Raleigh to Charleston: Sunny Days

You never know what to expect from a WarmShowers host (food, sleeping arrangements, personalities, politics), but this is all part of the fund and adventure, and I am generally happy to have some company at the end of the day.  My WS hosts from Raleigh to Charleston were not only kind and generous, but also inspirational.  

I spent my first night leaving Raleigh in a small town called La Grange, NC  with David, his mother, sister, and niece.  Upon arrival he brought me into the kitchen where a huge vegetarian meal was laid out on the counter.  After a 70 mile ride I couldn't imagine anything better.  While eating, David's mother, Wanna, came in the kitchen to offer me some ham.  I politely declined, and then she mentioned that David is a vegan and that all the food on counter was vegan.  Even better.

The picture doesn't do this meal justice.

After dinner David and I sat around a fire, telling stories and drinking Fat Tire in the backyard.  In the mid 90s David gave up his desk job and has hiked the Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail, the Continental Divide Trail,  and biked across the country since.  David looks 15-20 years younger than he actually is, so he seems to be doing something right.  And he has a lot of good stories.  The AT, I was told, is the most social hiking trail and apparently involves a surprising amount of beer drinking.  So now the appeal of doing the AT is even greater.  Maybe all 3?   After a good night's sleep (David gave up his bed for me) and a good breakfast, I hit the rode with hopes of seeing David again in Tucson where he will be visiting his father for the winter.  

Next I rode to Newport NC on my way to Hammocks Beach State Park.  Newport is a small town just south of Havelock, NC which has a large military presence made obvious by the fighter jets zipping around overhead.  I knew this WS experience was going to be different right away.  Upon arrival Alex and his son, Cooper, a very lively 6 year old, came up to greet me. I noticed Cooper was wearing a Boy Scouts uniform so I asked him about it.  Even before saying hello Cooper said "The church doesn't allow Boy Scouts anymore because they let the gays in."  I wasn't sure what to say, and Alex changed the subject.    

We went inside, where I met the rest of the family, 9 year old brother, Ian, mom, and grandma and grandpa.  After a shower we had dinner, preceded by a prayer with an emphasis on keeping me safe on my journey.  Dinner was southern style:  ham, sweet potatoes, cabbage, and beans.  Yes, I ate a piece of ham.  After Grandma made a comment blaming Obama for something, I didn't want to rock the boat, and I was hungry.    

The rest of the evening was spent boxing and playing the latest Halo with Cooper, Ian, and Alex.  Halo is a a shoot em up video game for those of you non-gamers. Far different from Atari/Nintendo days I am familiar with.  Alex offered to let me sleep in the living room, but by 9PM I was ready for bed and Cooper and Ian were most certainly not. I opted to sleep in the shed in the backyard.

At 7:30AM Cooper was knocking on the shed door in his underwear.  Mom and Dad had gone to work, Mom took Ian with her, and Grandma and Grandpa were still asleep.  Cooper helped me pack up my stuff and then we played more Halo. Grandma woke up shortly after and made some liver mush, which is apparently a common food in the south.  Cooper ate it right up, I opted for a granola bar. Grandma was understanding.

Next stop was Hammocks Beach State Park.  The park is about 1,100 acres made up of a few islands, the biggest being Bear Island, and only accessible by boat.  I lucked out and got the last campsite available and took the ferry over.  Others campers were mostly fisherman, and one group of friendly college students from Raleigh I got to meet before dark.  

The night was perfectly clear and cold, and without any trees to hang my tent hammock I slept under the magnificent stars in the sand.  There was ice on my sleeping bag when I woke up, but my bag and every piece of clothing I have kept me warm.  During the night I was awoken by 3 different species of owl: Barred, Great Horned, and Screech.   There is an abundance of wildlife on the island.   The beach is a nesting ground for sea turtles and dozens of dolphins were visible catching fish just off the beach.    

Sunrise

Sunset

My camp in the lower left.  A short walk to the beach over the sand dune in the foreground.

Flicker feather (I think) in the sand. 

Google Maps failed me for the first time the next day when a man with a machine gun wouldn't let me pass on route 172  through Camp Lejeune.  Apparently a background check is required to go on the state road that passes through the military base  adding 15 miles to my day on some high traffic roads.  That night I slept in the Holly Shelter Game Land and didn't get much rest.  I heard a few gun shots just after dark that spooked me and I could hear deer huffing and snorting all night (mating season).

