Another early start today for our climb out of Damascus enroute to Christiansburg (Virginia Tech is located here). We followed Big Laurel Creek on route 603 most of the way to the pass near Hurricane Mountain and crossed the Appalachian Trail a couple of times. The ride was lined with blooming white and purple rhododendrons that were 30 feet high.
Big Laurel Creek
The AT!
Our morning friend at breakfast at the gas station wished us well and was not interested in tenderizing our calf muscles as was the case in Kentucky.
Climbing the pass
I’ve been taking pictures from my bike as I peddle. I thought I had some good shots of the rhododendrons, but they all came out blurry.
On the other side of the pass was a most enjoyable gentle serpentine downhill that made for fun banked turns for close to 20 miles.
A community church in Troutdale; formerly a Lutheran church.
Coming into Rural Retreat
A former bike shop in Max Meadows
A kudzu is an invasive species that is terrorizing the Southeast.
We could have brought some of the road kill that we’ve seen, but they were closed.
Between Radford and Christiansburg we liked the bike path. At 100 miles in Radford we refueled at Sonic. I had a most tasty hot dog and Mark refueled on chicken strips. We had our usual Arnold Palmer. Nothing like another 88 oz to rehydrate.
Most of 110 miles after the climb was downhill with some short climbs and rolling hills. We both enjoyed the picturesque mountain views of the Appalachians and the country side of small farms.
After 9 hours and 20 minutes on the seat (not including rest stops) my butt was sore.
Sunset in Christiansburg.
I have a request. Can you set your iPhone to video in Time-Lapse for a few hours? Then post that so we can see what part of your day looks like.
Can’t post video on the blog.
That would be great to do, but don’t have proper mount.