After resigning myself to not hearing from Jonathan, he rang my motel room (Sprint service is virtually non-existent out here) and told me that Greg wanted to drive him down the next day, but spend an evening at the park. Thus, I had to delay another day on the road and stick around waiting for my friends to arrive from Ohio. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, considering Breaks Interstate Park is a beautiful area and I was more than happy to loaf around in these surroundings all day. I spent the morning washing off my bike and repacking things for equal leverage. I then reserved a camp site for the evening and subsequently pitched my tent, threw my bags in it, and took off for an early afternoon of hiking along the park's many scenic trails.
On the way to trail, I stumbled upon a an old-fashioned car show. Most of the attendants at the show scoffed at my non-combustion engine contraption between my legs; however, it didn't stop me from admiring their beautiful peaces of machinery. After staring at antiquated shiny automobiles, I headed onto the trail and saw many beautiful scenic overlooks and spooked some deer from time to time. After arriving back to my site, I hung out and got to know the very friendly Steffey family (Brian, Karen, Kathleen, & Benjamin). They let me borrow their cell phone to ring Greg and Jonathan when they were running late and offered for me to stay for dinner. I would have gladly accepted, but finally the Ohio boys arrived and we took a walk down to the local restaurant for a later dinner.
It was great to see some familiar faces, especially considering I hadn't seen Greg since Easter and Jonathan since two summers ago (right after our epic Cape Cod bike trip). Jonathan pitched their tent and we walked a few miles to get some grub and got caught in a thunder storm on our way back to the campsite. We stopped in at a little shop for some Klondike bars, and Jonathan purchased a tarp for the sole purpose to cover our bikes at night, yet it came in handy as we walked under this portable canopy all the way back to the tents.
As we began to wind down after several hours of conversation/catching up, I warned Jonathan that I needed to make up this lost time and he said he was "game." Tomorrow looks to be the last of serious Appalachian mountains we'll face, so it'll be a good test for him. I hope to make it into Hindman by lunch time, but we shall see how that goes. Good night and remember to brush your teeth!!!
On the way to trail, I stumbled upon a an old-fashioned car show. Most of the attendants at the show scoffed at my non-combustion engine contraption between my legs; however, it didn't stop me from admiring their beautiful peaces of machinery. After staring at antiquated shiny automobiles, I headed onto the trail and saw many beautiful scenic overlooks and spooked some deer from time to time. After arriving back to my site, I hung out and got to know the very friendly Steffey family (Brian, Karen, Kathleen, & Benjamin). They let me borrow their cell phone to ring Greg and Jonathan when they were running late and offered for me to stay for dinner. I would have gladly accepted, but finally the Ohio boys arrived and we took a walk down to the local restaurant for a later dinner.
It was great to see some familiar faces, especially considering I hadn't seen Greg since Easter and Jonathan since two summers ago (right after our epic Cape Cod bike trip). Jonathan pitched their tent and we walked a few miles to get some grub and got caught in a thunder storm on our way back to the campsite. We stopped in at a little shop for some Klondike bars, and Jonathan purchased a tarp for the sole purpose to cover our bikes at night, yet it came in handy as we walked under this portable canopy all the way back to the tents.
As we began to wind down after several hours of conversation/catching up, I warned Jonathan that I needed to make up this lost time and he said he was "game." Tomorrow looks to be the last of serious Appalachian mountains we'll face, so it'll be a good test for him. I hope to make it into Hindman by lunch time, but we shall see how that goes. Good night and remember to brush your teeth!!!
Oh, I almost forget to mention that there have been reports of black bears roaming the campsites at night, so I'm keeping my knife ready in case I'm able to fufill my ultimate destiny (much akin to Brad Pitt's destiny in "Legends of the Fall").
1 comments:
Hey Blakey boy and Jonathan!
Put the knife away and just scream like little girls and those big old black bears will take off!! You two be careful and enjoy the glorious country side God has created for our joy!!!
Love and Big "bear" hugs (ha ha )
Momma
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