Day 10

Day #10: Hutchinson Island-Vero Beach (38.8 miles)

We woke up at 6 am this morning to try and hit the road before people started drinking.  As much as I hate waking up early, I have to admit that the road actually was pretty quiet then, and it wasn’t too hot out yet.  Because the sun was just rising we caught a lot of shade from the trees at the side of the road.  The people at the Marriot were really nice and helped us fill our water bottles.  When we told them we were heading to Vero Beach today they couldn’t believe it.  They were so surprised that we were biking that far, because it’s a 45 minute drive from  them.

We stopped for breakfast at a gas station, went like 20 miles, then stopped again for powerade and more snacks. At the first gas station we saw two crockpots full of boiled peanuts – one with just salt and one with Cajun seasoning.  Although it was too early in the morning to buy some, it is definitely on our “to eat” list for somewhere down the road.

(even though they spelled it wrong)

At one point while we were biking my dad pulled over.  Turns out, there was a turtle chilling on the side of the road.  We scared it a little but it was still pretty cute.

There were a few tough bridges that were steep with gratings at the top – which makes it harder to bike, but we made it to the Sea Turtle Inn in Vero Beach. 

It is a bit dated, but clean and most importantly -  it was the only place within 30 miles that had availability for the next two days.  Since we had left so early in the morning, we got to the hotel around 12 pm, and our room wasn’t ready.  Luckily, I had spotted an ice cream store on our way, so we walked there. It was really really good, and we also picked up some fudge for later.

We are definitely going to sleep early tonight, although if it stops raining maybe we’ll go watch the 4^th of July fireworks first overlooking Vero Beach.  Tomorrow night there is a free concert on the beach so we hope to check that out as well. We look forward to relaxing on the beach tomorrow, and then hitting the road again on Sunday.

Happy 4^th of July and thanks for coming along for the ride!