Day 95
So today was interesting. I woke up at 4 am from my cell phone alarm. I wanted to stay asleep but I knew I had to get going. It took a while to pack up but I was on the road and walking at 5:10 am. During all that time, I was feeling a lot better. I thought that it was so cool to be waking up at dark next to a corn field haha. No one was around. Just me and Domino. There were some big tractor trailers that were parked there and some were still running but the drivers were all away in their cabins.
The colors of the sky as the sun rose were stunning. The air was crisp and the temperature was perfect. Waking up early was definitely worth it. I went quickly up and down rolling hills for 6 miles until I found a gas station/fireworks store. I figured I’d stop by to use the restroom and grab a second breakfast. That’s a thing when you burn as many calories as I do…
I go in and do my thing and when I come out I find a woman taking a picture of my stroller and she was crying. She told me that she’d lost her neice to an overdose and it hit her when she saw my whip. We talked and I wished I could’ve said more to help her and her family with the loss but there isn’t much I could do anyways. I just sat there on the sidewalk and ate my banana bread and muscle milk :/
It was only about 7 am at this time and I could tell that it was going to be hot soon. I wanted to push another 4 miles to get to a truck stop that I’d spotted on the map. My plan was to get there and then set my tent up somewhere and sleep during the day so that I could keep moving at night. I was following a road that parallels I-70. It was perfect but it came to a dead end and then picked back up a few miles ahead. I could see that from my map. I chose to just get on the interstate and walk on the shoulder until I got to the other road. It’s illegal and not exactly the safest thing in the world but I could care less at this point.
I made it just fine without confrontations and was back on the small roads again. I saw a sign for the truck stop and it mentioned that it had a motel, a restaurant, and a convenient store. My eyes lit up as I didn’t know of this until then. I figured a motel would be a much better place to get some rest through the 100 degree temperature day.
I go inside the convenient store to see about checking in and the woman says that she would be happy to have me stay but that none of the rooms were ready and it would be a while before she could tend to it. She offered a ride 8 miles up the road to the next motel. It was 10 am and already in the 90s. I needed the rest. This was a ride I was willing to take.
There was a vendor for a chip company that was behind me and heard the whole thing. He said he was going there anyways and offered to take me instead. My stroller would fit easier into the large truck. I didn’t hesitate. I needed this. The heat had been wearing on me bad and I just wanted to get my head right. I was so thankful when I arrived and checked in. I got a great rate also.
I got some great rest and went through Lieutenant Dan to lighten my load a little. I’m STILL learning that I don’t need half of the stuff that I’ve been carrying all the way across the country. I made my plans to walk at night again. There is an RV campground 18 miles ahead that I called and they said that I could put my tent up there. I am planning an getting there around 9 or 10 am tomorrow. I’ll find a shady spot and get some sleep and then do it all over again the next night.
I’m going to stick to this strategy for a few days and see how things go. I’m glad the way today worked out. I feel much better now that I’ve had a little rest. I feel like everything changed when I crossed the Mississippi River. The weather, the terrain, the people, me, everything… I have to somehow roll with it and figure out how to get through. One day at a time…