We woke up early because we have a long day ahead of us. We were not able to make much for progress yesterday, so we must get some miles behind us today. We also wanted to beat some of the rain headed our way. We had a GREAT breakfast at the Best Western in Plaquemine and then quickly packed and headed out on the roads. Traffic is starting to get much heavier as we get closer to New Orleans.

Once on the road, we passed some beautiful, old plantation houses. We did not have time to stop and take a tour, but they were sure neat to see from the street. I can't imagine having the money to build houses like these. We stopped in the small town of White Castle for a snack and to check on the weather. It was starting to get a little darker in the distance, so we made it a quick stop to get back on the road.

We made it without rain to lunch in Donaldsonville. We stopped at a restaurant called Chef's. It's specialty was fried chicken, which was pretty good, but I really liked the corn bread the most.

Upon leaving Donaldsonville, the dark clouds really started to roll in. We pedaled as fast as we could to stay ahead of the storm; however, when we started hearing thunder, we found a small park to stop at with a small shelter to sit under. Actually, we all found a table to lay down on and rest, some of us even fell asleep. You know you are tired when a picnic table is comfortable. After the storm blew passed us with very little rain, we got back on the road again.

The roads went way down hill at this point. Highway 18 is barely passable by car let alone bikes. We were stuck going very slow, dodging cracks and potholes big enough to swallow our bikes! The road was also heavy with traffic and is not an acceptable bike route.

As we started to get close to the ferry we were suppose to cross the river on, we found out it was not operating. We came across a state patrol car and stopped to ask for directions for another place to cross. He told us the only way across was a very busy 4-lane bridge, but he was willing to escort us across safely. So up we started and it was a very steep bridge. On the way up the bridge, I hit something and my tire started to go flat. This was not a place we could stop, so I had to ride it all the way to the exit. The officer stayed with us until we got the tube changed and we were safely on our way again. A big huge thanks to this Officer!

After a frustrating afternoon of bad roads, storms, closed ferry, and another flat tire, it was starting to get dark and we still had a lot of pedaling to do to find a hotel. The officer gave us great directions to help us to the nearest hotels, so we gave it our all to make it before dark.

We pulled into the Best Western in La Place just as the last light was fading from the sky. What a day, but we made it safely. Hopefully we have better luck tomorrow...New Orleans!!

88 miles (1709 miles total)

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