6:36 ST
14.7 avg
(Have I ever explained that ST- saddle time - is just the time we spend ON the bike? We are out on the road each day for longer than that ST time listed. For example, our ST for today was 6 hours 36 minutes. But we left at 6:15 and didn't finish until 3:20, which is 9 hours 5 minutes. Yes, we do need all that time for breaks, especially on a long, hot day like today.)
Well, camping yesterday/last night was an experience. The most difficult part was the heat. After we set up the tent and went swimming, we spent a good part of the afternoon in the office/store because it was cool in there. It was just too hot to be outside. The positive side of that is the time spent visiting with the camp manager.
After the office closed at 8:00, we sat with our feet in the pool to try to stay cool. We were waiting for the sun to set before climbing into the tent. And yesterday was the second longest day of the year...and we were tired. Sigh.
It finally started to cool down a little after 10:00 and with both of the fly flaps open we were able to drop off into intermittent sleep.
It sure takes a lot longer to get ready in the morning when we camp. Before we can even pack Bob, we have to take down the tent and repack it and stuff all the bedding back in the sack. Then we can put everything back in Bob. And all this needs to be done as quietly as possible in order to not disturb our neighbors at 5:30 a.m.
Leaving the campground at 6:15, we rode to Wal-Mart to pick up some food items for the day. We had our breakfast of bagels/deli chicken/milk there.
We knew the day was going to be long so wanted something more substantial than just oatmeal.
A few miles out of town we came to a couple of 7% hills, which was just downright rude for that early in the day.
You can't really see the first one in this picture, but believe me when I say that after we drop down just ahead there...we had to go back up - very abruptly.
About 16 miles out of town the shoulder changed to this.
For 20 miles. It was some sort of crushed asphalt mixture that had been dumped leaving only that narrow space between it and the white line. Then, after 17 miles of that, patches of rumble strips appeared in our riding space. We rode in the road after that.
We worked our way north on hwy 81 crossing over I-90 before Salem. I-90! I leaned REALLY hard to the left but couldn't get the bike to turn down that ramp toward home.
We rolled into Madison about 3:20 and we were both very spent. Our room is on the second floor and I could hardly get my legs to take me up the steps. After we managed to get Silver Streak and Bob up, Gerry walked next door and ordered a pizza for later. Ahhh, pizza. Now all is right with the world.
While he was gone I was talking with a guy in the office who asked me if I had been out running. I explained what we're doing and his reaction was much the same as what we've encountered for most of the trip: polite indifference.
We are now trying to figure out our next few days and it's tough. Trying to find places to stay or even camp in the 60-70 mile range is hard. It's either in the 50 mile range or 90 mile range.
We've also not been able to work anything out with any Warmshowers hosts. We had contacted one in Salem and he was unable to accommodate us tonight.
It's challenging to try to figure out our lodging each night in sparsely populated areas. And we have to take the weather into account. God knows what we need and we keep trusting Him each day.
Ready to sleep,
Pat
Ps.
Gerry's shin has flared up again. Can you pray?
No comments:
Post a Comment