Day 16 - Slidell, Louisiana, 54 miles, 711 miles total

After yesterday's frustration I was looking forward to getting out of Gulfport this morning.  The weather was cooperating as a lovely morning unfolded.

Wally enjoying the beach life.

A beautiful morning on the Gulf Coast.

But there were still several miles of the unfriendly biking infrastructure to tolerate before things would improve.

More nonsense on Hwy 90 west of Gulfport.


And when you try to ride on the sidewalk you get something like this every couple of hundred yards.

But when I got near Bay St. Louis, about 17 miles from Gulfport, those nice shoulders returned on Hwy 90.

A view of St. Louis Bay 

But, you can't have everything, or so I've been told.  Several miles after the road situation improved, the fickle weather decided to have some fun with me.

The skies turned threatening again.

Yikes.

I donned my spiffy new rain jacket and boldly proclaimed, "Bring it, Mother Nature!  Let's see whatcha got!"

Three miles later I was literally cowering on the side of the highway as rain dumped from the skies and lightning flashed all around me.  I remembered the episode of "So You Think You'd Survive"  that said if you were caught in a lightning storm with no shelter nearby, you should squat down as low as you can get without actually laying down.  So there I sat as sporadic traffic whizzed by, no doubt wondering if I had a screw loose in my head.

Eventually, two women in a mini van stopped and asked if I was alright and if they could give me a ride anywhere.  I thanked them for their concern but assured them that I was fine, as I scoured the skies for the next bolt of electricity which would fry what's left of my brain.

So they left, and thankfully so did the lightning.  But Mother Nature made sure a little dark cloud followed me around for the rest of the day so I wouldn't be without water.

I risked ruining my phone by taking this shot in the rain since it was the first "Welcome to..." sign I had seen.

By the time I got to Slidell, I was a pruney, waterlogged rat.  But honestly, it was still a better day than yesterday.

I am just north of New Orleans now, but won't be going there to visit.  I'll save that for some time when I have a car and more time to spare.

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