The loop is a 10-mile, well, loop that includes a long stretch along Roaring River, a long stretch along Spring Creek, a 1-mile pull up Poplar Springs Hill and an almost-mile rip down Stock Gap Road. Spence loves to blast down the hill, which was recently improved and smoothed from its toaster-size gravel, teeth-rattling washboards and bike-eating ruts. My downhill speed, on the other hand, is directly proportional to the speed at which I'm comfortable skidding down the gravel on my face.
As I was biking the last stretch home, after a short conversation with some cows who were crowded around a salt lick near the fence, I had a glorious idea for an evening activity: pack up the leftover pizza and take the big blue canoe upriver for a dinnertime float back to the house -- with Spence and Caroline, of course.
Spence may quash the idea, claiming the water's too cold to risk a toddler tumble, but really, it's pretty flat and easy, so we'll see...
UPDATE: Well, Spence was all for it. Caroline did great. We explained that she was not to stand up in the boat, a directive she took to heart, refusing to stand up to step out of the boat when we stopped for dinner. We had to lift her out. She enjoyed a PBJ and cheese stick riverside and we all ate a little Easter candy for dessert. It was delightful!
