Today is labour day here in the states. Im informed this isn't in fact the one day everybody goes to work but in fact a public holiday. So as its an official excuse to slob out I have decided to ...erm...continue slobbing out here at the hostel I.stead of battling through heat and rain for 60 miles. It's a good excuse and I'm.sticking to it.

I think I'm in danger of getting used to hostel life though...they gave magical things here like a kettle, food, comfy beds and clean showers. The people have stories to tell and ears to listen. There is no tv to maintain a strong defence against the outside world and for now at least the Atlantic seems far enough away to be safe.

I knew I needed a rest but three days in nearly and I'm only just waking up!
I'm looking forward to Richmond and mechanicsville soon. I may stay a few days there as well.

The Forcasr is for thundery weather for a few more days then clearer skies...all I ask is that it doesn't tip down while I'm.riding.

Virginia is being good to me, like all the states have so far in their own unique ways. I am still overwhelmed at the kindness and friendliness of the American people I have met and some whom I wasn't able to meet. Sure there are a few whackos put there but they didn't get in my life..those who did I will not forget.

I've got fresh ripe peaches here...time to eat!

Downtown charlottesville

Charlottesville is a nice town..seems to be full of young university types...the main street and downtown areas are a nice change from the small town gas station stores across America. Here some guy called Thomas Jefferson lived...he was an important 'dood' ..'back in the day' ;)

It's raining very hard and I'm enjoying time off the bike to get some overdue sleep and get washed and wash my gear etc.
I feel I could sleep all week lol!

In the hostel are a couple going to.a wedding dance, a lady on a dance course, a girl checking out this hostel because she is going to set up her own hiker biker hostel, Anna from Sydney who I.rode with a bit in Kentucky and a girl who seems to live here semi.permanently.

The hostel is well organized and clean..And welcoming.

Tomorrow ill ride east again.

So i'M going to Tidy up later.....;)

Woke up this morning in a Virginia field under Virginia skies....unfortunatly they are full of rain. It is so humid here everything I have is damp anyway so a shower or two won't hurt. I've ridden a spectacular 20 or so miles to the city of Charlottesville. Here I have booked into a hostel for two nights to rest and make plans for the final approach into yorktown....which only two days ride for me but I want it to tAke two weeks!

On the way into town I saw something interesting. The first Obama sign in a front garden. I've ridden 4000 miles across 10 states and so far the front gardens of America are all mitt Romney...it probably means nothing but if it does the Obama needs to get a better gardening advisor.

I've been in Charlottesville a few hours and have met a guy in a car who offered to let me stay at his place...cool...he road same route last year I think. Then I've met lots of Mexicans....of course....they.are nice peeps and run the corner store where loitering is forbidden under Mexican law.

Here I have a dry room out of the storm...air con WiFi and three bananas...oh and green tea!

Today I rest. Tomorrow I will get deliberatly lost in Charlottesville and explore the town.

I've decided to stay on route and not go.up to the battlefields around fredricksburg. It's raining and humid and I just want to get to the coast now.

So....I think I'm going to tAke time out around the Richmond battlefields instead and be content with that.

So...this phone just uploaded the last 20 entries in reverse order...oooops

Buccannan virginia

Cute little cows about to get eaten

Lexington Virginia was todays target...well a campground several miles east of it anyway. This part of Virginia continues to provide excellent riding, beautiful views and its starting to get historical to.

It is very humid here still and I'm sweating buckets on the bike.

I decided to slow down a bit as I wad tired...last night was a sleepless night due to the express trains honking all night long!

At one point I took a wrong turn and rode about two miles in the wrong direction....ill blame the GPS even though it aS clearly my fault for being asleep lol!

Buccanan and Lexington ate both nice small towns. Lexington has lots of small shops and is one of the nicest towns I have seen all ride. It plays a lot on the civil war and I went to stonewalled jacksons tomb...a confederate field Marshall who seems to have been demi god like status here.

Then while I was pulled over on the side of the street looking at my map a Japanese woman started pleading with me not to give her a parking ticket...to funny!

I got some advice from the visitor centre on civil war sites...and then headed to subway...who seem to be sole providers of fresh food on this route. Here I was submitted to a full on life story by some sdangwrously fat woman who decided to tell me how she couldn't fit into an airplane seat on her trip to Hawaii last year...I resisted the temptation to give her directions to the nearest bicycle shop.

Finally after a hot and humid 60 miles I got to the campground. Here I have to advise any cyclists planning this trip to cruise on by the mallard duck campground outside Lexington...the guy is an arse and there are more facilities in city parks for free than there are here . Anyway its only one night and all I'm doing here is sleeping.

All around this campground there are people shooting rifles...I hope at targets and nothing else...oh and now there are chainsaws and big dogs barking and loud country music.....what is it about people in the mountain valleys....I blame in breeding myself.

Tomorrow um out if here ans off up a mountain called vesuvious. I'm told it'd a tough but pretty climb.

Riding along roads named after civil war generals

Wild Virginia flowers

Virginia wild flowers

Virginias wild flowers

Virginia wild flowers

Scenes from the ride from troutville to Lexington Virginia today

Purgatory mountain

Scenes from todays ride

Stonewalled Jackson lived in Lexington and is buried there.

Lexington Virginia

Riding early towards vesuvious

Strange long necked sheep lama things

Who needs gas to drive when you can cycle across America on jelly beans lol!

I found sherbert lollies like I had as a kid!

Riding along the blue ridge mountains of Virginia! Today was a day of Long steep climbs as I ride up vesuvios mountain and up along the crest of the blue ridge mountains. The climbs were tough but I got up them pretty quick...must have list at least a litre of sweat though...tmi? Oh ok..lol!
The views from the ridge were wonderful...both west down into the shenendoah valley and east.
I stopped more than usual to tAke Pictures and also gasping for water at the top and had a chat with a roadie riding the same climbs today.
Or was then I noticed my computer has tripped over the 4000 mile mark for this ride.
The downhills were steep fast and full of sharp bends...great fun!
I stopped at a peach farm and had cool necterenes picked locally ans peach milkshake...then decided to head for charlottesville...but it was getting way to humid and hot and is already done about 50 miles over and along the mountains and the blue ridge parkway. I found a small store in Whitehall and was told I could camp for free at the community centre. I had soup with veg and pasta and beef and a tub of strawberry icecream and two iced teas.
The day conconcluded with a lovely sunset ...behind the mountains I had just ridden over. I looked back west as the sunset and said to myself...I've ridden 4000+ miles to get here...almost there mate.

...oh man some hillbilly at the campsite just blew up his campfire by throwing a tin of hairspray onto it.....begs the question what a chainsaw wealding gun shootin good ole country boy is doing with hairspray I guess !

Views from the blue ridge parkway down into the shenendoah valley.