5/6/01
Sunday's ride was something of a novelty at this point, because I got to enjoy about fifteen miles of relatively flat road before I began to climb into Lexington. Lexington is a really cool town, which houses the Virginia Military Institute and Washington and Lee University. The surrounding areas grew gradually more developed as I once again moved into farmland.
I decided to go somewhat off my route because I wanted to see Virginia's version of a natural land bridge. I was a bit put off by the road there, which was a steep downhill. Since I knew that I would have to climb back up the hill in about thirty minutes, I wasn't exactly thrilled with the grade. The bridge itself was disappointingly touristy, so I didn't dawdle, but I was glad I went to see it. Here, let me save you a few bucks:
After checking out this formation, I began the steep climb back out of the valley. I was flagged down by an old man in a Cadillac, and when I stopped he asked me to take a picture of him next to the cheesiest, tackiest, most-touristy sign in Virginia, which encourages passing motorists to visit Natural Bridge, and while you're at it, check out the wax museum and miniature golf course! I took the picture and fended off a few questions about my trip, then started pedaling. The guy stood on the side of the road in a pair of neon pink pants, shouting "Just pretend you're Lewis and Clark! Just pretend you're Lewis and Clark! You have to get back and report to Jefferson! Just remember that! Go to Oregon!" He was still shouting that when I crested the hill, and let me tell you, that hill took quite a while.
This is what a waterfall looks like, if you wait until you're past it because you didn't want to stop on a downhill:
I had to climb a bit more to reach Troutville, where I camped in the city park. I had to make a few calls to reach the park's groundskeeper, who called the Sheriff's Department and told them not to bother me. I set up my tent on the park's volleyball court and talked with some of the people walking around the park, then the groundskeeper came and locked the gate for the night. All in all, it was great, but there were a few trains that came through around 2:00 am. They weren't that bad though, since living in New York has desensitized my eardrums to that kind of thing. There might have been gunshots too, but I tuned those out as well.