My first long-ish bike ride...

Bleak. Flat. Windy. Why did I choose this direction to ride? I'm up to 1,713 miles.

But on to more interesting things:

I rode my bike up to Cumberland Gap today. Got cut off by a guy on a Harley, I think partly because I was on a Jap bike and partly because I was only doing 70 in a 55 and he wanted to do 85.

Had a great ride but it the longest I've ever ridden,
about 3 hours total. And my butt now is the size
and shape of my bike seat.

Bacchus, TN on Highway 25E looking north from

Dogwood Heights Drive. I was going to ride up
Dogwood Heights, but two deputies came
out of it just then and I wanted no part of
whatever Bacchanalia they had just checked on.

Panorama from the top of Clinch Mountain near the vinegar pie place. I love this view. It's remarkable in fall.





















The view from the Pinnacle over Cumberland Gap. That is the town of Cumberland Gap, TN just below, with Harrogate, TN in the background. Cumberland Gap was named for William Agustus, the Duke of Cumberland, who put down the Scottish Jacobite uprising, led by Charles Edward Stuart, of which house the Boyds are part. I have a dark spot in my heart for the British who put down Scottish attempts to gain freedom. It should be named Stuart Gap.










The Middlesboro Crater. You can read
a little about it here.

The Gap is in the crater wall. The ridge in the background is the far crater wall. I'm standing on the other side.











Do not litter, don't leave valuables in your car, stay on the trails, you might fall and damage the earth, don't put graffiti on anything, leave rocks and wood alone. Oh, and, watch out for snakes. Especially the copperheads and eastern diamondbacks.

Vulture with a SIX FOOT wingspan.

One of our dogwoods.

And it's blossoms.

Last, me with severe allergies after my ride,
before the benadryl kicked in.

And Loni and Echo