Day 3 - Canton to Sugar Hill GA - 40.2 miles

40.2 miles for today's ride - Day 3 - (Video Link) - I plan to begin the day with a Starbucks and/or McDonald's stop at Mile 4.5.  Today is the second of three days spent climbing in the mountains.  I'll start climbing at around mile 2 at 860 ft and reach 1,237 ft at mile 5.7.  Early morning climbs are the worst. At that point, the rest of the day will be spent riding on extreme rolling terrain at around the 1,100 ft level.

Free Home Store - Back Then (L) and Today (R)

At mile 15, I'll roll in to Free Home, Georgia. Unlike most of the country stores we stopped at in the 80's, this one store is still standing. It's no longer a Feed Store. Today, the gas pumps and front awning are gone and it is called The Green Bean Antique Store. They even have a web site and multiple locations. The picture on the left shows Bill and I loading our bikes after a rest stop at Free Home Feed Store. Back then, this was all there was in Free Home. Today, across the street, is a big new Publix Supermarket that I plan to visit. I'm going to take an 8x10 of the 80's picture with me and give it to the Antique Store Owners. Things will get hairy as I run into heavy Cumming GA traffic at about mile 25. Exiting the Cumming area around Mile 26.7, I'll be on the Buford Dam Road for around 8 - hopefully serene -  miles, crossing over the dam at mile 31.5.   Lake Lanier was created by the completion of Buford Dam on the Chattahoochee River in 1956 by the Army Corp of Engineers.

Bill and Jack as we entered Sugar Hill - circa 1985

Toward the end of the day's ride, at Mile 36.9, I'll be looking for the  Sugarhill Bakery and Cafe.  According to Sugar Hill's city hall the town was named after an incident where a large shipment of sugar spilled and the area became known as "the hill where the sugar spilled" or "the sugar hill". I am staying close to the Mall of Georgia, the largest Mall in the state. I plan to stay at the Holiday Inn Express - 2499 Satellite Blvd   Buford,  Georgia  30518 - 1-678-318-1080. Cuban Restaurant and Golden Coral Next-door but if anyone makes the trip over, there is a Cheesecake Factory at the Mall. Just sayin...

More mountains but kind of plateauing maybe?