Simply Cycle: A couple more days to get away.

Another getaway weekend. It was the Labor Day holiday and I had the urge to take a bike ride, somewhere. There were 2 campsites within a 100 mile radius which were not reserved. In other words, the State Parks and coastline would be busy with perfect weather predicted. The coast is packed with people so I opted for the Bike sites at Yankee Springs rather than risk wild camping. After a great 40 mile ride on Friday I enjoyed a relatively quiet night despite the campsite being adjacent to the "modern" (trailer park) campgrounds .

The infamous gravel roads of the Barry Roubaix course

are familiar to me having lived in the forest for 12 years, and I never get tired

of the endless views afforded along the roads.

Everywhere you turn along the challenging gravel roads you find natural or manicured vistas of water in it's natural habitat framed by foliage left to it's own devices.

The areas without roads are even more stunning among

wildflowers and trees given their will.

At this time of year the gravel roads are easy. The roads have maintained their grade with just enough rainfall to keep them packed without eroding ruts. The bottoms always get a bit sandy and it's a challenge to develop the "mo'" needed to let the tires surf their way through the soft spots.

Great barn architecture can be found among the fields along the way to Hastings. After 25 miles of gravel I was ready for a perfect Reuben sandwich at Waldorff's Brewpub in Hastings.

Taking the highway back to the campground was a refreshing break

and provided more views of the cultivated areas.

as well as another stop at a country bar to re-hydrate a bit

before finding my way back through the countryside to the campsite for the night.

So a refreshing day, workin' up a sweat between gravel and off-gravel, off path bike riding with a little country bar hopping on the way back. It's good for the citified soul. The ride home on Sunday was another perfect day in the seventies with a lot of cloud cover to keep cool. Just a few refreshing days wandering the countryside before going back to humanity.