Today was spent on and off road. We were able to ride three different rail trails and a few of the roads felt like we were off road. After a great breakfast, we pedaled back to Mt Vernon with Mel and met Randy. We all headed to Kokosing Gap Trail which is 13.5 miles of paved bliss. The trail was beautifully maintained, shady and with a variety of scenery including a train near Kenyon College
Randy rode the first few miles with us and Mel rode all the way to Danville. After we parted company and thanked him for his warm hospitality, we went into town for coffee. Paul finally had the opportunity to try some fried mush. Apparently he does not remember the Warren G. Harding warning!
On the other side of Danville is the Mohican Valley Trail. It is an unpaved, soft sandy multi-use trail. This trail was only 4.5 miles long and it was a quiet ride that ends at the Bridge of Dreams in Brinkhaven.
Now we were on the road and headed towards Millersburg. The GPS and Google Bike Maps had given Paul a route that appeared worth pedaling instead of going up Rt 62 with everyone else. It started out with a short up hill which was no problem. Then sooner than later the surface became a dirt/gravel road. Still it seemed worth the trade for little traffic. We have now decided that there will be no more cycling on township roads. The gravel became rocky. We still liked the lack of traffic but the the shade went away and it became safer (and slower) to walk. Suffice to say that Paul bought some chocolate at the end of the day!
Finally we made it to a county road and the pavement reappeared. Of course now we were in O-hill-o. The long rolling to flat had simply disappeared. Suddenly we were able to zip at least 35 mph down hill after hill!
When we reached Killbuck we rode the final rail trail of the day. We were able to ride 5 paved miles of the Holmes County Trail. This trail traveled through woods and wetlands. At last we reached Millersburg and in spite of the 90+ degree day, we did not melt.
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