Hank – I woke up tired and feeling run down and I didn’t feel like riding. But I did anyway because that’s what we do. State highway 3 is a designated bike route and the wide shoulder reflected that. After nine miles we came to a point where Google maps recommended an alternate route. It was a gravel road so we stayed on the highway.

We stopped in Wyoming, Connecticut to eat. I felt a little better afterwards. The once closed highway beyond Wyoming was just opened to one lane and we squeaked by to continue on to New London. We had to get off Highway 3 when it turned south. I stopped in at a small restaurant to get a local read on my directions. The lady there asked me if I saw the sign on the door. (See the photo) Then she said it was a joke. We followed a pretty country road until we hit State Highway 184, which we then followed almost the rest of the way.

Reaching Groton we found the pedestrian/bike path crossing the Thames River was closed due to construction. We waited for the shuttle bus and Kevin soon arrived to haul us across the bridge. Instead of unloading our bikes he said to just bring them on board. When he dropped us off he gave us directions to downtown and added a word of caution about some areas. We appreciated that. We stopped at a small shop to get a gift for our WarmShowers host. Kathy met Giovanni in the shop who was very interested in out adventure. He recommended we eat at Fat Boy’s. He knows the owner, Ron, and said they would take care of us. He was right. The food and drink there was delicious. After eating we rolled over to Richard’s house. He lives right on the shore next to a lighthouse. He’s a woodworker and the house makes use of his talents. Interestingly, he has an outdoor shower. After showing us around he ran to the store and Kathy and I took turns in the shower. We sat up and chatted with Richard who has toured all over the US and Europe. He’s headed to Vietnam next. At 68 years old he is still going strong.

Tomorrow we take the 8:00 am ferry to Long Island.

Kathy – Today Hank was not feeling the best and I was concerned about the 2,000 feet of elevation we had to do today.  This is our third day back on the bikes and and my legs were somewhat sore so I wasn’t sure how the elevation would go.  I was pleasantly surprised that it went fabulously.  We did a ton of climbing throughout the day but conditions could not have been better for the day.  We rode 43 miles in crisp cool weather.  Blue sky’s and the warm sun greeted us.  Even with all the hills, it was a very enjoyable ride.

We finished up Rhode Island our 20th state, and moved on to Connecticut our 21st state!  Planted my flowers seeds in both states as well.  The ride through these two states was very beautiful.  It was a mix of extremely busy city roads with hilly country areas, and occasional farmlands that quickly reminded us of their wonderful odors.  We seen lots of beer cans on the side of the roads out West and in the Midwest, but here we seen tons of those little empty alcohol bottles littering the roads.  Maybe they prefer the stronger stuff here.  We did not see too many dead animals on the side of the road, but I did see five live snakes! Yikes!  So happy I quickly swerved each time to avoid running over them.

After taking the month break in riding, we are getting back into our grove.  I have enjoyed the rain, wind and elevation these past three days, and tolerated nicely the sore bum and legs.  I have kept a positive attitude regardless of what difficulties come our way.  I have had Hank by my side and we have enjoyed our time together.  We have had warm beds at night, food to nourish and fuel our bodies, and have seen beautiful country and met great people.  It’s tough some days but worth it in the end.

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