Click here for a map of Eric's progress.

June 5 - Day 1

Total mileage for first day is 74.35. Encountered some construction and was forced to detour, then got lost, so did not stop for the night until 8:30 p.m. Stayed overnight at Tuc-In-De-Wood Campground in St. Helena Island, SC, which is an additional 15 miles from intended destination of Beaufort, SC. Weather is very humid, and the mosquitos are out. Luckily terrain is flat. Had oatmeal for breakfast and setting out for Ridgeville, SC .

June 6 - Day 2
From St. Helena, SC to Givhans Ferry State Park in Ridgeville, SC. Rode 87 miles from 9:50 a.m. until 7:45 p.m.;
averaged 11 miles per hour.

Rained all day except for two hours. The day started out very humid with patches of dark clouds. and drizzling for the first hour. A lot of traffic on the highway; huge trucks, and all other types of vehicles. Along alternate route 17, country road 21 and routh 61, it was much more peaceful with beautiful scenery, some drivers waved. While the small towns here were delightful, there were very few people out; if felt very lonely. Chased by dogs on two separate occasions; a terrifying ordeal, as dogs can run up to 15 miles an hour. Arrived at Givhans Ferry State Park at 7:50 and pitched tent in the rain.

June 7 - Day 3
From Ridgeville, SC to Andrews, SC. Rode 74.06 miles from 8:50 - 4:30 p.m.

Woke up at 6: 45 a.m. Less traffic on beautiful route 41, but roads seemed endless. Stopped to have Chinese food for lunch, a good reward. Was chased by another dog. Arrived at Andrews at a good time since ride started early. No campground here, so only option was a motel. This was much deserved after having slept in the rain the night before.

June 8 - Day 4
Andrews, SC to Shallotte, NC. Rode 105 miles, from 9:50 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. A faster mile average today of 13.2 miles per hour.

More dogs! Apparently no leash laws in the south. Started to get some heat rash. Not much rain until the last 50 miles. Stopped for the night at Waterway Family Campground, a beautiful area near the Intercoast Waterway. Met Janice White a very sweet lady who shouldered the campground fee.

June 9 - Day 5
Shallotte, NC to Wilmington, NC. Rode 62 miles from 9:15 a.m.-5:15 p.m. Felt very tired and sluggish today. Day started with cloudy skies, but the sun eventually came out and stayed out the rest of the day. Took a 30-minute ferry ride from Southport, NC to Fort Fisher, NC. Talked with the staff and other passengers. Everyone was very interested in the ride, and very encouraging. It's nice talking to strangers.

North Carolina seems to be a better ride than South Carolina: encounter bike lanes every so often. Although North Carolina does have slight rolling hills that always seems to go up and never down.

With 5 miles left to go for the day, felt a need to stop for nourishment. Saw a vending machine outside a hardware stores and got a cold beverage. Rode a little farther and saw a restaurant, Chicken Fish, and gorged on fried whiting, fried okra and hush puppies.

At 5:15, arrived at the home of Janet and Spencer Swinton, the parents of friends, Rick and Naomi. Rick and Naomi currently out of town, but offered their home as lodging on the ride. Their parents prepared a huge meal; delicious!!!

June 10 - Day 6
Day off! Woke up at 11:00 a.m. Ate a lot! Ran errands, spent time with friend Jake. Got a lot of rest!

June 11 - Day 7
Wilmington, NC to Atlantic Beach, NC. Rode 40.5 miles.

Got a late start since rear tire was flat, in addition to saying goodbyes to friends. Plan was to ride 98 miles today, but with late start Jake offered to load up bike and drive some of the way. Winds helped making ride easy. Arrived at Salter Path Family Campground at 4:30. First time to see the Atlantic Ocean; spent some time on the beach. Met some very nice people at the campground who were nice enough to donate camp space for the night.

June 12 - Day 8
Atlantic Beach, NC to Ocracoke, NC. Rode 65.9 miles.

Woke up at 6:30 a.m. and started riding before 8:00 a.m. Had very good winds today. Averaged 17-20 miles an hour. Lots of bridges over inlets. Saw a lot of water, boats, fishermen. Took a 2-1/2 hour ferry ride from Cedar Island to Ocracoke. Ferry had passengers lounge with AC; wonderful relief from the heat! Ockracoke, NC is a very quaint town. Walked around the British cemetery located next to Teeter's Campground. Lots of mosquitos. Met a few people and sat with them for dinner. Feeling very homesick.

