August 7, 2024
Day 24 - ending at Iola, KS
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Up at 4:32am after sleeping well, thanks to the soft water splashing sound from the nearby dam. I listened to my weather radio as I packed up. Yesterday's high was 86F. That sure made a difference.
On my way at 6:47am. After checking Google Maps, I decided I'd have breakfast at Vintage Sisters here in Burlington. I didn't really expect they'd have guest wifi, but they do and it was very fast. So I scrambled to get yesterday's report posted before I ate. Breakfast was good. With ice in my thermos and the report posted, I was ready to get on with my day.
Iola RV Park and Storage in Iola, Kansas is where I wanted to be this evening. I'm following GPS waypoints for making turns from a plan I made before I left home. The trouble is that was so long ago now that I really don't know the route until I ride it. I was happy to see the first five miles south out of Burlington was on US-75. Maybe today would be mostly paved road riding like yesterday. Turns out that was not the case.
At 8:58am I turned east onto 5th Lane, which brought me to Oxen Road at 9:26am. I had four miles to do on this gravel road, and it was slow-going. I don't think the road had been graded recently, maybe just raked, since all the bigger rocks were loose and all over. I was able to bicycle most of it, but not much faster than at a walking speed. After the first mile I did come to a low-water crossing that had me walking down to it and back up.
I crossed NE-58 at 10:01am, and Turkey Creek at 10:34am. I was finally done with Oxen Road at 11:06am, when I turned back east on 1st Road. That gravel was so much better. The gravel got even more better when I turned back south on Rock Road at 11:39am. Noon arrived just when I was turning back east on 200th Road. 18.9 miles completed.
I was stair-stepping it south and east to get to Neosho Falls. I arrived there at 1:00pm. This town has no businesses that I saw. They did have a high school here at one time. The building is beyond repair now. Surprising to me, the road south out of town is paved. The roads in town aren't.
Now I was back going east and south on my way to Iola on more backroads. There was an east wind today keeping me cool. I was going slow enough that it wasn't a hindrance. The last gravel road I was on was 1000 Street, which brought me to US-54 just west of Iola at 3:24pm. Shortly after I was pulling into the RV park on the west edge of town.
The campground's manager was sitting outside the office as I pulled up. I asked about tent camping and he pointed to the only tree that's in the middle of the campground. I think he said it's a pecan tree. There's a picnic table there and a water hydrant. While in the office I bought a Dr Pepper, then sat outside with the manager. It was fun talking with him. He's 81, and has been managing this campground for nearly 30 years. He's had many other jobs, picking up a diverse set of skills along the way. I told him I was thinking of going to the Chinese restaurant in town for supper. He said that wasn't very far away, pointing northeast toward town. With a thanks for getting me set up and a handshake, I headed to my campsite.
After the tent was up and loaded, I sat down in the shade of the tree and called my father-in-law. We filled each other in with what's been going on, then talked about places we've both been to in Kansas and Nebraska. That was fun.
At 5:15pm I headed to China Palace on the empty bike. I went with Sweet and Sour Chicken and lemonade, since they didn't have their buffet going tonight.
The only thing I'm lacking this evening is electricity. (They do have wifi here.) But thanks to the solar recharge power pack given to me last year by a fellow camper in North Dakota, I'm all charged up.
There's a fairly good breeze from the east this evening keeping the mosquitoes away. There's on and off rain predicted for the next several days, and it's supposed to be even cooler. I might prefer that over the terrible heat, but we'll have to see.
Jeff
Spent: $16.54 plus $5 (breakfast) + $10 (campsite) + $0.80 (Dr Pepper) + $15.99 plus $5 (supper) = $53.33
Today's ride: 37 miles (60 km)
Total: 764 miles (1,230 km)
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3 months ago
I wasn't sure what to expect, but it worked out well. I guess a storage unit would have kept me drier.
Jeff
3 months ago