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Day 44 - July 21 - Marshfield, MO to Houston, MO - 67 miles Click on the thumbnails to view larger pictures.
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| Thank you Holiday Inn for the great breakfast we had this
morning! With our bodies fueled up and ready to go we started the
day's trek at 5:20. It's sure a lot cooler this time of day than in
the afternoon sun.
We had 12 miles in before the sun came up and 30 miles before the second car passed us going our way. It's not easy getting up at 4:00 in the morning, but there are definite rewards. The hills were still with us today, but not as steep as yesterday. An easier ride even though it still was like a roller coaster. While riding across these hills a little black dog came out of nowhere and started to chase us. At first we thought the worse, but it wasn't long before we could see he just wanted to follow along. He would fall way behind on the down hills, but catch up again as we climbed the next uphill. This went on for quite a while; out of sight on the down hill and catch back up on the uphill. After 5 miles of this we stopped and greeted our new friend. He was a very friendly and well behaved puppy. Gary wanted to put him in a pannier and take him with us. He said, "Any dog that can keep up with us for 5 miles deserves to go along." We considered it for a minute, but then decided to leave him behind, even though we had a name picked out. "Transam" seemed to fit this fellow. The next down hill was a long one and we didn't see our little friend again. We stopped in Bendavis to get a drink to go along with the PBJ sandwiches and cookies we ate for lunch. While we sat outside eating the owner joined us. It's always nice to talk to the locals to get information about the up coming route and also get their impression of cycle tourists. This guy was very supportive of what we were doing and wished he could come along. We think his steady diet of cigarettes would keep him from enjoying the trip. Our noon arrival in Houston was much better than yesterday's experience. It was hot when we got there, but we did avoid the real heat of the afternoon. Houston teenagers have a reputation of harassing cyclists that stay at the Westside Park so we opted for another motel room. Art showed up soon after we checked in and also decided to stay inside. We should all sleep well tonight. |
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