6:30 PM
At the restaurant of the Marriott in Stuart, FL. Basically, we’re almost in the water, somewhere in the Intracoastal Waterway – also known as the Indian River.
Actually, we crossed the Intracoastal twice today, both times in Fort Pierce. You have to come back to the mainland there because there is a gap in the islands with no bridge. Same thing here in Stuart. We will start tomorrow by crossing the river.
On our way to Fort Pierce, we stopped at a mangrove lake.
Then we saw the U.S. Navy Seal Museum.
Then we crossed the Intracoastal Waterway
When we got to mainland in Fort Pierce, our friend Lisa texted to say that she lives there in Fort Pierce. How exciting! So she drove over to Wendy’s and we hung out for a while.
On our way through Fort Pierce, we drove down a cool street. Here is the boat storage building:
And here are some old train cars:
Then we crossed back over the river, back to the island.
We biked another 25 miles on the island, over a few bridges, past many beaches and state parks and wildlife refuges. It was mostly pleasant, except for the freakin’ headwinds. We’ve had headwinds every day in Florida. I have been drafting – I hate drafting, but not as much as I hate headwinds.
We stopped for a butt break on a bench in front of a closed restaurant in a country club
and stopped for ice cream a little later – actually it was frozen, chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick. Yum.
Tomorrow we will have lunch in Juno Beach with our friend David. We met David in the Peach Bottom Inn in Delta, PA. Then we will continue onto West Palm Beach for the evening. We will find a hotel, then meet my Aunt Elaine for dinner. It’s amazing how many people we know in Florida!
For any of you who may have been wondering if we were getting along or not, here’s the deal. It’s been touch-and-go a few times, but since we’ve been in Florida, it’s been wonderful. Whether it’s the ease of riding on A1A, Dana’s feeling of comfort in his home state, or the 5-day cheat that soothed our aches and pains, we are doing well. And we’ve learned that sometimes we don’t communicate as well as we should, and that communication is important when you are 40 miles into a ride, it’s raining, and you’re lost. And after 40+ days of togetherness, socializing with other people has been a cleansing experience. We are even discussing future bike tours, although when Dana suggested doing a century this fall, I happily said “Have fun! I’ll be napping.”
Dana and Carolyn's 57 Ride 