It was still quite foggy as I set out at approximately 9:00 a.m. What I try to do to increase visibility in these situations is add blinking lights, pull out the bright yellow rain covers for the panniers, and wear my bright yellow bike jacket. Today, I added the new blinking red light to my clothes that was given to me by Scott in Vergennnes. The unique attachment device worked great.
Riding conditions more or less picked up where I left off yesterday. For the first 25 miles it was up and down and up and down and up and down... My legs quickly started feeling it, and my arms, shoulders and neck were stiff from yesterday's 80+ miles. It was also extremely humid, and I found myself sweating profusely. However, I did not want to take the bright yellow jacket off because of the fog and was soon drenched in sweat.
Several times along the way, my progress was delayed due to being held up by traffic crews performing road repairs. As I would continue on, I became more and more aware that I felt very tired, and began stopping more and more frequently to drink water, snack and just rest my legs a bit. The up and down hills continued on and on. I kept thinking that surely the road would level off the closer I got to the coast. But, the hills kept on.
By mid-morning, the fog had burned off and the sun came out. The temperature approached the low 80's. Low 80's in September in New England? I began to feel a little like late yesterday afternoon - like I might lose my mind due to the never-ending hills and heat. Since the traffic wasn't too heavy and there was a nice broad shoulder, I put on some music for the first time since the start of this trip and started singing at the top of my lungs. This helped "propel" me up the hills and I found that I began feeling more energetic. My legs felt stronger. The miles went by faster. And eventually, the hills became less and less steep - didn't go away entirely, but not quite as taxing.
I began noticing that there were still mountains off to the side in the distance, even as I came closer to the coast. That was something I had not known about Maine. Finally, I got my first glimpse of Atlantic Ocean related water. Wow - the destination goal is in sight, even if the leaves are not in full color mode yet. It has been a warmer than normal fall.
I reached Belfast around 2 p.m. and stopped in at McDonald's for a smoothie (thanks Nancy Perkins) and to use wi-fi to locate a motel. I found the Yardham Motel in Searsport, approximately 4 miles east of Belfast. Searsport is a cute little town and I immediately felt right at home. I passed by a church with a sign that said, "Choosing Joy is Worth the Effort." I loved that because I believe it is true that we can choose joy. In this world, that definitely requires effort at times. But the payoff for yourself and those who have to put up with you is well worth it.
The Yardham Motel was adorable - lots of character (the good kind) and I immediately felt at home. I felt very happy, and had arrived early enough that I could actually enjoy being there. I loved the fact that there is a bright yellow "Share the Road" sign attached to the motel sign. At the innkeeper's suggestion, I walked back into town for dinner at a local restaurant called The Brick House Restaurant. I had a pasta dish that was to die for, and a homemade strawberry short cake. One of the nice things about all the mountain and hill riding is guilt free eating.
I called Randy and we made arrangements to meet up tomorrow in Bar Harbor. I am looking forward to catching up on the past 2 weeks since we separated to pursue our different routes. After Bar Harbor, Randy will head to Syracuse to catch a flight home to Tucson the end of September.
The forecast tomorrow is for rain and cooler weather.
