After Surf and Turf, Gary & I made the trip up to Otway to visit the in-laws. We had a nice time. Ate a big steak dinner Saturday night, went on a boat ride in the inlet area around Harker’s Island and then I hit the road on my bike to meet up with Gary later in New Bern.
The route was Otway-Newport-New Bern. Mainly headed west, then north-west. Wind was from the southwest. The roads weren’t too crowded from Otway to Newport, but once on Hwy 70 to New Bern, it wasn’t so fun. The shoulder was decent, but not as wide as Hwy 64 around Apex, which is easily wide enough to two to ride abreast and still not feel life-threatened every time a vehicle rumbles by at high speed. Going through Havelock was pretty nightmarish, as the shoulder disappeared for a while with tons of businesses dumping traffic onto the highway. Traffic that might not see me.
As I went on, I found several sections of service roads that I took and eventually found Old Cherry Point Road, which ran parallel to Hwy 70 and had much tamer traffic. I decided to take that not knowing that Gary was out on Hwy 70 looking for me to come by to alert me to take, guess what? Yup– Old Cherry Point Road. Unfortunately, he waited at a point on 70 beyond where I’d moved over to Old Cherry Point. So he didn’t see me come by while I’m zipping up Old Cherry Point to find our agreed upon waiting place. He wasn’t there, so I spun my legs out a couple miles then came back and waited about 15 minutes before I decided I needed to go find him, figuring he was along 70 somewhere looking for me. So I take the service roads until they end and ride back down 70 looking at the traffic hoping that Gary will spot me. I go almost as far down as when I went on to Old Cherry Point but decided to head back to the meeting place. I was tired of riding in unfamiliar places with traffic, out of water, and thirsty. Almost back to the meeting place– finally, Gary & I find each other. He apparently missed me at the meeting place and didn’t see me heading back south looking for him. What a frustrating fiasco.
In the end, we’re all safe and found each other and I got in a good 60 mile ride. All is well with the world.
I used to live in Havelock, and reading your blog brought back many “fine” memories of dealing with traffic. The area in Eastern NC is really beautiful, but traffic is daunting, especially between Havelock and New Bern. I’ve been blown off the road by motorists zipping by with no regard for cyclists. Your best bet is to stay closer to the coast – or bike in the saftey of a big group. Next time you’re in Havelock, check out the Swiss Chalet – a wonderful bakery just off of Hwy 70. It’s on the West end of town, the last strip mall on the right side of the road as you head to New Bern. There’s a swiss flag infront of the shop – great coffee and even better bakery items. It’ll be a really nice treat after a long ride (just drive the car to the shop). Stay safe!