Day 179

It is starting to get really cold at night. I woke up this morning freezing. I need to upgrade my sleeping bag. I woke up and went into the bathroom with the heat on until the sun came up. Then I packed up and rolled out.
The wind was blowing hard right at me and it was still cold. I fought through it and tried not to get irritated. I had to turn music on in my headphones to help keep me calm. 
I passed some buffalo and that was the first time I’d seen any on this walk. That was pretty cool. The scenery was great all day. Mountains and farms. Healthy land and clear air. Just the stupid wind.
The wind let up a little in the afternoon and helped make things a little more enjoyable. After 15 or so miles I came into the town of Loa. I was met on the edge of town by some women at a nursing home. They had a bag full of snacks for me. Someone had seen me on the road and called to say I was coming. 
They were sweet. One lady had a dog that was barking so loud and wouldn’t stop. A little yapper. Everyone else was pissed about it except for her. I was so glad when she brought it inside. I said goodbye and thank you and walked away. 
Half a minute later and guy was running after me and hollered for me to wait. He wanted to talk also. He had a lot of interest in the outdoors and wanted to hear about the walk. He was very nice and offered for me to stay at his place if I wanted to. I normally would have but I needed to do some repairs on my gear and do laundry and a bunch of other chores that are just easier to do alone. He gave me the directions to the hotel in town. 
I checked in and got my stuff taken care of and was laying in bed watching tv. I heard a knock. I knew exactly who it was and what it was for. The same man came back to invite me to dinner. I happily accepted and he offered to pick me up later. 
I got ready and headed to his home where his wife was finishing up with dinner. Very sweet couple. They were Mormon and I knew that right away when I met him. I didn’t know anything about Mormons but I knew that Utah is known for having a large amount of them. I had no judgements about it or about them and was hoping they were the same towards me. 
It ended up being just that. They were very kind and I enjoyed dinner very much. I talked with Jon about my routes and he shared the basics of what the whole Mormon thing is all about. He gave me a copy of The Book of Mormon. He also gave me a sleeping bag liner that will help me out tremendously until I can get a new one. 
Very happy to have met them and I hope to stay in touch. The kindness of people continued today. I have a long 3 day stretch before the next town so I’m hoping to get some good rest and be ready for it.