Today I knew I would be crossing the Fall Line a few miles into the day so I was rather surprised to find quite deep sand within the first 100 yards of starting the day. But it didn't last long. I went back and forth on gravel for awhile, then on clay, then sandy but not too bad. Then I worked my way down to the hills around the Fall Line, which I had forgotten about. Thought I had said goodbye to 12% grades but I found one today. But there weren't many and soon I was on normal undulating terrain for south GA. It soon became apparent that this would be a really windy day today. Mostly out of the northwest. As it so happened, my route took me southeast mostly so had a good day. One of my favorite sayings about the wind is that it's never with you. It's either against you or you're having a good day.
The route today was great. Probably 75% or more of the miles today were unpaved. Only had two closed roads. One I diverted around pretty easily. The other was a road that was swallowed up by erosion and a pond that took over but there weren't any signs so I proceeded and made my way past the pond and followed the power line cut beside the overgrown roadbed to the next road. Turned out it was owned by one of the mining companies and it was closed on that end. Oh well. I made it through.
Eventually I made it to the Ohoopee Dunes WMA and the whole ride I had conjured up visions of a shady spot by the river under a big live oak or something. But I get here and the camping area is at an old homesite surrounded by pine plantation far from the river. There was a little cinder block building there too but I didn't think anything of it. I rode on down as far as I could and on the foot path, toward the Little Ohoopee River. But it was way too swampy and brambly there to get to the edge. So I couldn't even see the river I had ridden all this way to see. I rode back up to the camping area. I was the only one there. Decided to check the door on the little building. It opened, and inside was an mostly empty room with a bare concrete floor. Two space heaters in the corner. Two showers! Two flush toilets! A water heater! And a camp chair! I came here expecting just some flat grass and nothing more but I got to take a hot shower and clean my sunsleeves and jersey, and use a sink and flush toilet! And since no one else is here and it's so windy and going to be cool tonight I am going to do the easy thing and sleep on the floor inside.
After I had taken my shower and washed my things and was hanging them out to dry on the fence in the sun and wind a little suv rolled up and I got to talking to the older gentleman inside. Turns out he grew up on a house on this very spot and he told me all sorts of stories about growing up in this little tight knit community here. He still lives on this road, along with others who grew up here too and still live here. He kind of jumped around but I enjoyed hearing his stories. He told me that he received his first bike on Christmas day right here where we were talking and spent the whole day in frustration trying to ride it in the sugar sand here. We had a chuckle about just how hard it is to ride a bike here.