I’m up early this Saturday morning and more than ready to leave Georgia in the rear view mirrors. I head to the lobby for a hot cup of coffee and then to the bike to load her back up for what should be the next to last time.
Today’s plan is to get to Florida by 5pm this evening. I really would like to wind up at least an hour past Tallahassee so Sundays ride will be about four and a half hours.
The map shows a route which looks like a nice easy ride off the interstate, down through Georgia, past the last big town of Columbia and into Florida near Tallahassee.
Last night while planning today’s ride I took some time to look for small towns along the route where I could spend the night. I came up with Havana and Perry, both listed in a Google search as “best small towns near Tallahassee “.
The weather is again perfect for riding. A little warmer today due to being out of the mountains, so I switch over to lighter gloves and less layers which makes for a more enjoyable ride. The roads are totally empty and I am overjoyed by that fact! I hit the cruise when I reach 65 mph and ride for an hour and a half, mostly alone, along this two lane road. Not much to see here as its mostly low land and farms dotted with old bungalows and small shacks. Some of the road is tree lined on both sides so my Spidey sense triggers and I watch for deer. Tunes playing in the helmet, flat road and sunshine as I motor along sweeping in and out of both lanes to hit the curves like I am on a race track. It feels great to have the road to myself, lay into the throttle and have some fun for a change.
As I head out of Georgia just past Columbia, I begin thinking about where I should pull in for the night. Earlier I mentioned two towns and I make the decision to stop for coffee in Havana since its before Tallahassee and check out google for the town of Perry.
As I am riding into town I see the sign for Poppy’s Coffee shop and I remember that as one of the places to get a coffee in Havana. The staff at Poppy’s were very friendly and helpful with providing insight on the neighboring towns, offering Perry and Monticello as a couple of places I could stay the night. After a quick search on Google I opt for Perry since it looks to have a few more choices of hotels and restaurants then Monticello offered.
With Havana behind me and Perry about an hour and a half in front of me, I hit the Interstate once more for a quick 25 miles before I am off the highway and into the back roads again. Riding into Perry I see the hotel choices all seem to be right along the main two lane road that runs outside of downtown which seems to be the norm. I’m guessing mostly Airbnb’s and BnB’s line up inside the town itself.
Picking out a Hampton Inn was easy since it was the only place set back enough off the road that looked to give me some cover for my motorcycle. That’s always part of my decision making process when finding a place to stay overnight. Better to be worried and nothing happens then just park it anywhere in the open.
As I usually do most evenings I shower up and hit internet to look for a place to eat. Not much open or exciting so I head into the downtown area and find a brick oven pizza joint which turns out to be very good. The staff is friendly and the pie is just the right size that I make a meal of it and don’t have to worry about putting leftover pizza in my saddle bag.
Back at the hotel I hang with a few guys and talk some football and share some motorcycle tales with them, since they ask how its been going for me. As I’m chatting it up I grab a rag, some cleaner and hit the bike to remove all the dead bugs that hitched a ride with me today.
With one more day left on the road I plan to stop to see some friends tomorrow in North Port Florida before heading back to Jensen Beach where my journey ends.
The Regular Guy