There was free breakfast at the motel. I met Stephanie there, who was staying for the day. She was formerly a paralegal, but quit to pursue taking care of her mother.
I left the motel at about 8:30 am. I went 4 miles (downhill) to Walmart to look for an SD card reader. It took a while to find one, but it was in the photo section for $10.
I made the decision to follow Highway 16 all the way to Fredericksburg, rather than the Adventure Cycling Map.
On the way to Walmart, it was actually raining slightly. I much prefer light rain to heat.There was traffic on Highway 16, but who cares, when the shoulder is 15 feet wide and smooth?I was off the ACA route, so had no indication of whether there would be any services along the way. A pleasant surprise was D&D Fence Rentals about halfway to Fredericksburg. Not a full convenience store, but they had a few snacks.This looked like a lot for used farm equipment, or possibly a pick and pull.Coming in on the left is Farm Road 2093, which is the route ACA would have taken me over. I had no regrets about taking Hwy 16 directly.
Easy riding day, due to overcast skies, tailwind, and short distance. I reached Fredericksburg at noon.
Fredericksburg has German roots, so a lot of the stores say Willkommen. It’s a tourist destination, and serves a transient population of 1.5 million per year, with 10,000 permanent residents.
As I walked my bike down the main street, I noticed a restaurant called Pasta Bella on a side street. A man came out and offered me bread. I was going in for lunch anyway, so declined. Shaun said I could wheel my bike right into the restaurant. He was the owner, and said that they had bikes inside often. I knew it was a good place as soon as I walked in, because it was packed with a lot of locals my age.
Shaun at Pasta Bella. He said that another cyclist had spontaneously come in 2 weeks ago, doing the reverse direction. From the description, it was Brian.Every day, they have a special for $8.99. On Wednesday, it was Lasagna, Salad, Bread, and Tea.
The skies cleared after lunch, and it got hot. I was glad that I hadn’t tried to go the additional 45 miles to Johnson City.
Dang it! (closed)I visited the Nimitz Museum and War in the Pacific Center. My 2.5 hours there was not nearly enough to see everything. This is a memory garden.Did someone try to kick in my door?The Frederick Motel was listed on the ACA map. At $59 plus tax, reasonable.But here is what I really like about this place.
Tomorrow’s goal, Johnson City. I think I’ll skip the ACA map again, and just take Hwy 290.
