Sometimes it IS about the Destination

Planning a trip like this is a lot easier than experiencing a trip like this. After packing up our equipment, we left behind that obnoxious squirrel who kept sneaking into camp and set off in the sunshine to Petosky. Today was work. We rode 65 miles in a little over six hours, slowed significantly by a cold headwind. I never took off my jacket today, but put on more layers instead. It was mostly a day to keep your head down and pedal.
On the bright side, the hills were much gentler, even if the traffic and the shoulders and the wind weren't.

You can never tell when you set out what the day will be like.  It was a relief to make it to Charlevoix because it felt like we were making progress. I tried not to think in terms of time and miles, but of landmarks instead, like the farm supply place we rode out a storm in last time we were on a bike trip.     It's always encouraging to see something familiar. Once we were within 20 miles, I reminded myself that this is a normal amount of riding to do when we're training at home, so it seemed reasonable.

For the last few miles of the ride, we were fueled by the promise of getting off the bikes, taking hot showers, and eating a hot meal. Within a few miles of Petosky, it started to rain, and I started thinking about going home. Being cold, sore, damp, and hungry gives me a bad attitude. The thought of camping didn't sound appealing at all.  When we finally arrived at the campground where we intended to stay, no one was working, and we could find no place to purchase fire wood , which would be necessary for tonight. It wasn't a difficult decision to go find a hotel room  instead, but this required climbing some steep hills . We pushed our bikes.

Tomorrow is a much needed rest day. We'll have no squirrels sneaking in to search for food. Tonight everything hurts, and it's all I can  do to keep my eyes open.  If only the squirrels knew when we were really most vulnerable...