Day 88 and 89

I got a few things done on my day off. I went to the store and was able to buy a summer sleeping bag and a better sleeping pad. Both needed to be replaced and I got a great deal. I also resupplied on food for me and Dom. I planned out my route for the rest of Missouri and I did laundry. I couldn’t get any news interested in me 🙁 That was a big part of why I walked 3 miles out of my way to go into the city. Oh well…

The next morning I tried to get out early but just couldn’t do it. It took me forever to pack up because I was doing a gear swap. I was going to send all of my cold weather stuff home. I’m not going to need it for a while now. I finally got it all together and it was around 10 when I finally left the hotel.

10 minutes later I was at the post office and was already pouring sweat. It was going to be hot hot hot today. My hottest day yet. I send a huge box back home and set up the shade canopy for domino. She would need it today. I walked back towards the Katy Trail. Had about 2 miles to go.

I passed by a bike shop and thought that I should have gone into it to buy a spare innertube since I had to swap mine out back in St Louis. I figured I would be ok until the next one. I kept going. As soon as I was far enough away to not want to turn back I noticed the wobble. Flat fucking tire. Go figure.

I pushed just a little farther to the trailhead because I knew they had tools there. I was going to try to patch it up and see if it would hold. As I was working on it, a couple pulls up and they offer some patches that are made for innertubes. I was going to use something else because I am totally unprepared and have no clue what I am doing out here.

I was very thankful for that. They live in Douglasville GA which is only about an hour away from Atlanta. We talked about GA and I thanked them so much for the patches. They also donated $20. People are amazing. That’s all.

Well it didn’t take long for me to realize that the patch didn’t work. I could see the tire laying flat again. Screw it. I started walking with the flat. The only problem with that is that I can’t let Domino ride with a flat tire because the extra weight makes it impossible to move forward. So I had to try to get her to walk in the shade from the umbrella I had set up.

She wasn’t understanding what I was trying to get her to do and she could tell that I was frustrated. It was hot enough outside that she could literally die from standing in direct sunlight. It was vital that she got in the shade. Her and I went back and forth for a long time about this issue. She wasn’t getting it and I was getting so mad. I was the maddest that I’ve been yet on this whole trip.

I yelled and said some things that I’m glad she couldn’t understand. She sat on the side of the road and stayed there. I walked away in anger and she didn’t follow. She’s never done that. Ever. I walked farther and farther knowing that she would eventually come. Nothing. I even whistled for her which always works. Nope. Not this time. She wasn’t playing my game.

I got livid. I walked all the way back to her and yelled for her to come. She did but was staying far behind me. In the sun. Dying. Literally. I had to stop myself. This was going nowhere. I took a breather and had the idea of leashing her in a way that she had no choice but to walk in the shade.

I don’t know why I was mad at her. I had spent months teaching her to walk to the left of my left heel. She was great at it. I knew that changing that up was going to be difficult. I was just upset and took it out on her. She finally got the stride right now that I cooled down and that I had the leash on her. I was able to relax a little but I was still pissed about the flat tire.

I decided that it would be worth it to try to repair it again. If the tire was fixed then all of my problems would be solved. I spent a good 30 minutes on it and thought that I may have gotten to finally work. It seemed to be holding up so I let Domino back in the stroller. That worked for a while and then the wobble started to come back.

I think it was so hot that the glue from the patch was melting. It just wouldn’t hold air. Ok that’s that. I have to deal with that for a few days now. I may try to call a bike shop and see if they’ll send an innertube down to me via a cyclist. It’s a long shot but they may help out. Whatever. I accepted it at this point.

I hated today. It was the worst day yet. But even going through all of that, I knew that I was still far from my tipping point. Not once did I even get close to considering quitting. It was a comforting thought to know that even when faced with a challenge that I had the confidence that I would think of something so that I could keep going.

I pushed on and hated every step. I even jogged some to get to the town faster. I just wanted to be done with the walk today. I finally made it and felt instantly better.  Very cool small town and a little shady spot that the town made for people on the trail to camp on. I set up my tent and a neighbor came over to say hey. We talked and I let the bad day fade away.

I finished setting up and then went over to the town watering hole to get some pizza. Boom. Had a few and some good conversations with the locals and went back to my tent. There was a cyclist that set up a tent also and we talked for a while about the trail and other long distance trips that he had taken.

I got to my tent and laid on my new sleeping pad. Wow. Worth every penny. I’m hoping to get up early so that I can walk in the morning and then take shelter and read or something for the hot afternoon hours and then walk some more in the evening. With a flat tire..

Ugh.