We were cold, clammy, wet and icky all day. Another sad bit was that Jett still could not ride. At least she was able to hang out in über-cool Asheville for the day and indulge in her favorite retail shopping therapy, nice and dry and warm.
Today we were joined by a group of 4 cyclists from an REI tour coordinated by Black Bear Adventures. We met Tyler, Paul's tour guide who spent the prior day with these four. Suddenly our little group of 8 turned into a group of 12, even with Jett sidelined by injury. They were all nice people, but it certainly made me realize how fortunate we were to be with such a small group these past 9 days. We all bonded so quickly and got a wonderful amount of customer service from Paul and Rod (although I suspect they provide the same great service to everyone).
Here are the photos from the day.
Here's Thurman and Trevor, getting ready for the shuttle ride to our starting point on the BRP.
Me and Janie, bikes ready and RTG (ready to go). Yes, it is clear I've been eating week on this fabulous vacation!
Here's the new crew boy, Tyler. Cute. Young. Fit.
Janie is a fan of the BRP. As we all are now. We all fell in love with this special place.
Here's Janie on this long and winding road.
Cool bare rock formation in the distance.
A view of the rolling hills and valleys in the distance. This sight would be fantastic on a clear day!
Huge waterfall in the distance. I wish we had time to explore all the gorgeous nooks and valleys out here.
More fall color.
Heading for some nasty weather. Brrrr!
Another dreaded tunnel.
And there's Janie in a near white-out.
Yes, we climbed straight up into the mist. Yucky stuff. The climbing kept me warm, but nothing keeps out the wet, clammy feeling. We were all at risk of nappy rash today! (Trevor's reference to our diaper rash issues.)
And here we find our group at the first rest stop.
Poor Rod is sporting shorts and a shiver.
Instead of heading down into a 10-mile descent, I opted to hop in the van for that miserable downhill action.
Horrid. Why didn't I stay in Asheville with Jett?
I tried to reach Jett by cell phone to have her pick me up so we could convert from cyclist-mode to tourist-mode and visit the Biltmore Estate, but no cell coverage up there. Drat!
Here's one of the boys on the downhill. The weather improved as the elevation decreased.
And Janie is descending like a speeding rocket!
Ahhhhh, much nicer weather down here.
More fall color. After the chilly descent, we had another 7-mile climb. I got out of the van and Janie got in.
Here's the frozen group I encountered at lunch stop at the top of the climb.
Pea soup up there. And cold, needless to say.
I ate quickly and we all skedaddled down the hill. Only 20 miles to the southern terminus of the Blue Ridge Parkway and the end of our wonderful vacation. Of the 20 miles, 17 of them are downhill. Finally we catch some easy riding!
Goodbye mountains...
Here's our group at the very end. Yes, I cried from happiness... Me, Thurman, Trevor, Paul, Janie, and Pat. Wish Jett could have been there!
Here's cutie pie Paul ready for dinner in hippy Asheville. Paul is sporting his hippy finery.
A combo-butt shot of our boys, Thurman, Paul, and Trevor. Yes, we talked about their butts this week. I'm sure they talked about ours!
A sot of Jett's nifty "earth shoes" she bought in Asheville. She's my favorite fashionista. A Hare Krishna person told her earlier in the day that he liked her "lesbian look.". Yes, we loved alternative minded Asheville!
A shot of the gorgeous bar in the tapas restaurant. Paul and Jett pre-ordered the mounds of food they brought in. Of all the amazing restaurants and high quality food we had, we all agreed this was the best meal of the trip. No photos of the food, unfortunately. I was too busy gorging myself. Delicious.
And because Paul has a true appreciation for desserts, he took us to a rocking chocolate hot spot, the French Broad Chocolate Lounge. This is the place to see and be seen. And amazing desserts.
After dessert, we walked back to the hotel. Paul gave each of the guests a souvenir from the Blue Ridge Parkway. We received a framed print that all the guest and crew signed. What wonderful memories we will always have and always cherish.
I wish Black Bear Adventures provided tours all over the country. (A cross-country tour would be epic beyond words.) So far we know we want to do the Natchez Trace, which goes from the Mississippi River in Natchez through Alabama to Nashville. Sounds so awesome (and is supposed to be much easier than BRP!)!
Well, I am finishing this up from home now. We literally spent all day in planes and airports. Ick. Much more exhausting than being on a bike all day. I am recovering nicely. The leg muscles feel great (and strong!). My nappy rash issues are all but resolved - thank the heavens. I wish I could say the same for Jett. We are concerned she has developed a potentially dangerous infection. We are trying to schedule a doctor's appointment today. Sigh.... I know she will be fine, but it is hard to see her worried and in pain.
And on a final note, I did indeed gain 5 pounds on this epic vacation. I shall call them Paul-pounds since it is due to all the fantastic meals our wonderful host/guide/friend Paul Wood provided on this amazing vacation.
