Year 2 - Day 12 South Hill VA to Oxford NC

 



This will be our last “full” ride day. Tomorrow is just a short jaunt into Durham! 

As we were leaving South Hill, a policeman flagged us down and ask about our route out of town. Our route was on Plank Road. He asked us to detour as there was a major working fire on this road. We diverted to Route 1, which runs parallel to Plank Road in this area. As we continued south on 1, we passed through very thick black smoke. We are thankful for the men and women in blue and volunteer firefighters! 

We later learned that this was a large apartment building fire. No one was injured, but several people were displaced. 

This area is also very rural. It seemed that almost every household had dogs. We were continuously serenaded by hound dog barks. Additional, dog owners in this area were not real keen on keeping their animals contained. We had several of these critters decide that bicyclists were fair game for chase! There were no injuries or close calls, but it definitely kept your heart beating! We affectionately named this area Hound Dog Alley! 

We passed through Lombardy Grove, Busy Bee Center, and rode on Baskerville Road. The thought of Sherlock Holmes and the hounds came to mind!

We were traveling through farm country, primarily tobacco fields. We noted that they harvest tobacco a little differently in VA from PA. It appears that they remove the dry leaves from the bottom of the stalks and go up as the leaves dry. We noted many fields with bare bottom stalks, but with leaves still on the tops. Also, we noted several fields with just bare stalks still standing.

Coming over a rise in the road, I encountered this tobacco field.  I just could not resist stopping for a photo

Our route took us almost due west as we circumnavigated Kerr Lake. We went through Boydton, Midway, and finally crossed the lake into Clarksville. 







It was only about 11 AM, but we stopped for lunch anyway. It appeared to be another long rural stretch of road past Clarksville. We were correct as there was very little opportunity to eat until we got to Oxford NC. 

South of Clarksville, with about 20 more miles to go for the day, we entered North Carolina! Finally in the last state for this year!




After today, we have traveled 783 miles and climbed 28,259 feet in elevation gain. 

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