See that nice scenic detour? That's right up Jacinto's alley - he never met a climb he didn't like. I don't mind climbing, but there will be plenty more later in the trip. I could go with a nice 50 mile, downhill first day. Nope. There is road construction and the bike path detour around the tunnel is closed. We must take the scenic route. It cuts the interstate riding down by about half, but adds ten miles and who knows how much climbing to the route. The two big climbs you see are on the detour.
We went this direction because it's easy, remember that part?
Up and at 'em. The early cyclist beats the headwind. I haven't been up this early all summer. at 5 AM it isn't even fully light! My goal was a 6 AM departure. Even though I was basically packed the night before, I was still 15 minutes late. My Type A reputation is tarnished before I even get out the door.
I detoured past friend Shelly's house (remember nice Shelly who brought me a replacement seat last tour?) to drop off a bag of perishables we didn't eat. Only Porter the black lab was awake. At least, he was the only one barking!
$58. and very clean. The carpet is still slightly damp from being shampooed. That's no problem with me. It has a fridge, microwave, TV. The bike is outside, that's a negative. But the price is much appreciated. As is the fresh remodel and level of clean. We see all sorts of rooms while touring. This is nice.
Jacinto forgot his off the bike shoes. These $2.00 specials are what he found at the Dollar General store. BTW, my mother would call the motel carpet good movie theatre carpet because it has a big pattern.
We ate a disappointingly lackluster dinner at the Palisade Brewery. Afterward we stopped at the grocery where Jacinto bought ten chicken legs for $6.99. We agreed that would have been a better dinner. The chicken is Jacinto's breakfast. Me? I'm having more traditional oatmeal.
