Author: russloomis

Last night’s sky before the rain.

I first noticed light rain at 5 a.m. I went back to sleep. A little before 7am I decided to start packing up my gear. Brandon was also getting ready.

We both checked the weather and discussed whether to wait or go. This cycle went on for a few hours. While doing this, we nibbled on snacks. Our gear was packed and loaded. We were waiting for the heavy rain to lighten up.

It’s 9:26. The rain is once again a soft drizzle.  We decided to go. I swung my leg over the saddle and clipped in. We were heading west again.

I hope to get to Walnut Grove before the heavy rain that is coming through this afternoon. Brandon is thinking about riding off course to a bike shop in Springfield.

I am now 1.6 miles from Walnut Grove City Park. The rain begins. I call the city office to let them know that I have arrived.

I set up the tent in a small raised shelter.

The rain is hammering on the metal roof. I am settling in, happy to be here. Cooking dinner is next before calling it a day.

Looking at the last two days of climbing to get to Annapolis, MO.

The morning drizzle stopped by 7 a.m. Nancy and I got ready to leave the campground.

Nancy will shuttle me to Fair Grove, where I am camping tonight at the Historical Park. This is 3:30 hours away by car. She will then head to Stockton Lake, which is an hour’s drive for her.

On the way, we drove on the TransAm route. We came across a loaded cyclist.

Today is the Farmers Market at the park from 3 to 7 p.m. Score! Fresh foods, music, a food truck, and a restroom with a shower.

Brandon, the cyclist we passed, is staying here tonight. We are talking tours. This is nice.

Stockton Lake is a two-day ride for me. I hope to get there on the 29th. If I am successful, I will have two days at the lake with her. I will be back on schedule.

I was awake at 5 a.m. and began thinking about the ride ahead of me. I was rested but still tired from yesterday. I packed up my bike, swallowed some water, and ate some dry granola. I am now down to one and a half bottles of water. I have fifteen miles to the first place to get water and food.

I get back onto the gravel, two inches of walnut-sized stone. The road is full of washboard stone, making riding difficult and slow. I go up and down; the next down is steep, long, and winding. In the hollow, I come across a herd of goats huddled together in the road.

On the other side of the goats is a hill, turns out to be about a mile-long climb with the steepest section being a 20% grade. I begin to push the bike; it’s all I can do to get to the top after multiple rest stops.

I stop and rest at the top and gulp down water. I finally have cell service and text Nancy. An ATV comes up the hill and stops. The man driving is a Josh, live close by. We talk, and he gives me very good advice of the area. He directs me to a Dollar General on route, but it is ten miles away.

So far, riding this terrain with these road conditions has taken me ninety minutes to go five miles.

I have a 56-mile day and 40 miles to go. I take Josh’s advice and stay on the paved road to Annapolis. The paved roads are still very still, and some hills require pushing my bike. I have low energy from the day before and the lack of water and food.

From Annapolis, I would still have another fifteen miles to the campground. I get to Annapolis at 6:30 pm exhausted. Nancy had gotten my text and call to talk. I now have cell; she is at a campground forty minutes away, and she offers to pick me up to stay with her.

It is after 9 pm, I am at her campground. I shower and slide off to sleep.

It is 6 a.m. and dry. Now it’s raining, just a short sprinkle. I unload the car to load my bike and gear. Nancy is shuttling me to Cape Girardeau, known as the Cape to the locals.

At the cape, the start of the GGT, I get my bike loaded and dip the rear wheel into the Mississippi River. Since Moe is also on the tour, Nancy thought it would be fitting to dip Moe’s back feet into the water. Moe does not feel the necessity.

Finally out of the city’s zig-zaggy streets, I was riding on small roads along the countryside. I reached the first gravel at mile 16.5.

The sky was dark in the distance, and I was soaked with rain after the first 20 miles.

I was riding on a small gravel road, almost out of water and hungry. A car was coming toward me and slowed to a stop. A young woman leaned out the window to ask if I was touring the world. I told her what I was doing. She asked if I needed water. Yes! She handed me two bottles and a granola bar. I arrived at Marble Hill and rode off course two miles to eat, drink, and get some supplies at a convenience store at mile 45. This is the first and only place on the route.

