Day Nineteen

Another 90 degree day with almost no clouds. I’m amazed I’m not sunburned. This heat makes the riding very difficult, but I made it to Indiana today! I got up at 6:00 and the breakfast at the Holiday Inn was actually really good. I know I should be eating cereal and yogurt, but I always reach for the eggs and biscuits because I love them! I looked up the best way to get across Indiana on Google and the girl at the desk printed it out for me. So many direction changes though, I think I’d rather stick to Route 20.

I headed west on 20A from Wauseon and the traffic wasn’t bad since it was early Sunday morning. I think that was the best time of the week for me to be on that road, since it usually gets a lot of truck traffic. I just can’t get over how vast and empty it is around here. And flat! I’ve been so spoiled going through Ohio. No hills whatsoever. The next time I come to a hill, it’s going to be a challenge! But soon I won’t have the trailer behind me, so that will be nice. I told Chuck it’s just nothing but farmland as far as you can see, no stores, not a lot of trees, no parks, nothing! He said, “Welcome to the Midwest!”

I came to Montpelier…yes, there’s a Montpelier, Ohio, and Route 20 was closed. No indication of why, so I went into a gas station on the corner to find out. There was a man in there and a young girl behind the counter. He looked at me and said, “I almost hit you!” and I smiled and said, “Well, I’m glad you didn’t!” He said, “Yeah, there would have been a lot of paperwork to fill out…” Just his sense of humor. I asked about Route 20 and they both recommended taking the detour. He said it would take me past his house and not far out of my way, so I gave it a try.

He was a truck driver, and his directions were very clear. Of course, it helps that all the roads around here are almost perfectly straight. I was coming up on the bridge that crosses the interstate and I saw him standing in a driveway. He motioned for me to come over. He asked if I’d like any water or supplies, and I said sure. His wife was there and he had told her about me. They said they had both been very sick for the past year; I don’t remember what she had, but he has cancer (he told me as he puffed on his cigarette). Their house was modest, but nice. They had two huskies who were well into their teens, and it showed. But they are beautiful dogs. The woman gave me a huge glass of cold cranberry juice, which I did my best to finish, but it was a lot. They also gave me 3 bottles of water to take with me. They said they wished they could give me money, but their medical bills have really wiped them out. I said that was totally fine; I appreciated their help. They offered me some batteries, which I really needed, but I declined since I didn’t want to impose too much. Looking back, I should have accepted since they really wanted to help.

I headed back onto Route 20. It got to be time for a lunch break and I was really hot, so when I saw a huge Burger King sign, I hoped it meant there was something else there too…and there was. They had a Subway next door (this was right next to the interstate). I went in and got a pretty decent tuna sandwich and some really tasty iced tea. I can’t take anymore of the country music they play out here (and it was right over my head) so I went out and got my Nano. Thank goodness for the Nano!! The battery’s starting to go on it, though. I hope I can get it charged again.

I crossed into Indiana (another state that doesn’t clean up its roadkill) and took a picture by the sign. When I got to Angola, I started looking for a motel, but I decided to ask my friends for help. I know there’s motels on Route 20, but I didn’t see one, and I knew for sure that there were several on Route 127. I just didn’t realize it would be 10 miles down the road! It’s different when you’re on a bike. When you’re in a situation like that, you have to keep going, because if you turn back, you might not find something. So I kept going until I saw a Ramada. The girl turned me down even though I told her I was just about ready to die from the heat. I’m really surprised, but I tried not to get angry. I went down the road a little bit and found a place that would take $40 for the night. I really should have asked how much they usually charge, though. I might have overpaid!

It’s a comfortable room, I got some sleep, and now it’s 5:30 and I’m getting ready to head out. Chuck’s trying to tell me I’m “behind schedule” but I don’t buy it. We had planned on meeting in Chicago and I’ll be pretty close to it by the time he meets up with me. Riding in 90 degree weather, towing a 200 pound trailer is not easy, even when the road is flat!