96 Miles to St. Francisville, LA ......

Today's ride turned out so much better than I thought it would. The weather report said there was an 80% chance of thunder showers and that the winds would be from the south as they were yesterday. As it turned out, the rain held off until we got to our inn and the winds were mostly at our backs. I'm sitting on my bed now listening to the rain outside, so grateful that I'm in here and it's out there. And tomorrow is a rest day and I have a private room for two nights! 

At about mile 35, the woman with whom I was riding got a flat tire so I waited with her while she changed it. What a day to get a flat because we knew we had a long ride and were trying to beat the rain. 

There was a long bridge (3.5 miles long with no shoulder) at mile 45, and they didn't want us riding over it individually, so we went in 3 groups-- there were 2 lanes of traffic in each direction, so we rode in a group, 2 abreast and "took the lane" while our SAG vehicle was behind us with her lights flashing. The motorists were all very courteous even though we probably held them up a bit.

The highlight for me on the ride was crossing the mighty Mississippi. The bridge (pics) we crossed the River on is only 2 years old. Before it was built, people had to take a ferry across.

We're staying at The Francisville Inn tonight (pic). The trees in the front lawn are Live Oaks with the moss hanging down, just what you would expect to see in Louisiana.