23 September 2011 Ride: 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall...

With the Shreveport bike trip canceled and a beautiful day spread out before me, I decided to treat myself to a long ride.  I've been wanting to go back to County Rd 38 down in Winslow and finally take it all 12.5 miles to where it turned into gravel. 

So, after a 9:30 hair appointment, I drove down to West Fork, parked there and made my way down 71.

In addition to wanting to get in a long ride, I was in the mood for taking pictures.  The last couple of weeks have felt so rushed and stressed and I wanted the luxury of feeling carefree with time.

 This tree growing from within a trunk was right off the town square in West Fork.

The rest of the pictures were taken on CORD 38. 

A rather forlorn looking mailbox.

 I'm not sure what it is about rusting out vehicles, especially embedded in the woods, that attracts me.  There is something about rust that certainly grabs my attention.  I find it to be a rather soothing color.

 Stones in a circular fence enclosure are not an uncommon sight on the edges of pastures where farmers have collected the rocks to clear the field.  But I have never seen a collection of stone slabs like the ones above which would make for a great walkway or low wall.

As I got near the end of the paved portion of CORD 38, these cattle in the pasture to the left, began running alongside me.  They must have followed me for a good couple of hundred yards until the field came to an end.  When I returned, they ran alongside me again in the other direction.  Note the cow on the left with the big clump of leaves in her mouth.



I really liked this barn/shed with the tin imprint that I think was normally used for ceilings way back when.

It seemed as if there should be something magical waiting when I got to the end of the pavement, especially since I have drawn out reaching that point to a third visit.  It was a fairly mundane transition but it was still a rather inspiring place to be.  So quiet, except for the sound of the wings of grasshoppers clicking as they jumped from one place to another.   I was in no rush to turn around and I pedaled back to the tin barn and had a snack, taking in the peacefulness. 

Then, back from whence I came with a nice wind at my back for most of the ride.

Today's Ride:  4hrs 39mins.  54.54 miles.  65 - 72 degrees.  Miles YTD:  6,629.58

To see older postings, search the Archives listed on the right had panel.

To see postings before 15 August 2011, please go to www.mylifeasabike2.blogspot.com

To see postings before 11 June 2011, please go to www.mylifeasabike.blogspot.com