photos on the left are from the Asian restaurant that we went to tonight as a group and basically overwhelmed the place. The food was good, however, and we had a good time while taking a break from cooking dinner ourselves after a long day of riding.
Tomorrow night we will be in Mississippi. Louisiana was a great time and a welcome change from the 900 miles of Texas.
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