July 1, 2021 Ashland, VA —> Richmond, VA – 23 miles

I left Ashland for the final 23 miles to Richmond to end the ride. I felt happy and reflective as I took my time on rural roads similar to many I have ridden in the last month. Savored each mile and scene as I sense this is likely my last long distance self-contained ride. And I am okay with that. One thought kept going over and over in my head – how very grateful and blessed I feel to have been able to make this ride as well as those in the past. What a difference these adventures have made in how I perceive life and relationships. I have been forced to move outside my tendencies as an introvert and actively engage with people I normally have little in common with. Or at least thought I had little in common with. I learned that when you just listen to people share their life stories what emerges is the truth that people are essentially good and most just want to be helpful and kind. At least that has been my experience. It has also been my experience that with each ride I have become more and more of my true self and who I am meant to be. Still a work in progress and a long way to go, but…

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I eventually crossed the James River and rode on Riverside Drive the final 2 miles. A gorgeous ride through shaded lanes and along scenic views of the James River. I was struck by a palpable energy of calm, joy and, of course, gratitude. The perfect end to this ride.

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I pulled in to Riverside Cycling and made a mental note of the cool sayings posted on tasteful wood dividers all around. I had made arrangements with Max to drop off my bike to be packed and shipped to Atlanta. Max went beyond the call of duty and offered to take care of arranging for BikeFlight (one less thing for me to worry about) as well as arrange a ride to my hotel near the airport using his Lyft account. He had such an easy-going, peaceful and calm aura. We visited a bit about our past bike touring adventures. Several years ago Max rode from Blaine (entry point into U.S. into Canada) to San Francisco. I entered the U.S. from Canada at Blaine in 2019 after ferrying over following a visit with my friends Pam and Carin on Vancouver Island, so could envision that part of his trip. Max had also biked portions of the Camino in Spain that Donna and I hiked in 2015. I really enjoyed hearing his perspective as I thought many times during that hike that riding a bike on the Camino would be extremely challenging. In any event, I am grateful for Max’s assistance in making the end game flow so smoothly.

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I spent the rest of the day getting checked in at the hotel, resting up a bit, and preparing for the return home tomorrow. Along the way, I had the opportunity to engage in conversations with several interesting people. One was a gentleman named Dondi who drove the shuttle taking me to and from a restaurant for an early dinner. He told me about his family, trips to various stadiums all over to tailgate at games, his family’s visit to tour the White House, and several other antidotes. He was such a joyful person and so interesting to talk with that I laughingly considered just riding around with him in the shuttle for a while for fun.

As evening began setting in, dark storm clouds rolled in and it began to thunder and rain. It was beautiful to watch. I love thunderstorms – especially when experienced from a warm, dry, safe place and not on a bike. I’m looking forward to returning home tomorrow to my sister, Emma and Soren. They really are my true safe place in this world.