Atlantic Coast Tour
May 1st - Virginia Beach KOA, Virginia to Lake Butler Campground, Virginia

Being seasoned campers, we have learned that no matter how nice an RV park may look there is always some reason the land has not been developed for some other use. Last night's KOA was right at the end of a busy Naval airstrip. Honestly, it was as if F-16 fighter jets were doing touch and goes on top of our tent until ten O'clock at night. Louie put in his earplugs. Becky toughed it out but complained that her ears were ringing in the morning.

Back on the road the winds have died down, the air is warmer and the traffic has heated up. We find ourselves cycling on busy two lane roads that have no shoulder and need resurfacing in a bad way. Most everyone is polite as they pass us. At times the roads open up to interstate highway proportions with lanes coming in and lanes exiting to freeways. It is a true cyclists nightmare. Louie holds the line in six lanes of traffic without flinching. Our tandem bounces down the road. Side view mirrors are grazing Becky's shoulder. Somehow we manage to keep it together, taking the road one obstacle at a time.

Suddenly, traffic has come to a standstill. A drawbridge is up ahead of us. A man in a big red pickup truck pulls up next to us. As he rolls down his passenger window Becky strikes up a conversation with him. Becky tells him about our journey, and he tells us he is a tri-athelete. He wishes he were out doing what we are doing, but what we are doing becomes very technical when the drawbridge goes down. The huge line of trucks and cars behind us forces us up onto a bridge sidewalk in an extreme state of disrepair. Then the sidewalk ends abruptly into swampy grass with road workers blocking our way. We just have to wait for all the cars and trucks to pass before going around them.

Following explicit directions from the book "Cycling The Atlantic Coast" and JRA "just riding along" POOF! It appears that we are entering a freeway. Not that again! Louie stops and Becky pulls out the map for study, but we are in the right place. It is actually a highway that looks like a freeway. Louie likes it because it is first time we have had a good shoulder today.

After exiting the highway in Suffolk, VA it is time to stop for lunch in a nice neighborhood park. A gentleman comes over to eat his lunch and sip his beer. Becky asks him if he avoided the tornados. He says, "Lady, I tried to get in there. I had some friends to help. But the police wouldn't let me because I had a few beers under my belt. I just wanted to help my buddies."

As the journey progresses, we come face to face with tornado damage, twisted trees, houses with windows blown out, insurance folks walking around with cameras and clip boards, and workmen clearing downed trees. The destruction is so impressive that it causes us to stop and look in awe. Had we been here a couple of days earlier, the tornado and us could have crossed paths on this very street. It could have been the Blueberry Tandem Team riding just like the wicked witch of the west around and around in the tornado!

At last we turn off the main roads into the countryside and are rewarded for our difficult ride this morning with farms, lakes, and cypress forests. Louie stops the tandem several times for pictures.

As we ride, Becky is starting to wonder if our campground will still be there. We turn the last corner and there is the Lake Butler Campground sign. We pull in to discover that we are the only campers here today. Bec tells the lady that her campground is in a book for cyclists. She says, "Yes, we used to get lots of cyclists through here." We know why they stopped. The road here is very difficult to ride. Only the most seasoned cyclists could do it. But, our campsite is worth it. It is along the lake, in the shade. It is another perfect end to a lovely day.

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