{"id":22181,"date":"2017-06-02T09:48:18","date_gmt":"2017-06-02T13:48:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=22181"},"modified":"2017-06-07T11:20:58","modified_gmt":"2017-06-07T15:20:58","slug":"day-42-thursday-june-1-grandywalnut-island-north-carolina-to-homevirginia-beach-virginia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=22181","title":{"rendered":"Day 42. Thursday, June 1. Grandy\/Walnut Island, North Carolina to Home\/Virginia Beach, Virginia"},"content":{"rendered":"

A beautiful, low humidity, clear and cool (74\u00b0) morning, perfect way to start the day. \u00a0A quick breakfast stop and we were making forward progress by 6:30.\"\"<\/a> \u00a0The morning was quiet on this usually very busy road, so the sights we’ve seen many times from a car,\"\"<\/a> we were able to enjoy at a much slower pace.\"\"<\/a> \u00a0We did not mind climbing\u00a0the Intercostal bridge this morning,\"\"<\/a> as we knew this would be the last time before reaching home. \"\"<\/a>\u00a0A few last glimpses of the North Carolina\"\"<\/a> countryside\"\"<\/a> and on to the ferry \"\"<\/a>over the Currituck Sound. \"\"<\/a>\u00a0Nine years ago on this ferry ride, we were hot and dragging tired; this cool morning was a wonderful treat for our temperament.\"\"<\/a> \u00a0And then these two characters\u00a0were waiting for us at the other end.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0Our homebound escorts had biked\u00a0less than four miles,\u00a0when\u00a0they had to stop to eat. \u00a0We calculated that at this rate, it will\u00a0take us seven hours\u00a0to bike the remaining 40 miles. \u00a0Finally<\/em>, four hours after we left<\/em>\u00a0this morning, we could add to the miles we had already pedaled.<\/p>\n

The causeway \"\"<\/a>that connects Knotts Island to Virginia is always pretty,\"\"<\/a> but especially so, this morning.\"\"<\/a>\u00a0 And at the end, a welcome sight,\"\"<\/a> Virginia Beach and \"\"<\/a>horses.<\/p>\n

The wind had changed from west, to northwest to northeast, but our route was no straight line, so sometimes we could feel it and other times not. \u00a0But the laughs and general distraction,\"\"<\/a> that Morgan and Kurt provided,\u00a0and maybe a little drafting assistance,<\/em>\u00a0had the miles flying by.<\/p>\n

At 50 miles, we stopped at one of our favorite Sunday morning ride, breakfast cafes; turns out they do an excellent lunch, too. \u00a0One last little bridge to traverse \"\"<\/a>and we dropped into the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. \u00a0Though we’ve rode it a million times, it is only fair to show pictures of this tourist strip\"\"<\/a> versus the last several hundred (or so it seems)\"\"<\/a> that we have biked through on this tour.<\/p>\n

As we turned west for our last four miles to home, the wind gifted us with a nice push; we practically sprinted home,\"\"<\/a>flying by\u00a0these guys on the way. \u00a0Turned out to be 68 miles to get here and even with an ice cream stop, we made it by 3:00.\u00a0\"\"<\/a>We could not be happier to be home!<\/p>\n\n\t\t