Day Twenty-one (68.6 mies, 903.90 total): Time to Leave Good Ol' Missouri Behind

"Almost ready to go". "Okay". Sara and Carol are already shuffling about the room getting ready to go. Its 6:15AM. Ella rolls over but doesn't wake up yet. I try sleeping for a few more minutes, but it doesn't happen. Ella wakes up and crawls up on top of me, then lays down like I'm some sort of mattress. I shake her off and she jumps up again. Instead of trying to shake the fur ball again, I slither out of my sleeping bag. Ella runs right for the door, with me in tow. It's a warm morning out, but clouds are partially covering the sun. Dark clouds lurk on the horizon. When I walk back in, Sara and Carol head on out. Bill and Bob are up and about, and I head on over to pack my gear. Partially packed, I walk in the kitchen to munch on some bagels with jelly and down some chocolate milk. Its not a rushed morning and I take my time getting ready with everyone else. Once we are all ready to go and full of food, we walk out the door.

I tried to fix my bungee cord and ended up falling over with my bike. Ella was perfectly fine and happy, but my shin got gashed on the crank. Lucky me! It was an amusing incident and we set off for Pittsburg. Bob needed to run to the gas station, so Bill, Celia and myself took off down the road. A few good hills start our warm up for the morning. Bob soon catches back up with us at the top of a hill. He had been flying to catch us. A good gulp of water and its back to cruising down the road.

Clouds shade us then disappear into the suns rays again. Its definitely a warm day and I'm already sweating. Hills are more frequent then we expected and definitely add up. Bob and I start gaining some speed and we take off like a shot. Trading places, back and forth, drafting against the wind, we cruise along without losing momentum. We pass a few cyclists headed in the opposite direction, but we are in the middle of a big downhill, so we only wave hello. A few more miles down the road, we hear a peacock, and sure enough there's a peacock wandering around someones yard! We stop to take a picture, and Bill and Celia finally catch up. We all ride on in our little cycle gang. The roads start to become long and straight. Miles and miles headed in a single direction, as far as the eye can see. Nothing but grass and corn fill the spaces on either side of the highway.

MEOOOWWW!!!! I hear a kitten screech and pull my bike off the road. Bill keeps going, but Bob and Celia stop behind me. I said there was a kitten back there, and we go to where the noise came from. A little orange stripped kitty, cold, wet and hungry is pawing for us in a ditch on the side. Celia picks him up and holds him for awhile. There is no sign of a mother or any other kittens to be found. Celia walks with him back to a house, but they don't want him and wont take him. We clear out Celia's front pannier and put him in. He happily gnaws on a Clif bar Celia happened to have.

Celia is off like a rocket, and Bob and I struggle to keep up. Instead of trying, we keep our own pace against the headwinds. Clouds darken the sky and the wind picks up a little more. We see Bill and Celia talking to two bikers in the distance then take off again. Moments later, we stop to talk to Michael and Ludwig, two Germans who are biking from West to East. After a few minutes of conversation, Bob and I take off to beat the rain. We turn north, and get a great tailwind to propel us up the highway. It was like we had tiny rockets strapped to our feet as we flew on. Just as the rain starts to come down, we make it to Cooky's.

Cooky's Cafe is a famous diner on the TransAm known for their pie. Fortunately for me, I love pie more than most things in life. We chowed down on juicy burgers and waited out the rain. I had strawberry rhubarb pie and it was delicious. Of course, being a pie connoisseur, it was just a decent pie. But even at that, it was still pie, and pie is life. Fat and happy, I struggle back onto my bike for the final stretch to Pittsburg, KS. As we leave, we spot Marks bike outside a grocery store and wave hoping he will see.

A long time coming, the rain finally hits us. I put Ella's rain cover on but not my own jacket. The rain feels great cruising along the road. Its a nice change from the humidity and heat to have cool rain coming down. Its a straight shot all the way to Pittsburg and we roll on in our little pack. We cross the state line and finally leave Missouri behind us. Unfortunately, the Kansas welcome sign was torn down in the storm and nowhere to be seen. Outside the city, we stop at a gas station and take a group picture together. Yes, Ella was included in the picture. We all get some chocolate milk to recover from the long ride, and head off to find a hotel.

The first hotel we walk in to smells of curry and doesn't allow dogs, so we leave. Just down the road, we end up at the Super 8 again! The manager gives us all a cyclist discount and we head to our rooms. This ended up being a really nice room and I blasted the air conditioning hoping for a little snow to come out. After showers and a little down time, we head off to Applebee's and Walmart. It's time for me to put away the pen because I have Game of Thrones to catch up on! Ella and I hope you are enjoying our journey and continue to follow us as we cruise across Kansas!