Today’s Date: August 2, 2024

Today’s Start Point: Richmond, Virginia

Today’s End Point: Surrey, Virginia

Today’s Miles: 59.40 Miles

Cumulative Miles: 4,600 Miles

When I woke up I knew it would be hot, there was a heat advisory with heat indexes over 100 degrees. When I stepped out of the door of the hotel, I immediately started sweating and that was at 6:00 am.

With Matt and Tom heading home, there was nothing more for me to do but get on my way. Outside of the temperature, I was excited for today since the first 50 miles of my route would be on the Virginia Capital Trail. I had actually been on the trail a few years ago with Jimmy Ward when we came to Richmond to watch the UCI Cycling World Championships.

It took me a minute to find the trailhead, but once on the trail it was easy to move along. It’s a beautiful trail that at times winds through woods, hugs the roadway and passes by antebellum mansions. If it wasn’t so hot, this would have been a great day. As long as I kept moving, the breeze created by my forward movement made it tolerable. If I stopped, it was a different story.

Along the trail there was a place to stop called Spokes and Art. It’s a combination cafe, art gallery (with mostly cycling themed art) and bike store. Very cool place addressing all of my basic needs.

After the cafe stop, the end of the trail was only two miles away at Jamestown Settlement. Everyone already knows this, but let me mansplain (through the wonderful world of Wikipedia):

“The Jamestown settlement in Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James River, about 2.5 mi southwest of present-day Williamsburg. It was established on May 4, 1607.”

At the site there is now the Jamestown Settlement, a living history museum. It includes a recreation of the original James Fort, a Powhatan Native American town, indoor and outdoor displays, and replicas of the original settlers’ ships. I wish I had more time, it looks like a worthwhile stop.

At the end of the trail is a free ferry that took me across the James River to Surrey County, Virginia. After the brutal heat, the 20 minute trip across the river was wonderfully refreshing. It was a nice but unfortunately relatively quick respite from the heat.

The good news was that once I made it across the river, my lodging was only a couple of miles away. Tonight’s lodging was not my usual Motel 6/unnamed hellhole, but was in a marina. My room is one of four rooms over The Surrey Seafood Co., a nice restaurant with an understandably good seafood menu.

This is the perfect place to recover after today’s heat. Nice room, nice view, and a place to eat right downstairs. Tomorrow looks more of the same but the next two days of riding will not be long miles.