A few miles down the trail, we met this cyclist. Dennis lives nearby and likes to do 20 mile rides on the trail. We rode and talked with him until we reached our first stop in Breda and he neared his turn around point.
Dennis - we enjoyed meeting you. Best wishes for your future.
When we got off the trail in Carroll, we took US 30 for 27 miles to Jefferson. The first 19 miles were fine. It's a pretty busy highway, but we had a good shoulder, only a few small hills and a tailwind. We were happy. Then, 8 miles before Jefferson, we lost the shoulder, lost the tailwind and started feeling the 90 degree heat. We were not happy. Kerry tried riding on the gravel shoulder, but is was so rough we soon went back on the pavement each time he moved over there. There were a lot of semi's and some passed close to us. We never felt unsafe because the gravel shoulder was there if we needed it, but it was tense. It was very good to get to Jefferson. It is a nice town with the traditional courthouse square. Jefferson also has a carillon next to the courthouse. It did not play while we were in town.
After we rode around and admired downtown, we had lunch at the Junkyard Cafe. Kerry had the Monday special, liver and onions. He loved it and said it was the best liver and onions he had had in a restaurant in a long time. A good, relaxing lunch and pleasant conversation with the staff and some other patrons eased our tensions and put the unhappy final miles behind us.
Today's ride: 53 miles (85 km) Total: 4,081 miles (6,568 km)
