Ride to Wilmington: Day 4

I didn’t sleep very well in the hippie’s backyard: I was too hot, the mosquitoes were buzzing loudly around me all night, separated only by a thin sheet of nylon, and because the bathroom did not have a door on it, I was unable to “take care of business,” and was a bit uncomfortable all night due to that…  

In the morning, I packed up, ate some breakfast, and said my goodbyes. The Moores Creek National Battlefield was only 4 miles away, and I thought that it would be a good place to stop and look around (and use their bathrooms…) Just like Jones Lake, they were pretty much deserted, but had a nice small museum and gift shop, a short film explaining the history of the site, and a great trail around the battlefield itself. I was rather surprised at their lack of a bike rack, however, especially since they are along a bike route! It was good to walk around, and I decided that a short hike was something I should try to work into every day.

After a small snack, I continued on my way. I soon found myself flying effortlessly along at the fastest sustained speeds I’d had so far this trip. One of the coolest things was when I found a field of wildflowers that was simply teeming with butterflies: hundreds- maybe thousands- of butterflies. 

Not long after the field of butterflies, I was sent onto another big 4 lane divided highway. Like the one on the way into Elizabethtown, there were plenty of “share the road” signs for encouragement, and the traffic was pretty light and courteous. About 5 miles away from the bridge that would take me into Wilmington, I decided to stop for lunch at a little diner, “Faye’s Café.” I proceeded to order a huge burger and I went ahead and congratulated myself early for making it. It took a day longer than I had hoped, but I made it all the same, and I was glad for everything to have happened the way it did, because otherwise I wouldn’t have met all the awesome people I met or saw all the cool and beautiful things I saw.   

Little did I know what still lay ahead. After lunch, a small headwind from an incoming storm decided to appear, along with lots and lots of traffic. What had started as a big but calm road had become something reminding me of rush hour on I-95 as huge semis sped by only a few feet away. Navigating the exit and on ramps were awful (something between wishing I was invisible and hoping people saw me before it was too late.)

But I was determined! Wilmington was so close! I was desperately looking for my bike route signs to tell me where to turn, to let me know that I was still going the right way, that this was where I was supposed to be. Finally I saw the bridge that would take me to Wilmington: I just had to make a left at this light right here... I pulled over and waited for a break in the stream of cars before moving to the left turn lane. Then I prayed for a green arrow or a long enough break in oncoming traffic to allow me to turn without making the people behind me mad. As soon as my chance presented itself, I pedaled like hell, getting all the way up to 7th gear (out of my 8) before exiting the intersection, before the incline of the bridge began... Then I dropped to as far onto the tiny shoulder as I could as I crawled at a snails' pace up and over the bridge, trying not to pay any attention to how close the cars were passing next to me. I just had to trust that it would be OK. Hold a steady line, don't flinch (because you might hit the wall or go into traffic), and just keep going. There was a gap in the corner where I could see the water far below. This gap was several inches wide, where the wall and road met, and I could picture it easily sucking my tire in, should I ride too close. I tried not to look too hard at it, afraid that it would hypnotize me and I would suddenly find myself there... At the top, I met a runner going the opposite way on my side. I had to dismount to pass him, and I just went ahead and walked the rest of the way to the exit. I had to take the middle road, so again I waited for a break in the stream of cars and went for it. The picture I took after crossing that bridge is a total trophy shot in my eyes.

Once in Wilmington, I encountered hundreds of college student zombies crossing the street anywhere they felt like, without any concern for what may be coming at them. Several made direct eye contact with me before stepping out right in front of me anyway, often times only giving me a few feet to stop. How rude! I went a mere 2 blocks with the student zombies before I decided I had to get off that road. Besides, I was feeling more than a little self conscious being as sweaty and flustered as I was, riding my big loaded bike next to all these girls, who were distinctively clean and not sweaty, wearing cute and trendy things.

The next hour and a half (at least) was spent going the 10 or so miles across the peninsula to the ocean, mostly following the highway to the sea bike route. There was lots of back-tracking from wrong turns, crossing through insanely busy intersections, enjoying the quiet stretches, and feeling the stress that end-of-vacation time brings. The battery on my phone was dying ever more quickly, as I relied on it more and more for navigation through the city. And as and I would come to learn later, after my phone was completely dead, my charger had also stopped working!

After I finally found the ocean, I got myself a nice big ice cream cone and sat and considered my situation. I got back on my bike and found the Wrightsville Beach welcome center, which had a nice big park nearby. A kind random stranger let me use their phone to call my parents to let them know where to find me. Then I cleaned up and changed in the rest room and enjoyed the gentle breeze under the pavilion until my dad came to take me back to Fayetteville, a mere hour and a half drive away...



Total distance traveled: 39.529 miles
Max speed: 18.9 mph
Average speed: 9.4 mph
Time spent riding:  4 hours, 7 minutes