October 15, 2011; Greenwood to Atlantic Ocean Beach (32 miles):

CAL DID IT!!! He REALLY did it!! The whole way!

Cal rode 3650 miles from Cape Flattery, Washington to Cape Henlopen, Delaware.  It was 2375 miles from the Pacific to our home in Mt Pleasant, Iowa and 1275 miles from Mt Pleasant to the Atlantic. On the western part he averaged 70 miles per day whereas on the eastern part he averaged 51 miles per day.  There were 60 mornings that when Cal got up he knew he would be on the bike!  Aproximatly 1.3 million pedal strokes on the bike. 

This morning before we left Dover we returned to the State Capital building to capture a photo in the morning light. We drove back to Greenwood, and Cal began riding where he had stopped last night.

Deleware State Capitol - The First State

Minutemen Commemorative Statue

Delaware has lots of agriculture land – a lot of it is irrigated. Most of the fields are tree lined, so the size of the field does not equal those of the Midwest.  Cal took photos of a guy harvesting corn. We have seen lots of sod farms, corn, soybeans, and wheat.

As I said, the storm system had moved on and there was even a change in wind direction. It would push Cal to the Ocean!  It was one of those days bike riders dream about!    

At 11:30 EST Cal had his bike on the Atlantic Ocean Beach at Cape Henlopen, DE. There were a few other people on the beach, and YES they did wonder what we were doing!  A bike on the beach and in the water! 

On The Beach At Last

Together we Are On The beach

After lots of photos we loaded the bike. All the anticipation is over! There were all sorts of emotions – exhalation, joy, couldn’t believe we had actually accomplished it, but yet a little bit of disappointment that it was actually over.

We decided to continue driving south along the ocean before turning inland to the town of Seaford. Along the way we stopped off at several other locations where we could walk out to the beach.

Harbor at Lewes Deleware-Near the Beach

Zwaanendael Museum in Lewes Deleware - Notice the Dutch Influence

At one location we decided to take a nap, however we saw people arriving in suits/ties and dresses with heels.  There was a wedding the beach! It was a beautiful day (compared to yesterday) – sunny and warm, but just a tad windy. There was a group of 50 + in attendance.  The bride arrived in a limo and the couple left in the limo.

Wedding on the Beach

Wedding on  the Beach

The Atlantic Beach near Lewes Deleware

At another location we watched them wind surfing, and parasailing. There were 8 people up parasailing at any given time, while others were putting stuff away, and others were in the prep stages. It was so interesting to watch. One of the guys told us it was a little too windy for ideal conditions, especially beginners, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.     

We had a reservation in Seaford for a suite for tonight. This town is close to one of Rachel’s cousins with whom we will spend time tomorrow.          

When we leave Delaware we are going south to Charlotte, NC via Virginia, visiting friends and family along the way.  We will probably arriving home on Tuesday, October 25^th.  

It is so great having our daughter in Mt Pleasant taking care of the house, dog, lawns and other details while we are gone. 

For those of you in the Mt Pleasant area, who would like to stop by the house at 311 N Adams St to congratulate Cal on his accomplishment, come by on Sunday October 30^th after 2:00 until .....