Just a wonderful day here in the RVA, with a temperature in the mod-60s, and blue skies it was time to ride. Got the bike out and headed to Byrd Park where I stopped by the lake for a while. Was a big crowd out there, lots of people on two wheels and four had the same idea as I did. It was been pretty much winter like for the last few weeks so nice to get out and get a little touch of spring. It seems like forever since my last ride, but spring is just around the corner; in fact the first official day is March 21. I am looking forward to some better weather and an end to winter.
I rode though downtown, but also rode out highway 5 to the Malvern Hill Battlefield. This was quite the battle, was part of the Seven Days Campaign (the first Union invasion of Richmond) but this one did not go well. As the Union Army retreated to the James River (and back North) Union forces lined up cannon and stood off Confederate attacks. In fact this battle was one of the classic uses of cannon in the Civil War. The Union Army would come back, but this invasion was the end early in the war. The Seven Days Campaign was one of the most interesting of the Civil War.
This is one of the cannon looking out toward what was the Confederate advance. As it was a cannon battle, they have a lot of cannon at this battlefield. Highway 5 has a lot of country, a nice view of the James, and a lot of old houses. It is a good route to Williamsburg; I think the battlefield is like 14 miles from downtown Richmond. I had driven it with the car, this was my first time on the bike down this road, and it was a lot of fun. Unlike many roads in the area, this one was pretty much clear of potholes. On a Sunday like this it was very fine indeed, and I greatly enjoyed it.
Finished my ride with a stop at Poe's Pub where I saw this very cool looking bike. All in all, covered some 55 miles and was out some three hours, with time for a few stops along the way. It was a great ride!
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