Day 29 - Sept 3 Week 4 recap and A Run for the Hills

Today is the beginning of week 5 - the final week on the road.  Yesterday concluded 4 weeks on the road. In the past week we covered 2368.4 miles and touched 6 states.  We covered the deep south and made our way back to the coast.  In the process we crossed paths with a hurricane and our timing couldn't have cut it any closer.  During the most critical periods of that storm coming to Florida we were only 12-24 hours ahead of it. We survived the varying intensities of rain and humidity. We met some nice folks and enjoyed some great southern food.  Total cumulative miles is now 10,151 and we've seen 28 states go by. What a trip it's been!  With the final stretch in sight, we are looking forward to some warm, dry, less humid air which is more like home.

This morning at 8:00am we were greeted by 68 degrees and less humidity than we've had in more than a week.  It almost felt a bit cool, but in a refreshing way.  Just outside the Shreveport city limits we found US79 which Alvin had recommended during our visit in New Orleans. Within 15 minutes we were at the Texas border.

This two lane highway was a treat to ride. It runs between I-20 and I-10 on a diagonal from a northeast direction to a southwest direction. It has a posted speed limit of 70 when it's not passing through a small town. It is tree lined but less it's less dense than what we've seen in other places.

We took a break at Henderson and temps were climbing, and had now reach 73.  All the fellas bought a powerball ticket on the premise that winners often come from some tiny town that few had ever heard of.  As we got back on the road, I noticed that it was a bluebird day - not a cloud in the sky anywhere.

The sky was building thunder clouds but the temps were now in the low 80s as we stopped for lunch in Buffalo.  While we were eating a brief thunder shower passed through. The bikes were almost dry when we went out to saddle up.

 

The next push was a bit longer and took us into Texas Hill Country and a visit to Central Texas HD in Round Rock, TX.

 

 

We were just a relatively short distance to our lodging in New Braunfels, TX.  Unfortunately, we had to take I-35 through Austin to get there.  It was Saturday around 3:30pm so we thought traffic wouldn't be too terrible. But before we knew it, we were back in traffic. In comparison to the traffic we've experienced in other towns this wasn't too bad. At least it kept moving and we did wear out the clutch today.  At the southern end of Austin the congestion lifted and we cruised into New Braunfels.

Our lodging was actually out in Gruene, TX which in its day was a prominent cotton producing town.  It's also home to one of the oldest dance halls in Texas.  We had a delicious dinner at The River House.  Outside our condo the deer pranced in the yard and there was a herd in the park we passed on our walk home after dinner.  This is also the first place we've spotted lightning bugs.

Total miles traveled today: 371.5;
Time to travel this distance: 9 hours;
Total Cumulative miles: 10,522.5
Tomorrow: More Texas