Spending the night at the cabin was a great thing. I got a peaceful night's rest without having to worry about mosquitoes, or animals coming and going through my stuff in the night, or the cold, and I could spread out all of my stuff and really re-group.
I had time to really think about things, and what I could change so that I could keep going. My saddle was at the wrong angle (I knew this before, but had been too lazy to change it because it seemed more of an annoyance than a real problem). I had purposely kept the back tire pressure about 10 pounds lower than max because I was afraid of a blowout from the extra pressure the baggage would create. My legs were sore and stiff from 2 days of back to back riding. I needed to carry and drink more water. My ultimate goals for this trip also needed to be brought back into sharp focus.
So I changed the seat angle, added another 10 or 15 pounds of pressure to the back tire, massaged the knots out of my legs and promised myself to start stretching more often before and after my rides, filled up an extra water bladder I had been carrying around "just in case," and decided that I was going to just enjoy myself: if I made it to Wilmington by Friday, then awesome. If I was still 10 or 20 miles away when it was time to be picked up, so be it. There was no point in doing this trip if it wasn't fun, if I was so focused on getting to the finish that I would be mad at myself if I couldn't do it, or skip over something cool just because I wanted to get to the end. I was out here to get a taste of what long-term touring would be like, to test my gear, and have fun. Why should I want my trip to end faster, anyway.
Day 3 is, in my mind, the day that my trip actually began. Steve came by to check on me in the morning, and we chatted for another hour or two. He let me check my Facebook on the computer, and showed me some awesome pictures and videos taken from the "tree cam." My favorites were definitely the videos of the bears: one of a newborn baby barely able to walk, and one of a bear licking the camera! (They think someone ate chicken for lunch and then worked on the camera, and that the bear must have smelled it!)
Soon I said my goodbyes and left to have my adventures of the day:
-I went across the Cape Fear River on a small 2-car ferry, recommended to me by Steve.
-I saw a military exercise in progress at the ferry, which took me by surprise and made me wonder what was going on.
-I stopped at a little gas station that had definitely seen a fair number of bike tourists pass by (due to it being on the bike route). I got a little bit excited when I saw individually wrapped chunks of cheese for sale on the counter, and I took the opportunity to stock up on my stash of junk food as well (donuts!).
-There was mile upon mile of quiet, empty, beautiful road. This is how bike touring should be!
After about 30 miles, I came upon another store: the Black River Mini Mart. Having learned my lesson the previous two days about stopping when the opportunity presents itself, I went in to see what they had. The guy working the counter was very friendly and immediately struck up a conversation about my trip, having seen me ride up. As I'm coming to find out, one of the first things people want to know is "where are you staying the night?" It was a few hours till sunset and I mentioned that I had made my mileage for the day and it was about the time I'd start looking for a place to stop, but I didn't have a spot yet. He let me know I was welcome to set up next to the store, as it was not uncommon for people to stop here after their first day from Wilmington, going in the other direction. The location seemed a little sketchy, but I reminded myself that they had a bathroom that I could clean up in, and the people seemed nice enough. If I kept going there was no way of knowing what else I would find or how long I would have to go to get there. So I cleaned up as best as I could, changed, and settled down in the shop to wait for the sun to go down a little more before I made camp.
Several old men, that you can tell had lived there forever and known each other for just about as long, came in and started hassling each other in such a way that only old men who have known each other forever can do. I was so amused that I couldn't help but laugh at them at times, even if they weren't. It didn't take long for the new cashier (there was a shift change not long after I showed up), to start seeing if he could find someone for me to stay with that night, as he didn't feel comfortable with me staying that close to the road (I didn't either, although I was more worried about the traffic noise than hooligans. He was more worried about the hooligans). As with the offer at Singletary Lake, at first I refused. As much as I enjoyed watching these old men bicker with each other, I didn't feel particularly comfortable around them. Then he asked the old hippie if I could stay in his back yard. He looked at me and told me sure, but his wife would take one look at me and insist I sleep on their couch. I was sold, and everyone was happy.
What he didn't tell me before I got to his house was that they didn't have a door on their bathroom... I just had to smile. Life is an adventure! They were extremely nice and interesting people, and we ended up talking till 9 pm when his wife insisted she had to get to sleep.
Distance traveled: 31.850 miles
Max speed: 22.2 mph
Average speed: 9.2 mph
Time spent riding: 3 hours, 23 minutes
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