Random Observations

Conditions today started out pretty much optimal for biking. Partly cloudy, with enough sun to charge my phone, temperature in the sixties, no rain and a gentle breeze. There were wide shoulders on a fairly level and hardly travelled road. Nice. Suddenly, wham! I got hit with a fierce headwind combined with alternating drizzle, rain and freakin' HAIL! Yeouch! I basically crawled the last five tortuous miles to my destination. The instant I rolled into town-- I'm not kidding-- the wind calmed down, the sun came out and the birds started chirping. Ha ha, very funny. I console myself with hot chocolate and fish'n'chips at a local restaurant, then set out in search of a place to camp. There seems to be some disagreement on whether camping is allowed in the park. I search fruitlessly for an alternative, then come across a friendly police officer. He also does not know whether it is allowed, and can't reach anyone to find out. Implying that he is the only city employee on duty for the rest of the night, he tells me it is fine with him if I stay for one night. Whew! I head over and set up. Just as I finish setting up the tent, it begins to rain again. Well that's fine with me. This time I am ready.

For the first time ever on this trip, someone pulled off the road while I was on one of my roadside snack breaks and asked if I was alright. Actually, not just one, but THREE people! All within a few minutes of each other. There must have been something about the location or the position of my bike that looked more accidental than usual. That was so nice of them! I have been a little surprised that no one ever asked if I needed help when I was changing tires, but I guess I wasn't looking up at passing cars like I needed help. Not that I was this time.

For those of you who are keeping track, I have not had a flat tire since I bought those new tubes in Kennewick. I have also not had a shower since then. (I do manage a sponge bath most nights, and no one has commented on the smell. Although most people are pretty polite.)

I was thinking today about how clean the shoulder of the road has been, for the majority of my trip, and I just want to say thank you to all of those people who "adopt a highway." You are doing a great job. Although it's likely none of you are reading this...

Pretty much my entire route so far has been alongside train tracks. I obsessively count cars. The longest so far (including engine) has been 129 cars. That was the first week. Today I counted a second- place train at 115 cars. Usually they are in the sixty to ninety range.

Some semis cause a lot more air turbulence than others. I'm assuming this has to do with shape (though speed is definitely a factor). I'm also assuming someone is studying or has studied this with an eye toward improving aerodynamics and gas mileage.

Several dogs have chased me, but so far a forceful "No!" has been sufficient. Most of them kinda seemed like it was a territorial thing, and I got out of their area quickly enough.

Well, I should tuck in early and try to get a few hours of sleep before the inevitable sprinklers come on...