Yesterday have us a serious beating - so much so that I (Erica) suggested sleeping in, which I never do. We slept for probably an extra hour and a half, and I should have known better...
By the time we got ready to ride, it was just after 10am. It was already hot, and we were worn down from fighting the wind yesterday. This was not going to be pretty...
My bike computer stopped working a while before our trip, which is fine by me, since I am a number watcher, and each mile feels like a million when you watch every tenth of a mile tick by. It makes the day feel incredibly long to me. So after we had been pedaling a while, I am exhausted already, and ask Mel how many miles we have gone already. We had no services for 31 miles or so to Dighton, and had planned to go 54 into Scott City today. When she gave me a number that was less than 10, I nearly dropped my bike right there and put my thumb out to hitch a ride. I was not doing well at all today...
We got about 15 miles in, and stopped at a historical marker for George Washington Carver's farm that he owned at a point in his life. That was the line tree we saw today - our one piddly break from the blazing Kansas sun. I laid down with my cooling towel on my face and really, really had to will myself to get back up.
About 5 more miles down the road, we see more cyclists in our mirrors coming up behind us. It's always a treat to break up the monotony by chatting a bit with other cyclists while you pedal on. These guys didn't chat long though, they were in tip top cycling shape, and doing long days, so they were quickly out of sight.
The last 7-8 miles into Dighton were a low point for me. We didn't eat a proper breakfast this morning, just a protein bar, and I'm sure that had something to do with it. I had my emotional breakdown, and uttered words I didn't think I'd ever say on this trip - "I just want to go home". Yep, that decided it folks, Dighton was to be our new destination for the day. Better get there before I do something really rash like tossing my bike into a ditch, hitch hiking to the nearest regional airport and begging a ride from some crop-duster pilot to the nearest real airport to catch a plane home. Yep, that thought obviously crossed my mind a few times...
We arrived incident-free into Dighton, and pedaled past the "Bowl and Diner" in search of other food options, but had to turn and come back when we found nothing but that and the Frigid Creme open. No joke people, I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried. So I ordered a salad in a bowling alley/diner. It was surprisingly delicious. The other two cyclists were also there, passing the afternoon eating and journaling, and there was a group if elderly ladies celebrating a birthday with homemade angel food cake. The only thing they ordered from the diner was coffee (eww, coffee in the heat of the Kansas afternoon?). The bowling alley was sadly not open for whatever reason.
We ate, then decided we would enjoy some frosty treats at the Frigid Creme. Then we found The Heritage Hotel, got a room, and laid down for a good long while. They had an awesome laundry room, and when I went to put our closeted in the washer, there was the sweetest black cat in the lobby! I told Mel she had to come out and per the cat, and that's when the cousins of the hotel owner came out to chat in the lobby. They also brought out their other cat, a Siamese named Ted, and later their 3 dogs - 2 Daschunds and a Yorkie. They were all so cute, and the lady and two guys running the hotel while the owner was out helping with the harvest were the nicest people.
We chatted with them and enjoyed the company of the animals for probably a good hour, then finished some blogging in our room. It was nearly 8:00 by this time, so we decided to see if the pizza place in town was still open, since the hours said it should be until 8:30. But...it was closed (maybe for good, who knows). Back to the bowling alley then...but it closed at 8 too! Ahh well, good thing the Frigid Creme was open until 9, and sold food as well as ice cream...
We watched an American Pickers marathon until bed, then were awoken around midnight to a hell of a thunderstorm outside. I knew this was good news for the farmers around here, since we heard it had been a very dry few years, and we were glad the weathermen were right for once and we had heeded the warning and taken cover inside for the evening, instead of in the city park. Oh, and they were also showing The Goonies in the park, which would have been awesome if we could stay awake past 9 anymore, but would have royally sucked if we had stayed there and tried to sleep while most if the town partook in seemingly the only form of Friday night entertainment!
Hah, as I add this picture to the blog, I realize that Mel is also one of these people enjoying coffee in the middle of a hot Kansas afternoon!
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