La Quintas have a checkout time of 12pm, a three star value for a two star hotel. So I left at 12 today after grabbing two breakfasts, strolling around and buying more pepper spray, and calling bike shops in Mobile to find a safe way to arrive.
The ride out was grubby in almost fair weather. So my cross-section of Pensacola leads me to this summary: This town is a dump.
Once I crossed the ‘bama line, I saw a sign reading “Bike Route to Mobile”. Take note. This will be important in a following paragraph.
The bama road was rolling and country with a shoulder. For some reason I always thought of Alabama as Dukes of Hazard country, but it looks a lot more like the stretch of TX66 between Rockwall and Greenville. Pretty and honest. Little horse and cattle ranches with bright green grass and wooden fences, little homes, trailer parks.
Rolling became Rocking as I closed in on the river. Steep river-gouged hills fitted with sparse little subdivisions. More traffic. All predictable.
The next stretch was the 45 minutes to town over the Battleship Parkway. The only other route nearby is a parallel interstate.
Then I saw a sign that read “No Bicycles”.
What happened next I’ll save for tomorrow.
