Captain Mark and Sidekick Sue spent the whole day yesterday in their hotel room. They did laundry and repacked their bags, surfed the internet, and watched lots of TV. Although a huge storm system was supposed to pass through, it seemed to pass a tiny bit north of where they were in Ocean City, MD, so all they saw was some short periods of fairly light rain. Even so, they thought it was the right choice to take this day of rest to recover their muscles and catch up on their sleep.
Due to hurricane Ian, numerous bands of rain continue to swirl about the area. The Explorers had already decided to leave today, despite the predicted rain. They made a plan to get up early and try to get most of the ride done in the morning when the rain was predicted to be the lightest. Captain Mark was able to convince Sidekick Sue to ride in the rain by promising a warm hotel at the end of the ride instead of pitching a tent in the rain.
So this morning, they started down a fairly busy divided highway. It wasn’t really raining, but it was very misty. Every so often a spitting rain would start to fall. Before long, they cut down some side roads and once again, saw the same scenery they had been seeing on the whole peninsula….. corn fields, pea farms, and some occasional housing developments. As they had been on previous days, the roads were relatively flat and very isolated.
Sidekick Sue and Captain Mark had an “aha” moment during their ride today. The peninsula they have been on for the last few days is the Delmarva peninsula. Sidekick Sue had been seeing the name Delmarva everywhere…. on businesses and signs. It suddenly dawned on them that Delmarva stands for Delaware-Maryland-Virginia, the three states that share this peninsula. In fact the Explorers should be crossing into Virgina on their next ride. They will continue to the tip of the peninsula for the next few days before taking a shuttle across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.
The Explorers bike nearly 40 miles today. Their first stop was at the only gas station/convenience store they saw today. The second was in front of a community center, and the third in front of a firestation in Girdletree, MD. There were no signs of any restaurants, so the Explorers snacked on protein bars for lunch.
Captain Mark reported that their pace today was 12 mph, which was better than previous days. (not an impressive speed, but good for their very heavy-laden tandem bike with its little wheels). The Explorers are unsure if the “day of rest” contributed more to their speed or if it was motivation for not wanting to get stuck in a major rain event. The Explorers were headed to Pokomoke City, MD for the night (which they kept jokingly calling Pokémon City).
Because they started early and cycled a good pace, the Explorers got to their Holiday Inn Express before 1:00 PM without getting drenched. They were wet, but wondered if it was from the light rains and mist or if it was really from sweating inside their rain gear. They ended up managing to miss all the incoming major green blobs on the radar which seemed to keep changing shape in the nick of time.
After warm showers and a fresh change of clothes, the Explorers relaxed a bit before heading out to see what there was to see in Pokomoke City. They ate at a small Italian cafe and then walked around the small downtown area that was mostly closed for Sunday. They walked down to the Pokomoke River which passed through downtown, with the major thoroughfare on a draw bridge over the river. This made the Explorers curious as to how navigable the river is by boat. After a little investigation, they learned that the mouth of the Pokomoke River is on the Chesapeake Bay and it can be navigated approximately 20 miles inland to a point near Snow Hill, MD. After that, the depth decreases dramatically, and only a small boat (with local knowledge) could navigate.
Even after returning to the hotel, the heavy rains that had been predicted never materialized. Of course the predications for the next day call for more rain, but the Explorers hope to set out again in the morning, and with any luck, will have another day like today.
