Day 93

I woke up and Domino was ready to go but I wasn’t. I laid there much longer than I should have but my body just wouldn’t get up. It was already hot by the time I started.

I was miserable this morning. I had anxiety about how I was going to handle this heat with Domino. I know I’ll be ok but I really stress out a lot about all the logistics of keeping domino healthy in the heat of this summer. I didn’t know what I was going to do but I just kept walking. What else was I gonna do?

I get into Boonville and I made a few wrong turns. I was feeling very defeated. When I was leaving town, I came across a crossroads. I could either get off of the Katy Trail like I planned to or I could stay on it a little longer. Getting off of the trail means more hills and less shade but shorter distance to Kansas City. Staying on the trail means that I could remain comfortable but it adds distance to the total trip. At the last second, I opted to stay on the trail.

I planned on camping in a small town that was only 15 miles from where I started this morning. I figured an easy day would help me have time to focus on my next move.

I was thinking about it and I talked to my dad on the phone and I guess I just have to wing it. Nothing else to do but to figure something out. I think I’ll be ok now, I just needed some time to prepare mentally. I’ll be getting off the trail tomorrow and staying on small backroads. I think the change in scenery will serve me well. I’ll throw the shoes on domino and set her up in the shade as much as possible and make sure that we both stay hydrated. Boom.

I was met by a group of cyclists who stopped as the were approaching me to hear my story. I look like I’m pushing a hot dog cart so maybe they were hungry. Anyways, they were very nice and thought that what I was doing was great. I needed that jolt right then. They donated money and I did a small interview on on of their cellphones to help raise awareness. I am sorry if I got the names wrong but I think I remember. Mark, David, Julie, Mary from Wisconsin. Thank you for stopping 🙂

I was pulling up into town shortly after. I was dripping with sweat so I sat on a bench to cool down before getting to where people could see me. A kid about 8 years old came up and played with Domino and was asking about my cart. We talked for a while and then he offered to lead the way to the town park that has a pool. That’s where I was told that I could camp when I called ahead to the police department earlier in the day.

I got there and asked some kids to watch domino and jumped right in the pool haha. I took everything out of my pockets and I took off my shirt shoes and socks and then went right in. It felt so good! I went back over to Domino and dried off in the sun. Dom stayed in the shade.

I went to the gas station to get pizza and a soda and when I came back there were 4 cyclists hanging out. They were traveling across America also. One couple was from New Zealand and they were on a tandem bicycle. One woman from England, who was really cute but had a boyfriend. And a guy from Tennessee who went to Georgia Tech. We all got along great and got to enjoy the evening together.

Some kids from the pool kept coming over and I could tell it was the bad crowd of the town. They were young but I made sure to let them know that I was doing this walk because my sister died from using drugs. I made sure that it stuck with them. The town has less people than my whole freshmen class in high school had. All there is to do is go to the pool or go to the bar and the pool is closed for half of the year. So yeah…

Well I guess I should try to get some rest… night!