As night fell, we were lounging in our hammocks under the pavilion. We were stealth camped just off the trail, closer to the trail than the railroad tracks (8′ vs 20′). Every hour or so a train came by. The noise and vibration of the train and its massive weight would vibrate the pavilion. I was a light sleeper in between trains.

Around 1;30 am, I woke to the sound of music and a man talking. Unsure what or who this was, I called out Matt’s name. He was awake and answered. Apparently, a cyclist out for a moonlit toodle rode past us and our presence surprised him. He surprised us as well. He stopped to take a double look and continued on down his path. I am thankful to have Matt by my side through it all.

In the morning, we grabbed a cold coffee from the ice mule and discussed our options for tonight and a couple of changes to my flight back to Tallahassee in August.

A few early Sunday morning cyclists stopped to chat with us as we packed up. One gentleman, said there were two older hikers on the trail heading to Seattle. He mentioned the local paper had wrote an article about them. Matt and I hope we run into them along the way.

After much consideration and discussion on routing and timing, we decided that it was best I fly round trip out of Grand Rapids, MI to Tallahassee mid August instead of Minneapolis St. Paul. Neither Matt and I like to feel pushed or rushed while on tour. It just takes the fun out of it. So this adjustment will allow us to explore the Lake Michigan and the Upper Peninsula through August and get us into Minnesota and North Dakota by months end.

Matt’s flexibility is one of the 781 things I love him.😁❤

We packed up leaving no trace and headed into town for a quick bite to eat that a local runner recommended. Billy’s Restaurant just a few miles ahead and a local favorite. When we got there, our greeted by our very attentive waitress Melissa.

Matt got trashed…potatoes and I ordered biscuits and gravy 😉. Both were delicious. Melissa had noticed that we were cycling and we were able to share with her our story. She even brought over the newcomer notebook for us to sign. She was a sweetheart.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Billys-Restaurant-Inc/100853463292535

We left from there and navigated our way up the hill to Tim Hortons to feed our unicorn. Her parents need for stronger go juice as well.

After refueling on strong coffee, we heard from our Warmshowers host in Bowling Green, Ohio. He said yes to tonight! A short time later mentioned they had been exposed last night to a couple who tested positive today for Covid. We rolled along down the road thinking on the development at the hosts house. We decided it was sunny and hot and we needed to swim. We made a beeline for White Star Quarry. Unknowing this was a popular hangout for the residents of Ohio, we rode up to find alot of people enjoying the cool blue water of this Quarry.

Matt and I found a picnic table in the shade, and proceeded to get ready to swim. We discussed the Warmshowers stay and decided to find other accommodations due to my autoimmune disease still not quite in remission. That and neither of us can afford to be wiped out for a week. I texted the host back and we went swimming!

Apparently you don’t have to pay for unicorns to get into the Quarry. Fine by us!

After cooling off and staying away from the crowds of people, we dried off and packed up. As we were just about to leave a couple pulled up on bikes and ask us questions about our bikes and tour. Matt fielded most of the questions and then they continued on their bike ride as new subscribers to our blogs. Cool beans!

We found a route to our accommodations via a combination of Google and the Adventure Cycling Association (ACA) maps. We were energetic and cycled 17 miles without stopping longer than 3 minutes for water breaks. Occasionally we had cross winds, but mostly it was moderate variable winds with passing clouds all day. Now I sound like a weather forecaster! Ha!

Our route took us down well paved, quiet and maintained rural roads. Usually with crops corn on one side and soybeans on the right. Truly a peaceful ride today.

You can also find us posting on Facebook at All Bodies on Bikes.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/allbodiesonbikes/permalink/609488860896853/

We decided to splurge on a cheap hotel, order a pizza and stay in for the night. Looking forward to a good nights rest, a good breakfast/lunch, free ice and coffee to make it a great day tomorrow!

Tomorrow we will be checking off a bucket list ride for Matt!

https://www.wabashcannonballtrail.org/

Stay tuned for more adventures!