Go Dawgs!

Today was a relatively easy day compared to the last two. It was cooler and we had a good tailwind for much of the day. After a breakfast consisting of cold pizza, oatmeal, and Starbuck's Mocha Latte in a can (yum) we rolled out just after 7. We had some cloud cover so the temperature was pleasant. My butt and my legs were complaining a bit, but a big long downhill helped to assuage that a bit.

Then, disaster! Once again our RideWithGPS route had us turning onto a gravel road. I suppose with a name like "Seed Tick Road" we should have been suspicious -- had we thought to check. Our choices were difficult. We could take the gravel road -- but it was loose and trecherous. We could backtrack to Lincolnton up the big hill, and extend the day by 12 miles. Or we could continue into unmapped territory and try to rejoin our route. After a lengthy bit of research, we opted for the latter, using Google Maps to make sure all the roads on our revised route were paved. All in all we lost about 4 miles; not too bad.

After that the ride was pretty pleasant. We got a nice tour of Elberton, which as it turns out is the self-proclaimed Granite Capital of the World. We passed literally dozens of granite headstone companies. Apparently Elberton is a good place to die and be buried.

A roadside rest stop with a front row seat

Part of our route took us through the ultra-cool Watson Mill State Park whose centerpiece is a covered bridge over a dammed-up creek.

Into the Abyss

We arrived in Athens about 2 PM after 79 miles. The extra recovery time will be most welcome. Our motels are trending up: this one has Wi-Fi, free breakfast (including, thank God, REAL COFFEE), and yes, even shampoo.

Athens is home to the University of Georgia. So after cleaning up we walked downtown and checked out the UGA campus. At the stadium, Tom -- who is a Florida alum -- tried to get a picture doing the Gator chomp at the site of the archrival Dawgs. Just as we were about to take the photo, a guard came running up waving his arms, saying "no pictures!" It turns out the football team was on the field practicing and they did not want anyone learning their secrets. Sheesh.

The chapel at UGA

We found a pub with non-functional A/C and had a beer, then found a barbecue place with non-functional A/C and had some food.

Finally, I am hoping all you readers back in Houston are safe from Harvey (Tim: you will never live this down!) and that y'all "weather the storm" so to speak.