Day of Rest

There's some sporadic wi-fi service up here so I'll opt for a full keyboard, no photos. Last night, after being greeted by a bearded fellow running down George St in the dark, I slid down the survival-mode adrenaline cloud and eased into a blueberry lager provided by my host. After kicking back for a few hours I could barely keep my eyes open during conversation, and I knew it was time. Matt let me use his new mattress. What a guy.

If you've been following these posts you'll know that when I left Lehigh Gap yesterday morning I expected to go another 60 miles or so until reaching Throop.

Turned out to be 100.

Turned out to start pouring rain around 11am.

Turned out to get a flat tire on a country road with 25 miles and 1 hour of sunlight left to go. A friendly dog-walker found me half-pruned, changing out the tube with road grime and chain grease slathered all over my hands and brow.

It got dark. I was wet, kind of chilly, and made extremely anxious by the traffic passing in the dark. I had flashing lights, reflectors, and a headlamp, but it's tough to trust drivers even under good conditions.

So, I let out a carnal shriek as I saw bearded Matt jogging towards me down the street. It was the end of a long, challenging day. My limits of comfort and endurance were definitely tested, but it felt so good to finally be here knowing I'd covered the distance through thick and thin.

A neighbor passing with her dog inquired about the loaded down bike. She invited us to run the local 5k in town today.

Honestly the thought passed through my mind: man, I wonder if I could do that in my light hikers?

It would be fun, but probably a little uncomfortable. And I have a long ride home. So I'll spend the next day or two trying not to eat everything in Matt's kitchen and think about how I'm gonna take the return trip knowing now that it's 40 miles longer than planned.