• I finally decided on and ending point. It's going to be on Amelia island, in northern Florida. The pictures looked pretty. The water looked warm and inviting. There is lots of food, shopping, and lodging opportunities. I will still go out to Tybee Island in Savannah on the way though. And I'll be biking briefly across Jekyll Island too. Considering I started the trip with a great view of Tatoosh Island in Washington, it makes sense to end on an island.
• This was one of the toughest weeks in terms of getting harassed. Lots of people shouted things at me. Lots cursed. Many passed too close or too erratically. I blame the roads. If the shoulders were bigger, I would be less of an inconvenience, and people could get around me without having to do anything special (like edge over or use their brakes). And in fact, when I did have wide shoulders, I didn't have any problems.
• The three weirdest things people screamed at me were "Lyyyynch!" "'Merica" and "You're #$% #*^! Welcome." 'Lynch' may have been 'Blanche,' though that wouldn't make sense either.
• The psychological advantage of staying with friendly people whom you can talk to is surprising. If I were to offer any advice for people undertaking a similar adventure, it would be to find as many people as you know and/or that are willing to host you as you can. It will be worth it.
• The psychological pressures of a trip like this outweigh the physical problems ten-fold. I read similar sentiments on many other cross-country bike websites, but I always thought 'not me' in the back of my mind. Well guess what, a trip like this will destroy you mentally and emotionally.
• Fresh blueberries. Fresh, handpicked blueberries will be my salvation.
• Turtles are the stinkiest dead thing to pass on the side of the road.
• Georgia is amazing and beautiful. The south in general is pretty darn incredible. Hopefully we get enough cool days that I can thoroughly enjoy it.
• I'm in the second to last state! I'm in the last time zone! I'm in the home stretch!
• I've been doing a lot more Gatorade during the day. Pretty much whenever I drink anything, it's Gatorade. It seems to be helping, because I'm losing a ton of moisture in this heat.
• Down here, my clothes don't stay dry, even clean and in my duffel bag. I'll need to remember to make time to dry them off whenever I get access to a hand-dryer.
• Dog attacks are on the rise. Usually I can pedal faster and escape without incident. I've never close close to using the little pepper spray I brought, but I keep it on the front of the bike just in case.
• I like passing by houses with a rusted out truck in the front yard. But I love passing by houses with two-dozen rusted out trucks in their front yard. I also like seeing the old abandoned buildings and trucks that nature has reclaimed. It's very cool to see trees poking up where they shouldn't be.
• I have been taking fewer pictures this week than any other time during the trip. It may be because I don't want to unclip my phone (I have my printed directions wedged behind the clip). It may be because I'm on roads with no shoulder, and there isn't a safe place to stop and snap a picture. It may be because there are only so many times I can take a picture of my face with a road leading off into the background.
• I've been singing a lot of Sinatra recently. Usually I alternate between modern music, symphonic themes, lavish broadway musical numbers, and traditional tunes. But this week, it's Sinatra all the way!
See you at the finish line folks! Here are some shots from today's ride.
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