Last night, I caught up with a Coast Guard colleague by phone: Captain Shawn Lansing, who is Commander of Sector Charleston.  Shawn and I cycled together when I was on active duty.  It was great to catch up with him.

After yesterday’s long ride, my legs were still a bit fatigued today.  Fortunately, winds were calmer today until later in the afternoon.  And traffic was very light… for much of the ride I was the only one on the road.  And most of the roads did not have bicycling lanes or medians.

My first challenge today involved unleashed dogs.  I had a trio of dogs pursue me. One large, one medium, and one small.  As I rode on, I talked very nicely to the large dog—a pit bull—and it began wagging its tail.  The medium dog followed suit.  The pocket dog—clearly the alpha of the pack—keep pursuing me but didn’t try to bite.

Later in the ride, a pack of seven or eight dogs came running at me.  Most seemed vicious by nature so I used my command voice to try to keep them off of me.  They surrounded me on both sides but I kept my cool and continued to yell.  After almost a quarter of a mile, I heard a loud pitch emanating from one of the dog’s collars and could hear their owner yelling.  Apparently that was a signal for the dogs to return home to which they reluctantly complied.

Other than dogs, I saw horses, cows, goats, and chickens.  And I snuck up on a few wild turkeys grazing near the medians.

Also, I experienced a few swarms of biting flies.  It’s amazing how they can buzz around me while I’m going along at 15 miles per hour.  I was only bitten once.  Their bite is instantly painful and the welt lasts for several days.  Guess it’s better than getting bit by a dog!

My second challenge was a 3-mile gravel road.  I am always leery on gravel because the sharp edges can puncture a tire. And smaller gravel gets spun in between the tires and the metal fenders, creating a distinctive high pitched pinging sound that so annoying.  And dust covers the bike, which isn’t helpful to the drive train.

Touring cyclists look for signs of upcoming urban development.  Water towers have become my friends:

I couldn’t figure out what these houses were used for.  They were located in the middle of nowhere.  I assume that they’re some type of worker accommodations?

Self portrait:

Today’s tally: 52 miles