Just for once we awoke to cloudy skies but no rain. We got started at 8:30 and as we worked our way east and south, ominous clouds loomed over our right shoulder.
At 11:30 we started hearing rumbles of thunder. We passed a farm with an open barn and two men outside working. Sandy asked if we shouldn't stop and ask for shelter in their barn. I assured her that was premature. It was just long enough for us to descend a steep hill before we got hit by a vigorous thunderstorm. By the time we struggled back up to the farm we were both soaked and the two farmers were safe and dry inside their house. As we got inside the barn Sandy suggested, "The next time I..." The lightning, thunder and torrential rain continued for a long time. The farmer and his son came out at one point to move a trailer into a field, giving me a chance to ask retroactively for permission to be there. No problem, of course. We settled down to wait out the weather, and at one point we both nodded off while the rain pelted the metal roof above us.
After two hours, the rain finally stopped and we were on the road again. The storm left the road steamy and slick, so we held our speed down, and by the time we finished lunch at the next town, Goreville, it was 3:30 and we still had a long way to go. The road was a series of sharp hills which would have been a challenge anytime, but in this case we were still reluctant to let 'er rip on the downhills, while the climbs were a steam bath. I think I had gotten lazy about drinking early in rides, and this time we paid the price- at least I did for sure.
The only accommodation available other than camping was a ranch one mile off the route. It was 6:30 by the time we reached it, after 60 miles for the day, and we felt worse than any day I can remember. All we wanted to do was drink and rest.
The ranch itself was a great treat. The resident horses and cats were friendly. We had a four-bedroom lodge all to ourselves, Our hostess went out of her way to get us set up comfortably. Earlier in the day,knowing there would be no restaurant dinner available, Sandy had bought fixings for a spaghetti dinner, and it was delicious. We had no cell signal or wifi or TV. I couldn't write the blog post. It was an early bedtime for tired riders, after a couple of ibuprofens and a rubdown with Aspercreme. A high-volume chorus of frogs, crickets and other critters did not keep us up.
Rain, rain and more rain. Looks like it gets a little better in the next few days, but you aren't out of the rainy weather yet.
ReplyDeleteDo you remember Joe Bptfspik, the Li'l Abner character that always had the rain cloud over his head?.......
Actually, there probably aren't that many people around today that would even remember Li'l Abner. Wasn't that also where Sadie Hawkins Day comes from?
All is good here, mild weather, great for summer riding. We're taking our tandem to Northern Minnesota to visit with another tandem couple for a few days. I told them about your trip when we saw them last, a few weeks ago, so am looking forward to updating them on your latest progress. If you have any good anecdotes about life on the tandem transcon trail that you have been holding back, please pass them on.