The Long Road

Heading to Gordon this morning, 5 am

Wow, I don't know where to begin. It has been a while since I've been in wired civilization and so much has happened that I fear I won't be able to recap with good enthusiasm, especially since my enthusiasm is waning overall [read: IT'S DAMN HOT OUT HERE]. It was 71F when I left this morning and 103F when I arrived in Gordon at 12:30. The heat and a nagging knee problem is making me worry about the longevity of this trip. Glad I'm in a motel tonight!

I think for the most part I'll highlight and share pictures.

I got to see something this morning on my ride that was I really couldn't believe was happening. About a quartermile at most, from the highway, along the side of a sandhill bluff, I noticed two objects darting up and down the hill. I then realized this was a life or death chase and the only thing that had the kind of size & agility I witnessed would be a mountain lion and what appeared to be a smaller deer or antelope. The frightening part was the speed and the agility. Put it this way; those hills are steep and there was no decernable change in velocity between going up the hill and down. I have witnessed deer in flight mode but this was insane speed, up and down the hills, then over in a brief puff of dust, dissappearing into the grass below. There is no way I could outrun such a creature even going downhill on the bike. I'm glad it was off in the distance!


Tim on the Left and Dave on the right as we leave for Gordon (I didn't make it)
Sorry forgot to get pics of their mugs :(

I spent the last two days in Cody, Ne. The first day I was there I met Dave from Seattle showed up and turns out he was staying there as well. About two hours later Tim from New York City showed up and we had a little crew going on. We proceeded to hang for the rest of the evening having dinner and a few beers at the Husker Hub, a fine eating establishment in Cody. Dave is an avid youtuber and be sure to check out his channel. He even does a little interview with Tim & I. Dave is retired from the military and is out riding his bike around the country. He's currently in his 11th month, with around 8000 miles and is currently making his way back home. Our other traveller was Tim. Tim is a film archivist in NYC and was allowed to have a generous amount of time away for a this bike tour. He's currently headed for the west coast. I felt for him a bit cause he's vegan and travelling though cattle country. Needless to say his meals were much abbreviated. Wish he could've gone to Pepe's in Lincoln!! Shoulda seen if you'd deliver Pepe!! I did depart with them the next day but about 10 miles into the journey I discovered I left my cell phone on the charge post back in Cody! BUMMER! Because of a strong headwind, that meant for me another night's stay in good ol' Cody and a farewell to my new friends. That turned out good though because in the afternoon about 8 cycletourists showed up to have lunch at the Hub. We visited for quite a while. They had seen Dave and Tim so they knew all about my story. They were all from Iowa and doing a little extra touring heading up to Ragrbrai in Iowa. They were crossing Nebraska and then Iowa. Lucky them they had a tail wind! The left and headed out for Valentine.

Entrance into McKelvie Forest

Dinner at Steer Creek - Prepped some Nopales (prickly pear) that I "harvested"

Come and get it!!! Fried up the nopales in olive oil and adobo seasoning. It was delicious.

Steer Creek Campground

Probably my favorite place to camp so far has been the Steer Creek campground at the Samuel McKelvie National Forest just northwest of Merritt Reservoir. As you can see in the picture almost 80% of the forest's lands are not actually forested. It is mainly sandhill rangeland; beautiful and barron. The other 20% though is like an oasis of pine in the otherwise desertlike region. This is where Steer Creek is located. It is a very secluded spot, very peaceful. There is a nice bit of hiking around the campground through the forested hills.