A tough day! My anxieties about the trucks and the dogs combined with general fatigue and caused me to hit a wall. Physically it felt as though my heart was constantly pounding in my throat. My body was telling me to take a break. Marie and Madeleine were a huge support! They found a different route that was on a quiet road. After some debate about whether we just take the day off, I decided to ride a little ways so I wasn't totally abandoning our plan. I rode for 5 miles and I felt successful and relieved. We landed in the town of Hogansville at The Grand Hotel of Hogansville. It was about 75 degrees and sunny - perfect for an afternoon off the bike. I had a Fallon Board meeting and I was able to sit outside and attend virtually. It felt really good to do some brain work and the familiar versus just focusing on the physical. Marie and Madeleine drove ahead to check out the next day's roads and make sure that it would feel safer than some of the earlier days.

Before heading into the town of Hogansville, we took a drive to Lake West Point. A beautiful and serene lake with people fishing and lots of picnic spots. We had a lovely lunch from our cooler along the edge of the lake.

The town of Hogansville is about 50 miles from Atlanta, GA. It is charming and feels like a perfect little town. The train runs through the middle of the town and there is a pub and coffee shop in the old train depot. There are antique stores, candy stores and gift stores. There is also a hotel - The Grand Hotel - which is a historical hotel built in the late 1800s. It is features in the TV show "The Walking Dead" It is a Victorian building en-circled by a veranda. After a nice dinner at the pub, we were sitting on the back patio of the hotel playing cards and met two women, one from the town and the other visiting. They were headed to the bar in the hotel. The woman who lived there shared with Marie that the town was basically owned/subsidized by one family. The parents of the family had built and sold a system of Urgent Care Centers. They then moved to Hogansville and enticed their children to move there, gifted them buildings and start-up capital for businesses. It sounded like a version of "Schitts Creek".

We finished our stay with a lovely breakfast at the Station cafe the next morning. All in all, we enjoyed Hogansville!