Today was an easy ride of 46.6 miles to Slidell. A lot of the ride was on the Tammany Trace Bike Trail. It’s nice to not to worry about traffic. I met a former ER doc and his wife on the trail. She had a flat tire and I was able to supply a pump so she could make it home. Then a little later, I stopped on the trail and was looking at my GPS and iPhone when I heard a someone way down the path say, “think he’s all right and knows where he’s going?”. I said yes and yes and they laughed. It’s funny how far voices carry. They stopped and we chatted a while. They were shocked when I told them I’d ridden from San Diego and was headed to St. Augustine. Here’s the map from today and some pictures.

After I got to Slidell and ate late lunch at a cajun place, I checked in to the Motel 6. I started updating my blog and my computer was down to 12% and popping up warning messages. Ever the optimist, I called the Best Buy here and the gal said they had the right power supply with the newer connector. I hopped on my bike and used my GPS to navigate to the store. When I turned the corner into the mall, there were no signs for Best Buy and no cars in the parking lot. Dammit! I called them and they said they were in a new location, which was only 3 or 4 miles from my motel. I ended up riding an extra 14 miles today on top of my 46 miles, so I ended up with 60 miles. The good news is the power supply is the right one! It was going to be a pain to keep the blog going using just my phone.

Here’s the maps and some photos:

 

A pretty pond at a McMansion. Boats! Water! Nice change from the pine trees. Look at the 4 story boat garage in the center left of the picture. Love the cypress trees with their spooky moss.

Looking down the Tammany Trace bike trail

Here’s Barry, the former ER doc. His wife took off as soon as we got her tire pumped up in case it went flat again. They live close to the trail.

I saw these boaters floating around in the swampy area. The guy standing up was their guide and said they should see some alligators on the trip. Yeeesh!

The part of the trail I rode on was about 12 miles long. Easy rider, no traffic worries. Lacombe has a welcome sign right on the bike trail. Lacombe is where Maya’s parents live.

The trail closes at sundown and the rangers either raise this bridge or gate it. I couldn’t tell.

Here’s the two guys that were checking to see if I was ok. Richard on the left and Ernie on the right. Started this hamburger joint back in 1901.

 

Tomorrow, Gulfport, MS. Leaving Lousiana!

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