Tour du Rouge - Day 2

Day 2 was an 81 mile ride from Beumont to Rutherford Beach near Creole.  We saw alot of refineries, alot of beachfront and alot of devastation from hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ike.  There were many areas where all that was left were house slabs.  There were a few homes that had been rebuilt but for the most part, you would see slabs with trailers or RV's where the house had been.

Was feeling strong and me and my ride buddy Mike and another guy named Daryl were the first ones into lunch and into Rutherford beach.  When we got to Rutherford Beach, we got a portent of things to come.  The big tents had been set up next to an endless marsh and the place was swarming with mosquitoes.  We immediately doused ourselves with mosquito spray.  Then we went swimming in the Gulf and showered.  When we came out of the showers, the wind had picked up and the mosquitoes were gone.  After dinner, there was a beautiful sunset and Jacque and I took a nice walk on the beach.

As soon as it got dark, the mosquitos returned in force.  We abandoned the tents and moved our cots near the water where we were farther from the marsh and the wind was stronger.  We went to bed and the mosquitoes found us again.  Most of us had one Red Cross issue blanket to protect us and nowhere to go.   The blanket was just big enough to cover me from head to toe but not quite large enough to wrap myself in it.   Everytime I moved, I would create an opening somewhere and the mosquitoes would exploit it.  My body, especially my feet, legs and hands were throbbing in pain.  It felt like fire ants.  That's how it went until about 3:30.  I was dozing and all of a sudden, this buzzing sound woke me up.  It sounded like a swarm of angry bees but it was a swarm of mosquitoes instead.  It was scary - straight out of science fiction movie.  There were about 60 of us out on the beach and you could hear all the face slapping and people swearing up a storm in frustration.

Around five, the mosquitoes retreated and life was good again.  You could actually expose your face from under the blanket and feel the cool beach breeze.  Talking about life's simple pleasures.

Breakfast was being served in a trailer near the marsh and we had to walk, then run through the swarms of mosquitoes to get to breakfast.  People would come in one at a time and everybody shared their experience.  Some people would come in with swollen faces.  Some would come in wearing clothes covered in specks of blood from all the bites.  We were the survivors and now we all of a sudden had a common bond - if we survived Rutherford Beach, we can survive anythng.

Hoping for no accidents on Day 3 due to sleep deprivation.