Today was a wonderful day. A slight shift in wind direction, combined with my needing to head mostly south, meant the never-ending gusts I fought all day yesterday helped me much of today. Yet despite covering ground so much more quickly, I was still on the road for nearly as long. This time however, it was intentional.
It would be far easier, and often shorter, for me to plan routes that are much more direct. Routes that use main roads or parallel the interstates. But there’s so many places those roads won’t take you. And I want to see all of them.
So my route is made up of much smaller roads. Some paved, some not. For a portion of the day there had been more tractors pass me than cars. I made time for a snack and conversation at the Chebanse General Store. A few hours later, lunch at Lucy’s Kitchen. All of it worth every minute spent.
I accomplished one other goal today as well. Growing up in the Great Lakes State, I’ve countless times looked out over the water to where it meets the horizon, but never seen a place where the land stretched so far. A place so wide open, you can’t tell if the fields ever end. Today, I rode my bike to a place like that. And it was every bit as beautiful as I thought it would be.
❤️
Day 4 – 97.0 Miles
#MeetMeInStLouis
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