Now back on the route to my campsite, Trace Creek Campground, a primitive campground with nothing, no water, or facilities. I arrived as the sun was setting. I quickly set up camp and ate snacks for dinner. I only had two water bottles and wanted to save the water for riding in the morning. I finished a very hard 60.5-mile day. Exhausted.

A rainy start to a day that was supposed to be sunny. We are hoping for sun sometime today to explore the hiking trails and museum.

We hiked the Lake Trail with Moe. He was all grins leading the way, smelling all the smells, leaving his own scent for others to find, and leading us back to the campsite.

Nancy and I drove down to the Visitor Center to see the Trail of Tears exhibit as Moe sadly watched from the camper window. The movie about the history was from the Cherokee perspective. And, the curator gave us added information.

Back at the campsite, I grilled hot dogs for dinner with macaroni salad. Moe is now resting on my lap.

Tomorrow morning, I begin cycling to Oregon.

The car was left hitched to the camper, so leaving this morning was fairly simple. We Googled breakfast places, and I found Vibe, a great small coffee shop with great food and coffee.

Now we begin the last leg to the start of the Golden Gravel Trail in Cape Girardeau.

We are camping at the Trail of Tears State Park. Tomorrow, we will explore.

It was raining this morning, so breakfast was cooked inside. After oatmeal and coffee, we moved my gear and bicycle into the camper and began the drive to our next campground.

The eight-and-a-half-hour drive was stressful. Busy highways, rain, and construction eroded my patience.

We arrived about 7 p.m. The office was closed. Nancy got an envelope off the door with directions to our site. We pulled in and noticed that the RV next to us had hooked up to our water along with his. After a brief discussion, he reluctantly unhooked his hose from our faucet.

We set up and settled in. We walked to the small pond and discovered that on the far side is the tent-only camping area. Lots of shade and a large fire pit, this is unusual for an RV campground.

Rain was on the way for overnight and today. We woke up to a blue sky and dry conditions. The forecast changed to rain coming in the afternoon. We began the morning routine, setting up the outside chairs and starting the cook stove. I prefer this to cooking inside within the crowded space.

We finished the fried eggs and bagels and talked about which area to hike. John, in another site, walked by with his two Scotty dogs. We began to talk. The conversation was interesting, so we talked for a while. After we got busy, I forgot to make coffee.

I got in touch with the office for the Wildlife Protection Agency to confirm a campsite on the GGT. Then we met Kevin, in another site. He had information on the hiking trails. 

During our hike, I heard thunder in the distance. We decided to loop around on a different trail to head back to our campsite.  The thunder was now overhead, and drops of rain were on my skin as we entered the campground. We are now in the camper listening to rain on the roof.

Working on the blog before retiring for the night.

Nancy forgot her Atlas, so this morning we stopped at a Barnes & Noble to buy one for the tour.

We stopped at the Oak Barrel for gas and for lunch. This was a nice small deli with an ice cream shop right off Route 68. We had a nice, fresh-made sandwich. We both had milkshakes; mine was an espresso and vanilla. We bought cheesecake for dessert tonight.

We saw black clouds in the distance, and in Frostburg, MD, the rain dumped on us, making it almost impossible to see beyond the car’s hood. The rain cleared as we passed into West Virginia.

We are now in Coopers Rock State Campground by. The sun is shining, and it is hot and muggy.

Nancy and I are relaxing in the shade, and Moe is sleeping.

Heading to the route

I got up at 6 this morning. We leave as soon as all is packed. I checked the weather for Cape Girardeau. It looks like a week of rain and thunderstorms for the tour’s beginning.

We are ready, it is Monday, May 18. It’s almost 10 am, we drive out of the driveway and onto the road. We head west to New York to connect onto Route 87 and head south.

We stop in Newburgh, NY. for lunch at a rest stop on the highway.

At the connection to Route 81 south, the road work begins, and we slow to a crawl. I relaxed with this slow pace. The road finally opened back up, and the highway speed resumed. Nancy sees a yellow T@B up ahead of the row of four tractor trailers. The chase begins. We must catch that camper. As we pass, Nancy waves. My face is frozen with bugged out eye balls. The car slows a bit, but I’m shutting down.

Finally, we get to Mount Gretna and settle in for the night. Pizza is delivered, and I enjoy a few glasses of wonderful English Ale.