Day Sixteen (43.2 miles, 595.2 total): Another State Of Mind

5:48AM I'm already awake and the sun is pouring in through the window. Ella is curled up on her blanket in her own little bunk. I can't fall back asleep for the extra 15 minutes, so I just lay there watching shadows dance around the wall. Ella starts stretching around on her blanket and slowly wakes up. A little Ella yawn and she's up and ready to go. I flip out of the bunk and look around for my flip flops. Outside, she and I are the only ones awake. Ella runs around for a few minutes and lets me know shes ready to go back inside. I scavenge up some breakfast from my bags, then start packing up to hit the road.

Celia and the other biker are up and moving around now. While they begin getting ready for the day, I set off with Ella leading the charge. It's a nice cool morning so far and I have a giant hill to bomb right off the start. At the very bottom of the hill, lies the Mississippi River and the golden Popeye statue. I stop for a quick picture, when a motorcyclist pulls off the road to talk to me. His name is Kurt and he is a pretty nice guy. He asks me about my trip and Ella, then he tells me about a really cool place in Missouri I need to visit called Allie Springs. We look on my map, and there it is, directly on my route. I'm going to make sure to stop there, lots of rivers and streams to swim in.

A few minutes later, I cross the Mississippi into Missouri. Another state down! It was amazing to see the Mississippi after a rain storm. Its deep murky waters surged along the banks, tearing out trees, only to send them down the bend, out of sight. Missouri drivers obviously did not like me right off the bat. HONK! VROOM! Trucks trying to zoom around me on a narrow bridge. Even if I was on the shoulder, drivers still seemed to be annoyed I was anywhere near their road.

As I crossed into Missouri, I noticed it was nothing but a dusty landscape with tiny figures of mountains barely visible on the horizon. Grass and corn fields covered either side of my lonely highway. Occasionally, I'd pass a turtle making its way across the asphalt, or a buzzard sitting on a power line, but for the most part, I rode alone.

Old farmhouses dotted the immense fields, usually hiding under the shade of a cluster of trees. About two hours of riding through the plains and I still felt like I was in the farmlands of Illinois. Finally, I began my climb into the Ozarks. Rolling hills grew out of the ground, creating a slow roller coaster up and away from the endless sea of dirt and corn. Small shrubs and trees began to edge the road as I traveled on.

The cool breeze of the morning had left and was replaced by the stifling air of mid afternoon. Humidity made the air feel thick and heavy as I pushed on into the day. The rolling hills made the day more entertaining, as I barreled down one side and coasted up the other side. The hills continued to grow as I got closer to Farmington. I passed two more cyclists who stopped to have lunch. I stopped to say hi, and kept on going.

My legs were really feeling the hills after getting used to the flat landscape earlier in the day. Closer to the city, I began to roll through more and more neighborhoods and the farmland turned into forests. The heat was searing through my jersey and i was sweating buckets. I kept pedaling against the blazing sun knowing how close I was. I finally made it into town, drenched in sweat.

Bob had told me the hostel was across the street from their local bike shop, so I headed further into town. After about 10 minutes of circling around the shop, Bob comes out of the building across the street. He is followed by Bill, another cyclist I had heard a lot about. They let me into the downstairs room where I could store my bike. I sat down for a minute to cool off from the heat. It was a scorcher out today. After helping me carry my gear upstairs, I finally get to see this hostel everyone was talking about. It was awesome inside, nicer than most apartments really. The best part was how cool it was when I first walked in. Air conditioning is the greatest invention ever.

I had a nice shower, did my laundry, and organized my gear. Bob, Bill, and myself all went out to lunch. I ordered country fried steak, but got a monster mountain of food. A plate of hashbrowns, then the steak on top of that, covered with gravy, topped with a pile of eggs, and covered with cheese. I completely cleared the plate I was so hungry. We walked back to the hostel and a little while later, the two girls I had passed, showed up. Monica and Rachel, yes like Friends, were cycling to Oregon. They were vegans, so they were not interested in eating with the rest of the group for dinner. Celia showed up shortly after them, and we all went to Mexican for dinner.

I have to plan my ride for tomorrow, so now i will sign off for the evening! I hope you enjoy our adventures and continue to follow us into Missouri!