Little Talbot Island.

I was on the road by 7:30 this morning. Traffic was light and the weather was perfect. Low 50s and sunshine. I crossed into Florida by 9am. It will be a while before I cross another state line!

I stopped at the sign for coffee and pictures. Fueled with 2 cans of espresso and the excitement that comes from entering a new state the miles were flieing by. I left route 17 for the last time (I think) and headed east on route 200 -A1A. Traffic was heavy but I had a bike lane. With the help of a tail wind I was cruising along at 20 mph. That’s as fast as I am comfortable going with my tires in such bad shape. My rear tire has a bit of a bulge that I can feel with every rotation. Faster then 20mph feels like I’m riding on rumble strips.

Around 1:00 I met up with Rose in Fernandina Beach. A friend dropped her off. After loading her gear on her bike we headed out. Rose has biked this area many times so with her leading the way we headed to Little Talbot Island Campground.

It was only 7 or 8 miles away but there was several places we wanted to see. One of which was Boneyard Beach. The beach is full of dead trees and drift wood. It was really pretty and definitely worth stopping at.

We ran into Andrea, Kris and thier dog Misha again. It was good to see them. Yesterday I had learned they had a YouTube channel- suits to sandals and I had watched quite a few of their videos and we talked about them for a few minutes.

We had been told the campground was full but we were so close we decided to stop and check anyway. When we got to the office the ranger said that they were full but someone had rented two sites and then canceled one. Not only did we get the last site but it was completely free. There is no refunds on campsites so it had been paid for and then gifted to us. It was a very pretty campground with great showers and it even had a washer and dryer. I had not done laundry since November 12. So after dinner I did a load of clothes.

We cooked spaghetti for dinner. Rose also uses a jet boil stove so our pots and pans are interchangeable. I browned the burger and she cooked the pasta and sauce. It was really good! We even had parmesion cheese

Saturday. After coffee we got on the road around 9. We boarded the Saint John’s ferry by 10:00. There were lots of dolphins frolicking in the wake of passing ships. It took many tries to get a picture of them. This is not very good one but it is the best I managed.

After leaving the ferry we stopped at a seafood market. It was right on the water and you could watch the fishing boats unloading their catch. We got a pound of steamed shrimp and two swordfish fillets. Sitting on a bench overlooking the harbour we ate shrimp and baguette for a late breakfast. The swordfish were going to be our dinner when we reached our camping spot for the night.

After our leisurely breakfast we hit the road. I had lost my motivation and we agreed to camp at Hanna State Park. It was an easy 20 mile day. I enjoyed the easy day. I have been averaging 50 miles a day for quite a while. Now that I’m in Florida my only plan is to get to St Petersburg by December 16 to catch my flight home for Christmas.

My phone has been not connecting to the internet so I have been unable to blog. I’m going to post this one and hope it works.