Today’s theme was elevation.

I’m going to show off the Strava shot first, to provide data for the story.

We left town for today’s 48 smiler through Staunton, although the route did hit some new roads getting out of town. They all went up, so I got my heart pumping pretty quickly.

As you can see from the picture, there was plenty of sun today, not to mention humidity. Pretty sure I’ll never want to move to Virginia.

Once we got out of town, we were treated to a wonderful ride. We were on quiet backroads with very little traffic, and great views. As Cynthia said, it was idyllic and pastoral. Farms, immense fields of grain and corn, and hills dotted with cows.

Right after the view, we moved into a valley, with the road running over more rolling hills. These were actually a reprieve, because the hills getting to this point were pretty uncomfortable. I have spent a lot of time grinding upward on this trip, my lizard brain telling my conscious brain that we are all very uncomfortable and should stop immediately. But my conscious brain is better than that, realizes that my body is indeed doing just fine, and keeps on pedaling. I win, lizard brain!

By mile 22 it was very sunny and very hot, and I was very tired of climbing. I’d promised myself I’d stop and wait for Cynthia at the next turn onto a new road, but I heard from someone else when I got there that there was a good stop just ahead, so I continued on faith and hearsay.

And I’m so glad I did. Riders were pulling into a driveway for a small winery, and what an oasis. They hadn’t expected us as it turned out, but welcomed us all (maybe 20 while I was there), offered free wine slushies, plenty of tap water, and a real bathroom. I got a small red wine slushie and posted up on the covered porch to wait.

Cynthia showed up not long after, and we got some cheese and crackers, then the wife of the owner couple brought us pretzels too. It was a really nice break, and I felt ready to take on the last half of the ride.

That stop worked out well, and not just because I got to see not one but two cats (from afar) and a whole herd of groundhogs. It ended up being the division between a morning of climbing and an afternoon of descending. The weather and the scenery remained much the same as we began heading back towards Staunton. Then the clouds became apparent.

Spoiler alert, it was. It took a while to cross paths, but eventually it started to sprinkle. I was wondering what to do when I noticed a church with a side door and overhang, so I took a quick left and pushed my bike up the grassy hill. Cynthia appeared a couple minutes later and I called her over. Just as she was coming up the hill the rain began in earnest, and we waited it out in relative comfort.

We only had to wait about 20 minutes and we were able to get underway again, wheeling back out on to the soaked, steaming pavement. I got pretty nervous at this point, because wet roads and skinny tires aren’t a great match. We were running down some great gradual and curvy descents, and had it been dry I would have enjoyed it greatly. As it was I tried to keep my speed down and took the curves carefully.

Not long after moving into the zone of unknown limits, all of a sudden I realized the pavement was completely dry. Then I did get to enjoy some free and windy downhills. Such a relief after all the slow work of the morning.

Eventually I started to recognize road names again, and the end was near. I’d ridden ahead today, going my own pace, so I got back into camp about 15 or 20 minutes before Cynthia. I was just about to head for the showers when she came in.

After I got cleaned up I had some time to sit in the shade, facing the delicious breeze. I didn’t do anything; no phone, no book, just watching the tree leaves flutter and listening to the birds.

We had Italian tonight, and I did get something with fairly minimal cheese. Then it was off to the laundromat to refresh the clothes supply. I usually bring enough for four days but wash after three. I always feel good after getting that done.

When we got back to the campsite we decided to take a look around the abandoned buildings that sit on top of a hill next to the field we’re all parked in. This was our last chance, as we’re moving to Harrisonburg tomorrow morning.

As always, I’m fascinated by how a large beautiful building is one day just locked and walked away from. It’s strange to see something that was once built with so much detail just left to nature.

After we got back to the tents, I did some reading up on the site.

It was once called the DeJarnette Sanitarium, named for the doctor who commissioned it, Joseph DeJarnette. It is not a particularly cheery history, as the buildings once housed the mentally ill, and Dr. DeJarnette had an unfortunate belief in eugenics. The building was closed in 1996. Check out the Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commonwealth_Center_for_Children_and_Adolescents?wprov=sfti1

Today’s was a long, fairly challenging, but immensely satisfying ride, definitely my favorite so far. Tomorrow morning we’ll pack up, drive about a half hour over to Harrisonburg, and set up for the next three days. We’re looking at the 35 mile route as long as the timing and weather work. At this very moment the forecast doesn’t look stellar, but I don’t have a ton of faith in forecasts these days.

Well, pondering it won’t help, so it’s off to sleep. Just have to wait and find out what tomorrow brings!