Day 37: Sunday, 4/12/15, Opelousas, LA (68º with light rain at 5:45 am) to St Francisville, LA (73º at 2:00 pm) 69 miles, elevation changes: +984/-853.

Theme of the Day: The first real rainy day and crossing the Mississippi River. I left at 7:45 in a gentle rain. It was reasonably warm at 68º. I am SO glad that I now have my rear fender back.

I was excited as I peddled off into the rain because Abigail, our third daughter, and Mitch, her boyfriend, were coming to visit, staying for dinner and returning tomorrow on our rest day to go site seeing and to have lunch together. (I am writing this on Monday morning, 4/13/15 in the middle of severe thunderstorms on our rest day. I am so thankful we are not riding this morning. It is pouring.)

Bike Stats: 68.8 miles ridden in 4 hours and 49 minutes of actual biking averaging 14.3 mph with a maximum speed of 28.3 mph. It was again a really flat riding day.

Highlights:

• Successfully peddling through my first true rainy day. It didn’t rain all day long, nor really that hard, but on and off for at least half the day. I did get plenty wet.
• Crossing the Mississippi River. I feel like I am now truly back east.
• The excitement and fun of Abigail and Mitch coming to visit for dinner and site seeing tomorrow in St. Francisville.
• Seeing the entrances to several old southern plantations. One was the Oak Planation.
• Staying at Camp Marydale, a girl scout’s camp where we are staying for two nights.

It was a true rainy day. Taken from my iPhone mounted on my bike under the fairing as I rode on LA old route 190. There were no cars on this road. It is privately owned. We got special permission to ride this road.

LA Old Rt. 190 has bayous on both sides. I didn’t see any alligators, but I did see blue hereon, lots of egrets and other birds.

In the middle of the John James Audubon Bridge crossing the Mississippi River.

A barge emerging from under the bridge. The Mississippi River is very wide at this point in LA.

The entrance to the Oak Plantation in St. Francisville and the tree lined road leading into the plantation house that I couldn’t see from the road.

I am sleeping in a cabin, not my tent, at Camp Marydale. This is a picture Abigail took of the cabin next to my cabin, through the screen. My cabin is just like this one. It's called Owl's Roost.

My bunk bed in Owl's Roost. I slept on the bottom.

Abigail, Mitch and me at Camp Marydale.

Ab and me.

I hope you don't mind all the pictures. I had lots of time this morning (Monday, 4/13/15) to write this blog as I waited for Ab and Mitch to return for lunch and site seeing with the rain pouring down.)

Make it a great day!

John