Only 39.07 miles today, into constant headwinds. The night before I consulted on Google maps about hotels in Ridgetown. It showed just one, The Ridgetown Inn. I made that an intermediate goal for the day, should I not be able to make it to a further destination, such as Port Stanley.
The day was decent, some sun, billowy clouds here and there, and flat roads, perfect for bicycling. There is one exception, as you’ve no doubt guessed: wind. The wind was out of the east and terrible. I was going east so I struggled through a headwind. It was like riding uphill all day. At least a hill goes down once in a while, you get back you kinetic energy that you have stored.
The wind generators all over the landscape were whirling away.
They also have lots of solar panels in the region, but they have sensors on them that move them horizontally when the winds get too high, to prevent wind damage. I don’t know at what point they go horizontal, but they were all up. One report showed winds of 23, with gusts of 30 MPH (40-50 km/h). It was a serious struggle to make it to Ridgetown.
For many crops, it is harvest time. There were miles and miles of tomatoes being harvested, all by machine. Plum tomatoes are reasonably tough and can be machine harvested.
I can’t imagine how many tons of tomatoes were on their way to be made into sauce. Truckload after truckload passed me.
Politicians in Florida are in the pockets of the fossil fuel energy companies. They grandstand on the legislative floors and make speeches about Florida not having enough sunlight to make solar power viable. Think about that, our license plates say “Sunshine State.”
Everywhere I go up here in the north I see prime examples of using solar energy to solve problems. In the photo above, an agricultural industry by the name of Green Hill has indoor plant growing areas. They’re surrounded by solar panels and wind generators. They’re growing tomatoes, peppers etc. in an area that has severe winters. They’re slogans reflect a locally grown mentality. This is a huge operation, not some backyard industry. Gotta love Florida politicians.
Arriving in Ridgetown I couldn’t find the hotel. I asked a young man walking down the street and he said he didn’t know where they were, but he did see one by the highway. My search earlier had shown only one in town, so that had to be it. It was 3.6 miles (6 km) away. I was already beat, but what could I do?
After riding to the motel, I was able to get a room. The place looked deserted. There had to be fifty rooms and I was the only one there. The manager, the only staff I ever did see, put me in the same room that James, the fellow on the recumbent, had stayed in the night before. He was probably in Massachusetts by now, or Europe.
I rested for a bit and then went to the hotel restaurant, noticing that the indoor pool had no water in it. The restaurant was locked up tightly, with no sign that it wasn’t in business. Tables were set, everything looked ready, but the lights were off and there was nobody home. The manager yelled up to me that the restaurant was out of business. He has a grasp of the obvious.
He pointed up the road further to a gas station and indicated they have a restaurant. I walked up there and they indeed did have a dining establishment. It wasn’t a terribly appealing place, but I was now hungry. I ordered the meatloaf plate.
I should have taken a photo. The meatloaf was fine, but the baked potato was smaller than the small container of sour cream that came with it. I’ve been riding by fields of potatoes for weeks and this is the best that they can do. Recall my adventures in Idaho where I couldn’t find a baked potato anywhere. Well, I did find one in Ontario, but it was barely visible.
Returning to the room, I went to take a shower. The manager cautioned me that the hot water takes a while to get warm. He wasn’t kidding. I turned on the water and started reading a book on my Kindle Reader. I think I read ten pages before the water was hot. They must have a pipe that comes from the Icelandic steam beds.
At last, it was time for bed. I slept like a baby. I guess exercising all day will do that.
