July 23- LaCrosse to Larned, Kan.

To finish up yesterday's adventures, the motel and dinner at LaCrosse were strong contenders for worst so far.

The menu at the 4 Corners Restaurant was a list of fried items, and we both ordered chicken fritter, which turned out to be a thin slice of breaded chicken fried up into a deadly weapon. Sandy found that honey helped. I'm pretty sure tht before freezing, the "fritters" were set out on the highway to be tenderized, but not enough large trucks came by. The motel actually was the better of two choices. Its competitor was overgrown with weeds and had a hand painted sign, "Rms $25+ no dopers or miscreants". The problem with our place was that the exterior security lights kept the room brightly lit. A lively lightning and thunderstorm in the wee hours completed the picture and made for a not-so-restful night and a not-so-early start. Breakfast this morning was stand-up coffee and doughnuts at a convenience store, but the doughnuts were fresh.

Staying at LaCrosse, off route by four miles, let us avoid camping in yesterday's heat, so we shouldn't complain. But we do.

Adventure Cycling's web site has a FAQ including the question whether you can ride the entire Trans-Am trail without camping. Their answer was yes, but you may have some longer or shorter days than you'd otherwise choose. They should have also said that their suggested route is on secondary roads where a smart entrepreneur would not open a motel.

Four miles into today's ride, the right tire on the trailer flatted. No problem changing the tube, but I couldn't find what had caused the flat.

Our route began today to stair-step south and east toward the lower right corner of Kansas. The first 25 miles were south, then a turn east for the last 12 miles to the town of Larned. Not long miles, but we had a 15-20 mph wind from the SE, so it was all to windward. We were riding well within our capability physically, but our speed was slow and each mile gained was a victory. The weather was better, though, sunny and not as hot as yesterday.

Seven miles short of Larned we stopped at Ft. Larned, a frontier army post from the 1860's, built to protect the Santa Fe Trail from Indians. It was the base from which the infamous Sand Creek Massacre was launched, and was also one of the bases manned by black Buffalo Soldiers. The fort buildings are well preserved, and were part of a ranch from the 1870's to the 1960's.

Tomorrow we hope to reach Sterling where a supply of spare tires and tubes should await us.