Today is a different kind of milestone day for me. I'm in Kansas for the first time - so my list of states that I haven't visited yet is down to five. Now all I need to do is figure out how and when to get to the missing five: Mississippi, Arkansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and West Virginia. That's an odd assortment. So who wants to go biking there?
The hills continued for the first 18 miles today, but they were nothing like the up and down section on county road CC yesterday. There were just a few of those 15 to 18% grades, and things flattened out considerably past Pennsboro. But of course Missouri threw in a few more rollers at the edge of the state! It was cloudy most of the day, which helped keep the temperature reasonable (in the 80s). I was caught in the rain as I left Golden City, but it didn't last long enough to really wet the road. I didn't even bother to pull my rain jacket out because I figured if I put it on I'd be wet from the inside out! There was a very strong wind all afternoon. Lucky for me, it was a side wind and not a head wind.
I saw some more of those "Impassable During High Water" signs today, but unlike yesterday they were in flat sections of Missouri. I understand the signs in the gully areas, but in a flat area? I couldn't even figure out where the water would come from. That's scary.
When I wandered through Golden City in search of a grocery store I actually had to ask where it was. How can you hide a grocery store? This one had a sign, but it was only visible if you were heading in the opposite direction, not the direction I came from. As usual, I needed to stock up on Gatorade, plus pick up some lunch. Cooky's Cafe was recommended by a friend of Mark's, and based on the line of people waiting to get in there it was probably very good, but I didn't want to stay off the road that long. The grocery store worked fine for me.
Lois kept me company at breakfast this morning. I walked into the local diner just as she was finishing her breakfast. After I ordered, she said "are you a cyclist?". When I answered yes, she came over to sit with me. Lois is a sweet little old lady. She is originally from Iowa but moved to Ash Grove at the request of one of her children. Of course the daughter who got her to move subsequently moved back to Iowa and of course wants her mother to return. But Lois told me she likes Missouri better - she said the people are friendlier, the weather is warmer, and the tiny town of Ash Grove has everything she needs.
As I was eating dinner in a Mexican restaurant tonight, the family seated next to me stopped by to chat on their way out. They didn't ask if I was a cyclist, just started the conversation by asking where I started riding and where I was headed. Do you think I'm sending out cycling vibes? I wasn't wearing cycling clothes, so I asked what gave me away. It was my hands, which look like I'm still wearing my gloves. I'm used to getting a circle on the back of my hand from my gloves, but this time I have half-glove marks on my fingers too! They also asked me where I started this morning, and my mind absolutely went blank. It took me a minute to dredge up Ash Grove. It's amazing how the days just run into each other.
