What a lovely ride! Today’s 78
miles from Navasota to Livingston took us over gently rolling hills on roads as
smooth as butter, through the Sam Houston National Forest and a string of
quaint little towns, and passed idyllic farms punctuated by white picket
fences. Aside from a few stretches of heavy traffic and missing shoulder, it
was perfect and picturesque. I’m afraid I’m starting to like Texas. And
cycling.
I spent a lot of time today
thinking about how much I’ve enjoyed the change in landscape. Don’t get me
wrong, the blowing dust, blazing sun, and triple-digit temperatures of the American
Southwest were great, but there’s a lot to be said for greenery. And trees. For
starters, there’s the physical comfort offered by shade as well as the psychological
comfort of feeling surrounded by life when you’re on isolated roads for 8 hours
a day. Maybe the former will help with the wicked bike glove tan lines I’m
rocking these days. The newfound freshness of the air is invigorating. The passing
logging trucks smell much better than the trucks passing us the last 3
weeks. Even the roadkill smells better. Maybe
it’s my imagination, but I’m also picking up on a direct correlation between
abundance of vegetation and desirability of nearby towns. If Lordsburg, Sierra
Blanca, Sanderson and, more recently, Johnson City, Brenham, and New Waverly are
any indication, then my story checks out.
Tomorrow we’ll pick up in
Kerrville to cover our missing rides. I’m excited to get those behind us and
return to our normal routine.
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| From my favorite stretch of road today in Sam Houston National Forest |
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| A rare action shot actually captured by the GoPro - George jumping on the bike |
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| Crossing Lake Conroe in Sam Houston National Forest |
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