Day 6 – Mechanicsville, VA to Mineral, VA

61 miles
June 1, 2006

I had a late start today, making the most of my room for the night. I rode along for an uneventful hour or two until I came to Ashland, VA. There’s a road through this town where the two lanes are split down the middle by railroad tracks, and I think three trains passed while I was there. I stopped at the library there and updated my journal.

The rest of the riding this afternoon was uneventful – simple wooded country roads with occasional farms and homes. I saw a couple dead of snakes, and passed the old homestead of Patrick Henry – first Governor of Virginia, famous speech maker, and all in all righteous colonial dude.

The terrain is getting more hilly as I make my way inland out of the flat coastal regions. I should be in the Appalachians soon – it’ll be fun to feel and experience the gradual changes in the landscape as I roll across the continent.

Tonight I’m staying at a volunteer fire company in a town called Mineral. There’s a great group of cyclists here, doing a section of Virginia – Paul, Emilee, Jeannie, Rod, and Jesse – they treated me to an excellent dinner! Jesse is 25 and drives a support van for them. He has that thing hooked up! It was a great evening sitting out and talking with Jesse and his dad, Rod. We even fit in a game of chess.

A thunderstorm rolled through earlier, but it was all bark and no bite… sort of disappointing, in a way. Life is good.