When I hit the orange groves east of LA on day 2, I remember thinking the whole trip would be like this. Trundling absent-mindedly along gentle B-roads, with rolling beautiful countryside for company and sleepy little dorps to break up the day. It’s been nothing like that, it’s not been worse, just very different to the picture I’d imagined.This made today all the more special. The bike had no problems, there was a non-stop light tailwind, and the B-roads rolled gently through one small sleepy town after another. For Forest Gump fans, it feels like I’ve been trapped blissfully in Greenbow, Alabama all day.
Funny thing is when it all goes so well there’s not a whole lot to say. It’s really beautiful round here, in a gentle subtle way. And whilst this has been coming for a while these feel like very old communities. And given much of this coastal region was settled by Brits less than 20 years after the English Civi war, they really are.The town centres are populated and full, there seems to be little in the way of new building doughnuts around strangled cores, and much of the architecture is pure Americana. Clap board house in block colours complete with porches, and rocking chairs out in the shade.
Throw in the swaying corn fields, lush woods and old glory flapping off every veranda and it’s a picture of pure American good times. And best of all it really doesn’t feel forced.
It such a contrast from much of the I-10 corridor. Down there, in an urban context, it can feel relentlessly new. In fact outside of the sparse downtowns you can date the growth exactly; the 60s and the age of universal car ownership, then the late 70s and 80s and the comditisation of air conditioning. It’s interesting in it’s own way, but it love the settled feel round here.So before I bore you all to tears with a history lesson and my misty eyed musings, I’m going to call it a night. Great day all round, fingers crossed it was not a one off.
Route - Hardeeville - Yamasse - Walterboro - Moncks Corner
Breakfast - Motel standards.
Lunch - Japanese Steak and Chicken Stir Fry - Fuji Express, Walterboro. Decent little meal. The place was as basic as it gets, as most japanese places out the cities are, but the cook was cranking out great little meals for not too much, good spot to stumble on.
Supper - 4 tacos from the heathy menu - Taco Bell. I’ve always avoided this chain on principle, and I have no idea what that principle was. Sure the soft tacos were not the best in the world, but they filled a hole and felt healthy enough. Topped it off with a milkshake from Sonic, just because I wanted to work out how you order there. There’s no inside, in this chain, and only occasionally a drive through. You drive or walk up to 20 odd boards, where you press a button to order, and the guys run out with your order, to eat at benches or in you car. I know for the American readership this makes dull reading, but we don’t have anything like this at home. Probably because the employees would understandably unionise over being in out in the cold so much.