TransAm Day #1 Yorktown, VA to Glendale, VA
May 26, 2018
Yorktown, VA to Glendale, VA - 64 Miles
Ride Time 4.44 Hours
Tour Total 64 Miles
details at: https://cyclemeter.com/4b2d99e24f1383f2/Cycle-20180526-0908
I woke up at 6am revved up and raring to go. Steve H and I had arranged to meet at 7:45 in the Yorktown Motel parking lot. I had plenty of time to fidget, fine tune, and make last minute adjustments.
It was such a freeing experience shutting that motel door with the key card locked inside. Onward into the unknown!
Steve and I pedaled over to the Yorktown Victory Monument where we met Steve G. from Annapolis. The Victory Monument commemorates the signing of the end of the American revolution. It is located where the York river enters the Chesapeake Bay, and is the official TransAm starting point. Steve G and his wife Laura had just arrived when we pulled in. We took photos in front of the monument and then rode down to the beach for our tire dipping ceremony. Cyclists traveling westbound dip their rear tires in the Atlantic and their front tires in the Pacific. We found a friendly pair of locals to document our start. Next stop was official TransAm registration at the Visitors Center, where we were awarded US Bike Route 76 TransAmerican Bicycle Trail pins. Additionally, Steve H offered me my pick of one of his commemorative tour coins. I’ll be returning with a bounty - but first I have to haul it across the continent.
We were momentarily confused trying to find our way out of town, but quickly aligned our Garmin GPS units and paper maps and we were off!
It was sunny and the temperature quickly made it up into the high 80’s. I rode along the Colonial Parkway- a beautiful calm tree lined roadway for tourists. I enjoyed the concrete pavement. It was a gorgeous ride. After awhile I entered Williamsburg- which was somewhat surreal, because all of the sudden I'm riding through a historic village ca 1790 sharing the narrow roadways with actors in costumes and pedestrian tourists. I rode right past the extraordinary governors palace. All of the restored architecture transported me back in time. It was fantastic! I headed back onto the Colonial Parkway and continued to Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. I took a break out front of the visitors center and then proceeded to the Capital trail - a Greenway where I spent most of the afternoon, free from motorized traffic. Steve H treated us to classic rock though his loud speaker as we rode to Charles City. There we stumbled upon Culs Courthouse Grille where there were some 50 day cyclists parked outside. Everyone there was wearing cycling jerseys and the staff didn’t mind our sweaty demeanor. A band was playing out front. Fearing there might not be any food options for the evening our plan was to chow down. Steve H wasn’t feeling well though and didn’t eat much.
It was a fantastic ride this afternoon though the Tidewater region. Virginia is really spoiling me. Total elevation gain was only 633 feet. There was a slight headwind which we took turns leading into. I rode along the James river past historical plantations eventually making my way to Willis Methodist Church, where I would be spending the night. Fellow cyclist Graham met us at the door and led us inside to air conditioning, a full kitchen, WiFi, and a shower with clean folded towels! Rain is in the forecast tonight and I will be comfy and bug-free indoors.
I rode to the nearby Citgo service station for provisions, where I got 2 cans of Modello and a box of Mac & Cheese. There’s no drinking inside the church so Steve G and I had our Modellos out back at a picnic table, and traded dear tick stories.
All three members of the Rob and 2 Steves team (#R2S) are in higher education. Steve G teaches mechanical engineering at the Naval Academy at Annapolis and Steve H is Provost at Galen Nursing College.
My air mattress is set up on the floor of the church’s community room. I’m reminded of other strange places I’ve slept.
Today I saw squirrels, a dead raccoon, a turkey vulture, geese, a blue bird, and deer. I passed two road side car crash memorials.
I started on ACA TransAm map panel #150 and ended a third of the way across #148. Team #R2S is making progress.
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