Day 132, Dec 4. Kings Bay, GA, to Neptune Beach, FL

We have made it to Florida! And only four days later than projected. This is the 16th state we have ridden in on this tour, plus Ontario, plus DC. Having said that, today promised to be an ordinary day on the bike. Would be about 50F when we started out, with about 50 miles to do. Wind would be a quartering head wind at about 12 mph, so we would be a bit slow. Margaret's detour onto Black Rock Beach changed all that for the better.


Headwind.

By the time we crossed the bridge into Florida, the temperature had risen to 72.






Yes, a new state.



 It was so warm, that we decided to bare a portion of our anatomy that had not seen the light of day for months.

 Knees.

So we cycled along, over the bridge to Amelia Island, over the bridge to Big Talbot Island and the state park there. Margaret suggested we stop for an energy bar. While sitting and eating, she noticed a sign for a path to Black Rock Beach.

The bush the path traveled through.


Imagine trying to make your way through undergrowth like this.






The path:
 

The beach at the end of the path was unworldly.

 
  Had to find our way through.


                                                                                    





 


 

 The black rocks looked like basalt to me, but I will defer to someone more knowledgeable. I am not aware of any history of vulcanism in Florida.


I believe I found some little roots penetrating the rock, even near the surf. Maybe palms in the past?


They were about 1-2 mm in diameter, and felt woody when I tried to pull them from the rock.

We could have stayed all day, but having no tent, camping gear, water, or food, we decided to cycle on.

One of my favorite things to do while cycling is to take a ferry. It seems almost like cheating, I move over the surface of the earth, but I don't have to pedal. We took the Ft George Island to Mayport ferry today.






 Shrimp boats.
The ferry is part of the East Coast Greenway bicycle route.

 Yep, got a flat today, The rear tire had over 1,700 miles on it, and felt really thin, so we replaced it with one of the Schwalbe Marathon plus tires we were carrying.


 Tomorrow we ride 34 miles to St Augustine, and a rest day at an airBNB.