The day began at 4 a.m. with a sore throat. I woke up and gave myself a Covid test. Negative. I went back to bed for a couple more hours then trudged downstairs for breakfast and a section be Covid test. Negative.
Feeling lousy I resisted the urge to crawl back to bed. I read the newspaper then loaded up The Mule for the first day of my 2,500 mile adventure.
I managed to forget only one thing, eye drops for glaucoma. NBD.
Today’s ride began in Mount Vernon, Virginia and ended in Linthicum, Maryland just came south of Baltimore where I would stay with Mark with whom I toured in 2019 and 2022.
At 10 a.m., I took suburban streets to the Mount Vernon Trail. Using the 14th Street bridge I crossed the Potomac River into DC. After passing the Jefferson memorial I picked up some cycletracks and trails that went passed the Wharf, Fort McNair, Audi Field, and Nationals Park to the new Frederick Douglass Bridge over the Anacostia.
Because Mark lives well to the east of the Adventure Cycling Atlantic Coast route, I cobbled together my route from my knowledge of DC area trails and a ride event I did many years ago.
The past ride was the Monument to Monument event in which riders go from the Washington Monument in DC to the one in Baltimore and back. I found the cue sheet from that ride buried in a file in my basement.
Today’s ride featured comfortable temperatures, some high haze caused by Canadian wildfires, some rolling hills, and a light headwind.
Miles today: 58.5
My path followed bike trails along the river north many miles to Edmonston, Maryland where I switched to the Monuments cue sheet.
I followed the cues until about 1 1/2 miles from Mark’s place where I switched to Google maps for the rest of the ride.
Since I had done nearly the entire ride before it was not a particularly exciting ride.
I stopped in Bladensburg for lunch and a couple more times for snacks. My cold and the sheer weight of my loaded bike made me far more tired than I had anticipated.
After only a single missed turn, I made it to Mark’s house by 4:30. Mark’s wife Tracy made a pot roast feast. Mark and I told tall tales about our bike adventures.
At 10 p.m. I crawled upstairs for some shut eye and Advil PM.
Today was a bit of a slog. Hopefully this cold will fade away in a day or two.
Tour miles: 58.5
A Few Spokes Shy of a Wheel 
Oh no! Not a great start, but a respectful start nonetheless. And a good feast with a good friend.