Another generally good day of riding although lots of hills to tackle. We started off on Deepstep Road which just the name should have given me a clue of what was to come. The first 10 miles were idyllic - perfect relatively flat riding, great riding weather, fewer headwinds and lots of nice scenery. After meeting up with Marie for a quick break, we headed out for the next 8.5 miles of Deepstep Road and the hills began. I made it up on the bike about 50% of the time and had to walk partway up about 50% of the time. Either way, I made it up on my propulsion. I am learning how to ride hills and part of it is definitely mental. I let myself feel overwhelmed just seeing them instead of knowing that I just need to follow Madeleine's mantra of "slow and steady" She gets up them everytime. We also experienced some big downhills which can be helpful for the uphill but I also make sure that I don't feel out of control. We still have traffic to deal with while going up and down the hills. We also decided to take a back road into the college town of Milledgeville instead of the busier highway. Not the best decision as those 7.3 miles were rural but with lots of fast truck and hills on a narrow road. However, we made it to town in one piece.

I had been hearing some squeaking from my bike going up hills. Consulting both Sam and Madeleine, we decided to go to the bike shop in town to get it checked out. They both thought it was an issue with the crankshaft. The bike shop was not open yet so we decided to have lunch in downtown Milledgeville which is a charming college town with lots of options. We ate at a cafe next to an antiques store. Madeleine and Marie had a great time exploring there and left the store with both having purchased a treasure. Once we finished lunch we thought we would head out for a final 10 miles for the day but it started raining so we went directly to the bike shop instead. Sam and Madeleine were correct and the crankshaft was loose and just had to be tightened. We were thrilled that they fit us right in. Madeleine also had a lovely time chatting away with the 4 year old son of the bike mechanic.

We have been fascinated to see the change in soil. It has gone from sandy to red clay. The red in the fields is beautiful.