Packed with some urgency and a goal of hitting the road at 5 p.m. after work. It would stay light until 8:30 p.m. was my guess and I could at least get out of town.
“Where are you going again,” asked a friend who I talk to daily but obviously he hasn’t been listening. ”Do you need a ride to the airport? Are you bringing your bike?”
Yes to the bike. No to the airport. Pedaling to Kentucky to visit The Ark Encounter; a man made, 3-story replica of Noah’s Ark.
“Never heard of it,” he said.
“It’s very popular,” I told him.
“You’re not going alone… are you?”
Again… we talk just about every day. Yes, I am going alone. And the normal followup is, ”Aren’t you scared?”
Well, there is a certain nervous anticipation … but generally no I am not scared.
People I meet along the way take care of me.
I made it about 20 miles out of town to the metropolis of Thiensville.
“Do you want me to come pick you up? You can come here. Sleep in a bed and then I’lll return you to that spot in the morning.”
I wonder if Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer had this much help on their adventures.
The answer was no. Plus my tent was already set up.
“But you hate camping,” he said.
I don’t hate it. It’s not my favorite thing and I might have aged out of it but it is part of the adventure.
“Have fun with the mosquitoes and hard ground. I can be there in five minutes…”
Up since 4 a.m. I figured a 20 mile day is a good start and I should cross into Illinois by Tuesday with sights set on making it south of Chicago.
Stay tuned.
PS – Camping next to the river in Thiensville. I left the Ozaukee Interurban Trail to look at the old fire tower on Main Street and Bret was taking out the trash at a duplex across the road. ”Mind if I throw a tent on your grass over there? I’ll be gone in the morning,” I said.
“Yeah. I don’t care,” he said. And walked in his house.
Simple as that and safe for the night.