I thought we had a shot at making it....

At the Tri-State Marker at Cumberland Gap

I thought we had a shot at making it, but it finally happened... our first flat tire.  Over 4300 miles on 4 different bikes without a flat.  I was really beginning to think we might make it the whole trip without one.

Yesterday we took a "rest" day.  In addition to our usual chores we visited the town of Cumberland Gap and did a short hike on the Cumberland Gap Trail up to the Tri-State Mountain (where Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia meet). Beth and I were talking and said it was amazing that we hadn't had a ..... yet.  Neither one of us wanted to say the word "flat" knowing it might jinx us, but we both knew what we were thinking.  I guess just thinking it was enough.   Riding in NM, flats are a weekly occurrence, so going 7 weeks without a flat was quite a streak.

View of Cherokee Lake from a scenic overlook
Just a little humid out there....

Today's ride was mostly on the shoulder of 4 lane roads as we transitioned from southeastern Kentucky to eastern Tennessee.  There were still some long hills, but they had been smoothed out by the 4 lane highway construction.  Here is the route from today.

We are spending the night at Davy Crockett Birthplace State Park about 15 miles east of Greenville, TN.

From here we'll ride into the Appalachian mountains and onto the Blue Ridge Highway.
The next 3 days we'll spend in the mountains above 3000' in elevation, so hopefully we'll see some cooler weather.