Struggling to find a route through Portsmouth...

Saturday, May 25, 2013
I’d spent Friday evening studying Google maps in an effort to pick the best way through to Portsmouth and beyond to Shawnee State Forest.  I thought I had a good route for the effort when I’d signed off and shut the computer down.  I got up early and took a 35-minute walk down along the Ohio River while Holly took her shower and got ready for our travels.  We drove to Bob Evans where I had the blueberry crepes, which are covered in a blueberry syrup and whipped cream.  As the waitress set the plate down, she asked if there was anything else we needed.

“Could I get some syrup to put on my crepes?” I asked.

She laughed…looked at me…and realized I was serious.  “Umm…sure,” she replied.

If you’re going to eat crepes, then you may as well smother them in sugar, I always say.  We got on the road out of Gallipolis and headed west through Wayne National Forest, which isn’t really a forest at all.  Most of the ride was through farm country with limited trees.  When we passed a trailhead sign after an hour of driving, I had Holly pull over to check it out.  It offered a map of the area and identified some camping…just what I’d been looking for.  We found the site and I was a happier man.  We drove out of the forest for Portsmouth where I knew I was going to have trouble finding a way across the Scioto River and on to Shawnee State Forest.  I was not disappointed. We drove State Route 335 north out of town looking for detour around the area, but the road was busy, narrow, winding, in bad shape and with a speed limit of 55 mph.  None of these things make for good cycling conditions and when you put them together, it’s a death wish.  I needed and alternative.

We gave up around 5 p.m. because Holly was getting hungry and we were still looking at a 5-hour drive back home.  I could see I’d have to do some calling and map checking to find an alternative to getting through this area.  Local cycling groups, the service department for the city, or even a biking store might be able to provide the information.  I’d figure it out, but my bigger concern was the next leg that would take me to the eastern outskirts of Cincinnati.

Hike duration:  40 minutes.

Training Heart Rate:  90 bpm.
Calories burned during workout:  200.