DAY 36: rest day in Eads: "The joy of self-reliance and independence"

July 3, 2016

Happy Fourth of July! I woke up this morning to a barrage of birds tweeting. Not a bad start to the day.

I spent the majority of the morning and early afternoon organizing my panniers (a never-ending job), giving the bike a tune up, and cleaning myself and my clothes.

I took everything off the bike to give it a good cleaning and tune up.

I found a hose under a large pavillion that I used to wash my clothes and (to my relief and the relief of others) take what I would call a "poor man's shower."

It felt so good to take a cold "shower" in the heat of the morning!

Drying my clothes on the fence that goes around the horse track. It was odd, and somewhat unsettling, being at the fairgrounds all alone. No one showed up while I was camping.

In many ways it is immensely gratifying to be so independent and self-reliant. Here I am at a desolate fairground, using a hose for my laundry, hygiene, and hydration. I can confidently say that the greatest joys on this trip have been the simplest little things, be they a wave of a passing driver, the curiosity of those that ask me questions, or this: a simple hose. I guess being on the road has a way of making you appreciate life's little joys and convenience. It's just marvelous.

On a separate note, LOOK AT THIS TAN. I'm sure Kansas is only going to make it better (and by better I mean mUchiha, much worse).

These legs are looking mighty beautiful.

My solitary happiness was briefly shattered when, around 1pm, the town tornado siren went off. I nearly crapped my biking bibs with fear when I realized it was just a test. I guess I'm truly in the Midwest.

After my clothes had finished drying, I packed up my stuff and went to check out the town park to see if there were any other cyclists. Right before leaving the fairgrounds, look at what I found!

There were in fact two new cyclists in town, Jeff and Martin, so I'll be camping with them tonight. After chatting with them for a bit, I went for a swim at the public pool and then went out to eat at a little roadside diner. All in all I was feeling quite American, and was throughly enjoying my Fourth of July in this small, high-plains town.

My waitress handed me this Prairie Horizons Trail map and information sheet. The additude these tiny communities have towards cyclists is great!

After dinner I set up camp just across from the library with the two cyclists from before, AND my Italian friend Roberto, who had just recently showed up. It was a warm, summery evening, and just as the sun was setting I biked back to the fairgrounds to watch the fireworks.

Fellow cyclists in town for the evening.

What a lovely city park to call home for an evening.

The atmosphere of the small town, coupled with the distant thunderclouds lighting up the prairie sky, made for a magical evening.

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