Day 47 - Kerrville to Camp Wood

Sunday. May 2.

Today was my Groundhog Day, and also the day I learned a compact double isn't really meant for touring.

The guys at the bike shop had told us that the next stretch of riding would be the toughest in the Texas Hill Country. Within the first few miles we saw the signs.


We were riding along the Guadalupe River, and my big Texas map showed that we'd cross it once or twice, and then drift south into the hills.

As we passed the river for the second time, I said to Jake "should be the last river crossing". Not so. We probably passed over the river another twelve times.

Eventually, we did reach the hills and did so with a wind in our face.


We then turned south on Farm Road 187, where we feared for the worst.



Luckily, this stretch was pretty good, the hills were moderate, and the wind was actually coming from the north-west so we even had a little help from the wind.

We then passed by the Lost Maples Recreation Area, which looked pretty sweet. Many riders choose this as a stopping point for the evening, and for good reason.


The town of Vanderpool came and went in the blink of an eye, and we turned west again where we met by far the steepest hill of our journey. It was only about a mile long, but was an 8% grade into the wind. With an empty bike an 8% hill is real but not outrageous. With loaded bags, I quickly reached my smallest gear and wished I had more. A lot more. My current bike has what is called a 'compact double' on it. That means there are only two rings at the front, but they are smaller than the rings on a standard road bike. Almost every touring bicycle will have 3 rings up front. The smallest ring is often called the 'granny gear', but it makes even the steepest hills bearable. Not so for me. I had to stand up and crank. As hard as I have ever cranked. Probably 90% of my time on this hill I was pedaling while standing up, which burns the legs and the lungs. I was huffing and puffing and screaming and yelling. Wow, this really hurts. Eventually, I reached the top where I let out some strange mix of laugh/scream/cry in the middle of my panting.


And then I saw this...


Luckily, the subsequent hills were much more manageable. We made it to Leakey, and then continued 21 miles more to Camp Wood, TX. When we finally pulled into town, we realized we had ridden 88 miles through some serious hills, with wind in our face, and a pretty warm temperature too. Most likely the toughest day of riding I've encountered.

We set up camp along a river and fell asleep before it was completely dark. I was wiped out, but the Texas Hill Country is behind us.





Day 47 - 88.09 Miles
Trip to Date - 2576.21 miles
Coast to Coast - 1573.76 miles