Woke up late this morning 6:40. No worries still be out the door by 7:30. Breakfast in the motel, nice layout. Meet a Nick cycling the East to west coast route. Been riding a couple of weeks and only gotten this far. He asks me about my trip and I give him the run down. An average of 75 miles a day surprises him, especially as I’m carrying 110lb, 50Kg (bike & gear) plus food and water. He wishes me the best and says enjoy the wind on your back today. That’s not how I read the weather this morning.
Get away at 8, have to pull over after 15 minutes. Don my rain jacket and gloves. Strong, cold headwinds, grey sky. Definitely not a tailwind. Keep my head down and pedal on, It’s going to be a very long day I suspect. Pretty uneventful morning. Roads are terrible the worst since leaving Ukraine. Uneven and littered with debris. Take lunch in a petrol station, hot coffee is good but no fruit for sale in gas stations. Must have been spoilt across Asia.
£0 miles to go and I spot my first alligator. No worries it’s flat on the road, does make me think about where I take a leak though.
18 miles to go and I turn right with the wind on my shoulder. Much nicer but I know the last six is back into the wind.
The approach into New Orleans is horrid, busy roads and gusting headwinds. Approaching The Huey P Long Bridge I notice no hard shoulder. Trying to cycle close to the wall in a straight line isn’t easy with large vehicles passing close and a strong gusting wind. It’s not a short bridge either. Glad to have survived I ride the last couple of miles gingerly through the traffic.
Ron’s Gumbo shop for dinner. Excellent Gumbo and fried alligator starter.