Day 12 ending at Marengo, IN

September 4, 2015

I woke up surprised at 5:10am (Eastern Time) to the sound of sprinkles on the tent. It wasn't supposed to rain. Turns out it was moisture, leaves, or something falling from the tree I was set up under. The sky was clear with moonlight.

Ate a few ginger snaps, finished report, and packed up. The bike's battery was at 12.0 volts, after its drain charging the BlackBerry overnight.

I left this morning at 10:25am with concerns about the park's hill I'd have to get back up, about possibly more steep hills later on my route, and that I needed water. Well, the water concern was easily fixed. I found a water spigot on the other side of the dam. Getting up the hill was a walking situation, and I had that done by 10:50am.

My destination today was the campground at Marengo Cave Park in Marengo. Only 31 miles according to my calculations, but these hills were more of a challenge than I'd expected. One step [hill] at a time. First get to IN-64 using CR-600.

Coasted down the first hill and started walking up the next. Stopped for water, and the bike fell over. Very bad parking on my part. Everything survived. A slow go down and up. Actually, fast going down. Came to the final downhill to IN-64. Wow! Over 37mph! That's as fast as I want to go.

I was very happy with what I saw when I got to the intersection at 11:20am. A flat road east paralleling railroad tracks. (Railroad tracks never get too steep.)

After a break, I headed off at 11:35am. This was real nice. Maybe I will actually be able to make it to Marengo. Then the road curved away from the railroad tracks. But there weren't any highway grades high enough that I had to walk.

Noon report: 7.2 miles.

Made it to Mentor at 12:15pm, and Birdseye at 12:25pm. Deb's Truck Stop was ahead on the left, and I was ready to eat. Had the Cheeseburger Special, which came with fries and salad bar. Also got a root beer. All that added up to just $7.00! I poured my leftover root beer/ice into my Klean Kanteen and left at 1:23pm, back at it.

Took a break at 2:05pm. I quit keeping track of breaks after that, I took so many. It was a hot day and I drank a lot of water. I wasn't the only one having a tough go at it today. A semi-truck going the other way was really struggling to get up the hill I was coasting down. At 2:15pm I was at the intersection where IN-145 goes north. I got excited when I saw a sign stating I was only 15 minutes away from Marengo Cave!

Made it to Tazwell at 3:15pm. The highway was by railroad tracks again, and flatter. Continuing on to English, I saw an ice cream place (The Curb-ette) and stopped at 4:20pm. Got a medium chocolate shake. Left at 4:47pm. Next town: Marengo!

Made it the entrance to Marengo Cave Park at 5:50pm. Checked in hoping to get a tent site for two nights, but they're booked-full for Saturday night. I did get site #13 with electricity for tonight. Got set up and put the bike batteries - which were now at 11.7 volts - on the charger. A couple from North Carolina with two well-behaved dogs showed up at site #12, and set up their tent about fifteen feet away from mine. They're moving to Salt Lake City. We had fun visiting.

I headed for a shower. For those wondering how gray my beard is, I've included a selfie.

There could have been a few more pictures today, of places/things I zoomed by going downhill. I'm rethinking tomorrow night's destination. I really can't do more than about 30 miles-a-day in these hills.

Jeff

Spent: $7 plus $3 (lunch) + $3.31 plus $1 (chocolate shake) + $24.64 (campsite) = $38.95.

Day 12 - Ferdinand, IN to Marengo, IN

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+ plus signs indicate pictures added after returning home from the trip +