Day 61, July 27

Afton to Palmyra, VA
55 miles

The pictures below are from inside the Cookie Lady House in Afton, VA.  The walls, ceiling and pretty much all available surfaces are covered with memorabilia and items left behind by cross country riders.  Unfortunately it is in a bit of a state of decay.  The kitchen was particularly disappointing and I spent about an hour doing some light cleaning before leaving a note on the refrigerator challenging other cyclist to do more of the same.  One of the nastier parts was throwing out assorted food that had been left by other cyclists and had been hanging out there long enough to start new life forms.

There were a few items that were good though and they had saved me from starving the night before.  When I got into town I was expecting at least a small general store but there was nada and I did not have much of anything left in my panniers.  I managed to put together a decent meal: top ramen followed by couscous with a tomato sauce.  Vreny, who also spent the night there had never had Top Ramen before and had far too much praise for my cooking ability and for the food selection.

Below is a bicycle built in the 1940s by a Long Island couple that used it for trips to the beach.  They actually built the frame by welding the frame of one bike to bits from some others.

The Cookie Lady was clearly adored by many.  Below is a song one cyclist wrote about her.  All over the house there were items which people had to have put a lot of time into making for her.

Hand drawing of some panniers and a water bottle on top of a map of the U.S.:

The walls were also covered with assorted cards and letters from people who kept in touch with the Cookie Lady after their rides, including photos of their weddings, babies, etc..

This is a wonderful piece of history that I am somewhat surprised that they leave sitting there.  An original Bikecentennial certificate:

I didn't take many photos this day.  This is the town grocery store in White Hall.  It had a surprising selection of food options, including a half dozen or so crockpots full of soups and things prepared by the owner.  I spent about a half hour there eating breakfast while talking with a gentleman who had served in both WWII and Korea.

Random roadside waterway somewhere between Afton and Palmyra.  I know, I know, very specific in my placement of the location. Since I didn't take many pictures of this day there are some things that are just forgotten at this point.  I also passed through Charlottesville this day but don't remember a darn thing about it.

Stained glass window from the 1800s in the Methodist Church in Palmyra:

A few details about Charlottsville suddenly popped into my head.  Just after there I passed right by Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson for several decades and not far from his birthplace.  The scenery between Charlottsville and Palmyra was quite flat compared to anything in the last several weeks and was actually not all that different from some parts of California.  I stopped at a somewhat hoity toity cafe a bit past Monticello.  It had clearly been a gas station previously and had been converted into the type of place that serves folks that only buy organic food and get upset about GMOs.

Palmyra was very small and the only option for camping was a Methodist church in town which offered cyclists passing through a place to stay.  Vreny caught up and passed me as I was enjoying a pasta salad and a beer on a picnic table outside the town supermarket.  Not too long after I got to the church the afternoon thunderstorms rolled in.