My couchsurfing hosts (Davis and his girlfriend) are teachers, so they left before I woke up. I decided I should head back into downtown Charleston and do some proper touristy exploring. I decided to ride across the scary bridge (as opposed to walking across on the sidewalk, trying my hardest to be one with the guardrail) and got honked at by a guy pointing at said sidewalk. I couldn't help it when I kind of snorted and rolled my eyes...
I got a little confused with the interchanges in my attempt to cross the second bridge. As I was checking and cross checking my location on my GPS and my phone, a huge organized bike ride being escorted by some cop cars rode past me. I looked at them momentarily before deciding that A) I could keep up with them. B) If they are riding across this bridge then so am I, and C) I should try to catch up with them and get an escort both for the safety reasons and to see the looks on the guys faces, as I was wearing my flowy colorful skirt and had my hair in a side braid.
Unfortunately, as soon as I made all these realizations and started pumping the pedals, the light changed to red. I waited impatiently as I watched the group work its' way up and over the bridge. I was slowly gaining on them but didn't make it in time for them to help me cross the bridge. Still feeling a little bit of cockiness and wanting to catch up just to prove I could go as fast as them, I started to look for an opening in the next lane over, as I was being ushered toward the exit when the ride had gone straight. The guy behind me let me in. I waved my thanks and he rolled down the window and yelled some (actually friendly) advice about riding across the bridge. Too bad I couldn't hear what he actually said, be it my choice of clothing or the fact that the other bridge had a sidewalk and I should be there. After getting caught at yet another red light and losing sight of the group all together, I was forced to end my chase. I headed for Battery Park, as it's pretty easy to find, before deciding to go check out the Charleston Museum. I spent several hours there admiring the fancy old ironworks and household furniture that was imported from China, and reading about women's roles from back in the day as well as the slave "task system" that was used on rice plantations (which I had never heard of before).
I picked up a visitor's guide at the welcome center across the street, and stopped to take a picture of the submarine in front of the museum where I had locked my bike up, only to notice in the background that a guy had stopped to "admire" my bike! He was taking liberties with my brakes and the front light and the front racks and just touching it in ways that a stranger shouldn't touch someone else's bike. I walked up and was as friendly as I could be to someone I wanted to tell off. A stop at the library, Sumter National Monument, and the beautiful park around it came next. I wanted to go to the aquarium, as it was just next door, but it closed in an hour and was $30. I decided instead to ride back up to the top of the big bridge just for fun. It was much easier without all the baggage, and I halfway wanted to wait up there for sunset, even though it was about 2 hours off.
Davis contacted me as I was working on my blog in a different library later that evening to let me know that I needed to be back at his place by 5, as I had his key! There were people walking their bikes across the scary bridge going both ways (on the same side to top it all off, as the other side is not practical to get to). As I worked my way back across (I was too tired to ride over it in rush hour traffic), another rider (who was actually riding) came toward me. After me passed me, I looked back to see that he and his bike were laying in the road with a long line of cars already backed up behind him! His handlebars had been clipped by the mirror of a passing car, throwing him into the street. He wasn't hit, but he did hit his head pretty good. 2 other riders and I all came to see if we could help, and we ushered him into a small protected outcropping on the side where the arms come down to stop cars when the bridge is going to open up for a passing boat (it's a drawbridge). He began complaining of being really dizzy and acting like he was going to fall over, so I made him lay down and offered to call an ambulance (he refused, but I did give him some water). Eventually, he decided he was going to try to make it home and headed off. During it all was a beautiful sunset over the water.
It was a hang-out night back at the house. I mostly snacked for dinner, and I was offered to pick a book out of their bookshelf to read. "Messenger" by Lois Lowry caught my eye, since I had read "The Giver" in middle school and enjoyed it.
I woke up after everyone had already left again, and decided that I was done with going over those bridges and would spend the day exploring this island. Folley Beach was at the end of it, and according to my guidebook there was plenty to do down there. I found a nice side roads route to take that passed right by the park where the Festival of Lights is held every winter. My family used to make the trip down to drive through there nearly every year. It cost a dollar to get in, but it ended up being well spent. There are miles of bike paths weaving all through the park, and there were plenty dogs splashing away merrily in the pond as about a dozen retirees raced their remote controlled sailboats around some small buoys. It was already well after noon when I decided I better get going if I wanted to make it to Folley's Beach today. I had to get back on the main road (highway 171), unfortunately, and stopped for a milkshake at Jack's Cosmic Dogs when I needed a break from the traffic. I found another side road that was (always) a few miles out of the way, but decided it would be worth it to skip a little more of this traffic. It was a nice ride and I stopped to take a picture of a house decked out for Halloween. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the main road had bike lanes when I got back to it.
When I finally got down to Folleys Beach Park, at the very tip of the island, I was a little annoyed to find that it was closed, and apparently had been for some time, as there was a permanent looking sign there that said "closed for storm damage." It was a beautiful day, and the ride was pleasant enough, so I went back to the pier and spent an hour or so there enjoying the nice breeze on the ocean.
I headed back a little early, knowing that I had the key, but decided to make a detour by yet another library. It was regrettably too busy for me to get a computer right then, with the next available time being in an hour (so the lady said, even though I was looking right at several empty desks...) I decided not to argue or wait, and headed back to the house along the back roads, finding lots of school buses to follow. It was actually kind of fun to be backed up with traffic, as the buses were now the source of frustration instead of me on these narrow twisty roads. Being unloaded as I was, keeping up was no problem, and with the wind at my back I soared along at 18 mph without much problem.
I took a shower and headed back out to Zia's for a taco dinner, and met back up with Gabe, who I was introduced to the first night at this very restaurant. (He comes here a lot, apparently, as he lives very nearby.) We chatted a bit and I showed him some of the pictures I took that day. The TV caught my eye with Hurricane Sandy in the news. It was something I would have to look into, I decided. Gabe had somewhere to be after dinner, so I walked back to the house and finished my book before heading to bed.
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