Day 15 - Leaving Cleveland - The Long Way to Cleveland

May 30, 2023

Day 15 - Leaving Cleveland

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The day started off looking very promising. Weather was warm, wind reasonable, and I had two good night's sleep behind me. Willie and Katie fed me well, so I was entirely refreshed. To top it off, Willie offered to drive me to the other side the Chagrin Valley, about 12 miles east of Cleveland. I've hauled a loaded bike out of the valley 6 times (1976, 1978, 2013, 2017, and twice on this trip). I didn't have to do that again, so I immediately said I'd take the lift.

We met another bike tourist at the spot where Willie dropped me off. He had started in the southwest, but ran into 50 mile an hour winds, and decided that it wasn't worth the struggle, so he hopped on Amtrac and drove part way across the country to start again. I don't know where he started from on this leg of his travels, but he was headed to Rochester, NY averaging about 45 miles a day.

Willie talking to the guy who started out in LA

The Cuyahoga River looks like the Bantam at this point. The difference is the Bantam never caught on fire.

The weather had changed 180 degrees from where it was at the beginning of the trip, but so had I. The sun grew very hot as the day progressed, and the wind shifted to the east.

The cradle of civilization. I stopped here to make a couple sandwiches for lunch.

While i was eating my lunch, I kept hearing a model airplane not too far away. This is the culprit.

Late in the day, I was running low on water, so when I saw someone outside of his house I asked for a bit of water. This man invited me into his house and showed me the chickens he was raising in his kitchen. He had 4 turkeys and about 25 layers. nice man. And he gave me water.

Traffic was non-stop for most of the day, and between the sun, the wind and the hills, it was hard to make my destination, but I rode 63 miles and made it to the campground I had found. Again, it was more like a trailer park than a campground, but it had a decent shower, and I had a nice remote spot away from the trailers. I was charged for a full hook up, but at 7:30 I had no recourse.

Today's ride: 63 miles (101 km)
Total: 992 miles (1,596 km)

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