January 16, 2014
Day 12: Corkscrew Swamp to Labelle: Roadside treats
About the Guestbook: it can get pretty lonely and discouraging out here, particularly with no other touring cyclists in sight. The Guestbook is a big source of support and advice for us, and we always check it first when we take the tablet out. We always try to acknowledge each message, but sometimes time is too limited. We want everyone to know, though, that every message is read and treasured, even if we missed replying. For anyone who has yet to give it a try, the link is on every page, where it says "Contact" next to our names.
We just got through whining about the 42 degree temperatures, but this morning at 5 when our cheery alarm ring tone went off, it was bitterly cold and windy. We had to remember where we put our long pants and warm gloves. Then with full front and rear and helmet lights and flashers, we ventured out onto the Imokallee Road. Lots of cars filled the way, all heading into Naples. On a bike it's easy to forget that a day's cycle can be just commuting distance with a car.
The east side of Imokalee was much different from Naples. Here people of all races seemed to be doing a lot of sitting and standing around, A former two level motel served as low income housing. Any restaurants or groceries were small and dark. We stopped at the most upbeat looking service station and bought some coffee and hot chocolate. Outside, quite large and very black man spoke to us. We quickly learned that is wife had passed away in the Fall, and we sympathised very much with his feeling of loss and loneliness. This man had the most southern sounding of southern accents and seemed very much a part of this place. We were really glad he chose to speak to us.
On the north side of town things perked up a bit, This is where Mcdonalds and Wendys chose to put their operations,We also found Winn Dixie. Probably the most southern sounding grocery store for us is Piggly Wiggly, no doubt because it features in the film Driving Miss Daisy. But Winn Dixie would be number two. For quality and selection, though, Publix is the one to choose.
Our maps showed RV parks at Labelle, so we made that our destination. The 40km hop up there would normally be just routine, but we had to battle a head wind all the way. The road (hwy 29) is busy with a lot of trucks, but it has a reasonable shoulder. There is not much of interest along the sides. So here is a snow free 40 km straight run, just the thing if what you want to do is pedal your bike in Winter, which is what we want to do!
A lot of the trucks on the highway were carrying oranges, About half the loads were covered and half just piled high. As we could see by the roadside, a certain proportion of these fly off. We watched one fly, picked it up and got out the knife. mmmmm, sweet! Then I stood by the road and called to the next roaring truck "Hey, throw me another one!" Actually, there were plenty of good ones just lying about (though most had split on impact).
We arrived at Labelle quite early in the afternoon, and were looking forward to setting up the tent and reorganizing our lives a bit. We quickly found out none of the three RV places in the vicinity would accept a tent. Gack. The people here do not bicycle, and they do not even car camp.The additional 30km to the next possible camping spot, Fish Eating Creek, was not on in this wind and this time of day, so a wild camp seemed to loom again.
Just to be sure about the non camping situation, we rolled up to a police officer unlucky enough to park where we could see him. He confirmed that there is no tent camping anywhere around. However he volunteered that they were opening a shelter tonight, to keep homeless people like us from freezing. In the end we got him to direct us to the only motel in town.
So that's where we are. The heater is going and our stuff is happily spread all over, getting itself reorganized. I am on the mend, and Dodie is hanging in there. So all is well, and we will continue to work on understanding the people and landscape, after a warm night's snooze!
(Watch for photos soon)
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Today's ride: 68 km (42 miles)
Total: 568 km (353 miles)
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