I was happy to arrive in Wilmington's touristy historic waterfront, filled with shops, people and restaurants.  Wilmington is home to one of the most fun and interesting WS hosts, Paul and Phyllis.  Paul spent 3 years sailing around the world and after meeting Phyllis they took a bicycle trip around France.  They were leaving on a 4 month sailing trip to the Bahamas just a few days after I arrived.  Their friend, Judy from Raleigh, was also visiting and we had a great dinner and watched the World Series.  Phyllis doesn't like to cook but put together what she called her standard WarmShowers pasta dinner with garlic bread, salad, and brownies.  All of it tasted very good to me.

Phyllis was planning to take Judy to Masonboro Island, an undeveloped barrier island south of Wrightsville Beach, the next day on her motorboat.  She offered to take me along and then suggested I spend the night in the sailboat, which was docked about 20 miles south of Wilmington.  How could I refuse such an offer?  I had a great time on the trip to Masonboro. Phyllis is a skilled boat driver and we had a nice walk on a beautiful beach. After lunch and a short ride to Carolina Beach, I spent the night at the marina on the sailboat.  My most unique accommodations to date! 

Judy,Phyllis, and Mason (dog) pulling onto Masonboro Island. Phyllis was paying close attention to the tides as she has learned the hard way that if you leave your boat in shallow water and the tide is going out your boat will be stuck on the beach after your walk.

My bike in front of Paul and Phyllis's  sail boat.  I slept great. 

From Carolina Beach I did a long flat 95 mile ride to Huntington Beach State Park through Myrtle Beach.  I am getting accustomed to riding on busy roads without shoulders, but some sections of route 17 in the Myrtle Beach area were difficult. On the bright side, I found a nice American flag for my bike on the side of the road.  If you ever need any hats, shirts, towels, gloves, straps, bungee chords, wire, cones, flags, tires, money (mostly change but I found a $20 bill once), flagging tape, tools, or beer cans take a 10-20 mile bike ride down a busy highway and you will find all you need.

Riding into SC through Myrtle Beach I was temped by signs advertising $29 hotel rooms and the sight of people swimming in the ocean.  I decided to press on since people had told me how nice Huntington Beach State Park was.  I arrived at 7PM in the dark.  At the park office I was told it was $36/night to camp.  I told the lady about the $29 hotel rooms and her response was "the camp site comes with full electric, water and sewer hookup".   I was wearing  bike helmet so I am not sure what she thought I would do with a sewer hookup.   She said there were no other camping options so I found a place to camp down the road in the woods.  I came back and watched the sunrise on the beach for breakfast.

The next night I camped at Honey Hill camp in Francis Marion National Forest outside of Charleston.  The forest is huge and has endless stands of long leaf pines and forest roads.  I found out the hard way that not all these roads are good for riding. I had to walk my bike on one 3 mile stretch that was too sandy to ride, but I was rewarded with some beautiful forest road riding.   There was no water at the camp, but a picnic table and some friendly company.  Alex from Iowa, who told me you can make a whole lot of money installing headstones, was driving around the south, and David and Gail from England/New Zealand rented a camper van and were touring all of the US.

Forest road riding in Francis Marion National Forest

The ride into Charleston, SC is marked by coming over the New Cooper River Bridge, a massive cable stay bridge with a great pedestrian/ bike way.  I stopped multiple times on the bridge to marvel at it and was delighted to find out my WS host in Charleston fought with a local cycling advocacy group to make sure pedestrian/bike way was included in the design and final construction.  Kudos to them!

The New Cooper River bridge connection Mt Pleasant to Charleston from the bike path.  Very cool experience to ride on and look up at the massive cables. Note my new flag.

When I thought my WS host experiences couldn't get any better, Lenny in Charleston proved me wrong.  Lenny lives in an up and coming development in North Charleston that has its own club with a saltwater pool, gym, restaurant and bar, all a short walk from his house.  His level of generosity made me uncomfortable at first, but I am getting used to it and I needed a rest.  I couldn't have found a better place and host for that.   I spent one day riding around Charleston and today resting and relaxing with a little yoga and time at the pool.      

Pool side at Lenny's place.