Day 6: The good thing is I didn’t get killed last night

May 12, 2023

Well, I couldn’t wait to leave that “inn” this morning. So much so that I looked up the opening time of the Tim Hortons across the street so I knew when I could leave and go for breakfast. Room 202 was up all night dropping things on the floor, walking around, cutting something…how do I know this? I was in room 102 directly beneath him. While I did get some sleep here and there I was happy when 4:50 rolled around. I quietly stuffed the panniers, threw them on the bike and rode across the street to get breakfast. 5:10 and they saw me waiting at the door and they unlocked it for me. So much nicer staying in there instead of the “inn”

Let me state for the record I really try and support the local small businesses when I can. Coffee shops, independent eateries, motels (that haven’t been bought up by Marriott). But this experience was just really bad. Old stale cigarette smell in the bathroom, patched walls, paint that was applied so terribly first graders could have done a better job. And the in-room phone was something you would not want to touch at all. Enough about that I guess.

Best things about the Deerfield Inn:

The Hearthstone Inn is 9 miles away and a far better choice
I didn’t accidentally witness a drug deal necessitating a drug cartel to kill me to keep me silent
The tenant in the room above didn’t hear me depart this morning
The doors lock

I hit the trail with 45 minutes before official sunrise of 6:24 this morning. I wanted to put that experience and town behind me. Riding in the dark with just the headlight pointing out the terrain in front of me was very peaceful and really made amends for the night before (well, technically, it WAS still the same night as the sun hadn’t come up yet). With still 6 minutes until sunrise I rolled through spring valley with 9 miles under my wheels. Good bye, Xenia, indeed.

It was technically still night so to navigate I had to use my light

Town waking up from the overnight awaiting the day’s light. I feel like I just used this same series of rhymes

Oregonian I got to watch the sun rise behind me and it was sweet. My last day on the road and I knew I had about 58 miles so every mile along the trail got me closer to the destination.

As dawn is breaking, this is the trail I’m taking

My halfway point for the day was Morrow, and I was there by 8:15. That’s 29 miles in a little over 2 hours. I stopped for 15 minutes to keep my energy up with a Clif Bar, refill my bottle, and give my butt some “air time” off the seat.

Reached into my sack to pull out a snack; ate it while looking at this caboose on the track

I only stopped because the picture presented an opportunity. Otherwise I would have ridden through with impunity

Another 1:15 in the saddle and I’m rolling though loveland in the rain. There are a lot of eateries and shops and I would have liked to stop and explore but nothing was open and it was too early for lunch. Plus, it was raining and I didn’t feel like walking around in the rain - I had the final destination mindset in my head. About 10:30 I completed the ride 4:22 rolling 58 miles. Fastest average speed of the whole trip. I’ll post my final thoughts in a follow-up entry

Today's ride: 58 miles (93 km)
Total: 346 miles (557 km)

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Gregory GarceauI'm glad you didn't get killed too, though I was a little worried about you.
I was afraid the last place we'd be seein' ya, would be at the Deerfield Inn of Xenia.
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11 months ago

Paul MulveyGreg - thanks for the concern. Although I'm not sure I would have been the first dead body found there :-)
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11 months ago