June 13 - Day 9
Ocracoke, NC to Kill Devil Hills, NC. Rode 82.89 miles.

A very hard day with a lot of heat and prevailing winds. Crossed over Oregon Inlet on the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge breath-taking with ocean to right. But could not enjoy the view that much with very narrow shoulders and traffic sometimes too fast. Arrived at Kill Devil Hills and got a room at Miller's Ocean Spot Motel. Totally exhausted; still have welts from the mosquitoes from the night before.

June 14 - Day 10
Kill Devil Hills, NC to Virginia Beach, VA. Rode 87.5 miles from 7:45 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.

So far, today was the best day of riding. Cool winds, very picturesque. Took an eight mile alternate route, a very quiet and peaceful ride. A great and very spiritual eight miles. People were very helpful, stopped to give directions without being asked. Arrived at the beautiful home of the Kalagayans, very wonderful people who prepared a wonderful meal; ate like a madman.

June 15 -Day 11
Virginia Beach, VA to Williamsburg, VA. Rode a total of 86 miles from 9:15 a.m. to 5:15 p.m.

Took quiet roads that would have been beautiful had there not been non-stop rain. Riding through lightning and thunder is quite a terrifying experience. Saw lots of vultures feasting on road kill: deer and turtles. Rode another ferry from Scotland, VA to Williamsburg, VA where friends Victoria and Tanna live.

June 16 - Day 12
Another day off!!! Got lots of rest. Picked up more supplies and food. It's great to see friends Victoria and Tanna again. Mosquito bites and heat rash much better thanks to Dr. Kalagayan.

June 17 - Day 13
Williamsburg, VA to Topping, VA. Rode 59.87 miles.

Felt very energized after staying with Victoria and Tanna for the day off. Today started off nice, but later became a dreary, cold, rainy day. Rode slowly to be on the safe side. Went along Colonial Parkway, and saw parts of Colonial Williamsburg and Yorktown. A good half of the day was on busy roads. A spoke in one of the wheels broke, so bike is somewhat wobbly. Went to Grace Point Campground which no longer allows people to pitch tents, so had to ride back a mile and miraculously found a motel in the tiny town of Topping.

June 18 - Day 14
Topping, VA to Crisfield, MD. Rode 34 miles.

Started riding at around 6:00 a.m. Very wet morning. Rode 30 miles to Reedville to catch the 10:00 a.m. ferryboat to Smith Island, one of the oldest fishing village in the country. Weather had cleared up by then. Took a tour of the town, had lunch and just relaxed. At 4:00 took the ferryboat to Crisfield. Pitched tent at Jane's Island State Park; mosquitos galore!!

June 19 - Day 15
Crisfield, MD to Rehoboth Beach, DE. Rode 98 miles from 7:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Ahead of schedule; almost reached campground for tomorrow's scheduled destination. Sun was out this morning. Had what turned out to be two broken wheel spokes fixed at a small bike store. Upon leaving bike store, there was a lot of fog. Rode through Maryland and Delaware today. Plan on not taking the scheduled day off, to arrive in New York on Sunday instead of Tuesday.

June 20- Day 16
Rehoboth Beach, DE to Mays Landing, NJ. Rode 68.9 miles from 6:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.

Day started out cloudy. Anxious about getting home. Started riding early to take 9:00 a.m. ferry at Lewes, DE across the Delaware River, a 70-minute ride. A very fancy ferry boat. Got off ferry at Cape May and rode along the resort beaches of New Jersey; very commercial, very tiring, too many stoplights. Got rid of ride turnsheet and followed a regular map to get to Mays Landing. Cut time and mileage significantly. The last hour of today, it started to rain. Ended up at Winding River Campground and pitched tent in the rain.

June 21 - Day 17
Mays Landing, NJ to New York City, NY. Rode 106 miles from 6:30 to 4:30.

Decided that this will be the last day of riding. Ate a lot the night before in preparation for final leg of trip. It turned out to be the coldest, rainiest day of entire ride. Arrived in Highland, NJ at 4:32 p.m. missing the ferry to Manhattan by two minutes. Had to wait under a scant awning in the cold and rain for two hours. Met another marathoner, Scott, who spent three month biking around Africa. Took 6:40 p.m. ferry and rode to Vinnie's Pizza on 74th and Amsterdam, getting there at 8:30 p.m. Decide to take a cab the rest of the way home. Finally arrive at apartment by 9:20 p.m., three days ahead of schedule!!!