I NEVER sleep in when I'm camping. I even had a friend try to wake up call me, comatose. Its good that I slept though, gotta kick this cold and this heat takes a lot outta me. It's almost nine and I haven't even started packing up yet, at least is cooler today, sky full of clouds. I hope I didn't just jinx myself.
I have a weird feeling about today. I am only about 35 miles out of Florida. I feel like I'm so close, something is bound to happen to keep me from getting there. I really don't feel much like riding.
Well I got back in the groove of things. Stopped at a firehouse to fill up bottles. Didn't see anyone and didn't want to wake them if they were sleeping, so I helped myself to their sink and ice machine. So thanks guys :)
I also finally stopped at a post office and sent my post cards from north carolina, man I'm bad at that.
I met another really sweet Indian girl. I walked into the gas station and asked if I could fill my water bottles up with ice and water, she smiled and told me to go ahead. "but go grab yourself a 69 cent watter. We don't drink the watter here. I don't charge you, just go take it." swamp water, right.
I sat outside a gas station in kingsland to make some lunch just befor the downpour. I picked a bad place to sit, there are ants EVERYWHERE and I realized it to late. They are even in my pants and they are biting!
So I stopped at this building to get out of the rain. It looked abandon but ended up being a church. Not wo minutes after I stopped did this pretty southern white girl pull up with her arms full of poptarts. Yeah. I know where this is going. I think we talked for five seconds befor she leans back and looks at me, "are you Christian?" I KNOW I should have said yes, it would have saved me an hour of how I should love god, but of coarse I didn't. She wasn't too bad though, really sweet girl who just feels like it's her mission to spread the word of god. I'm not saying she, or people who so that are bad, I just think that actions speak louder than words. Like If she would have just walked up here, sat the groceries down and had a non god conversation, I would have gotten the message in a so much more efficient non judgmental way.
It's raining, the wind is in my face as I can see the bridge to florida. I cant believe how much pride I feel. I can't stop smiling and my brain is going crazy with all the images of everyone who has helped me along the way. Its like everyone is with me now crossing this scary slick bridge.
I may cry, but I don't quit. It's official, I have made it to Florida :)
This road is terrible. My bad feelin is back. My gut is telling me to pull off somewhere safe.
There is a shoulder but cars are flying by like I'm not even here.
It's so humid my glasses keep fogging up and every close call
My skin does something weird and I get this horrible stinging feeling.
I pull off at a truck weight station. I wonder if I could weigh patty. Maybe in better spirits I would ask.
I wasn't paying attention when the attendant drove up to me saying there was water and a bathroom in the building. Dumping out that swamp water was a pretty good feeling.
I needed to get something to eat in yulee. But there was nothin so I sat outside a gas station and ate some dried cranberries and peanut butter.
This is so frustrating. I caught back up with the adventure cycling route in yulee. It told me to take a1a to Fernandina beach. It's four lanes of horrible traffic and the shoulder is torn to shreds. The road itself is new and perfect though,nso drivers have no problem flying past me. I'm trying my best to keep balance, there are a lot of ripples, loose gravel and potholes. If I go down I'm done for.
I made it to a campground and this souther guy with a long ponytail and this little boy walk up to me looking at me kind of sideways. I asked them how much it was to camp, 28 dollars. Shit I thought. Well how about this traffic, is It always this bad or is it just rush hour? "oh it's just rush hour. It should die down around six thirty." he told me I could wait here. " the bathrooms are over there" as he pointed to a worn looking building down the way, "you are more than welcome to wait there. Theres air conditioning." that's all he needed to say. I did a loop around the campground, not a lot goin on except two guys sittin on the end of their pickup, before locking myself in the bathroom.
So I left my good scrubby washcloth back in north Carolina. I keep telling myself I'll get a new one, I'll see a store and be like eh, I'll get it at the next one. Now I'm in Florida and I am still using my bandanna.
Despite my lack of toiletries, I was a GREAT shower, until I had to put my dirty bike clothes back on.
I went outside and the traffic was still disgusting. I was really hoping I had a rice sides packed away, the pasta side are pretty disgusting when you only use water.
I did have one and just before I started to put my stove together this lady and her wiener dog walked over and struck up conversation. She was really nice but I was REALLY hungry, and when I get hungry I get cranky.
Long story short she took me back to her site and fed me this AMAZING pot roast stew stuff, so much better than rice sides. Her and her friend were really nice and even offered me their couch as we ate freeze pops. The offer was tempting but I still needed to get further so I would make it to the family that's taking me in tomorrow. I also wanted to be done with this terrible road and never ever see it again.
I had thirteen or so more miles of awfulness before the campground and back on that road. Miles do fly when your mind is focused on not dying. I dodged truck mirrors, gravel and turn lanes for about forty five minutes before finding a side walk. Now all I have to worry about is people flying out of fast food restaurant parking lots and blasting me from the side.
I got to fort clinch a lot sooner than I expected and was pumped it was still open. However, all excitement must be crushed. The guy at the window was obviously having a bad day and desensitized to people. "28.80" he said. I looked at him, then down at patty. "even for a tent site?" "28.80" "I don't even have a car" I pleaded. This time he just looked at me emotionless. I could have cried.
I left the park and went to the beach. It really was beautiful. I looked for potential families but it was pretty late and things didn't look promising. After talking to my dad and a lady I'll be staying with in a few days I sucked up my pride and headed back to the park as the sun was settin.
Man, I HATE payin so much to set up in the dark only to leave at dawn. But like I learned in lorton, safety is more important than money.
The guy hadn't changed. "you gonna tent for the night? Go park over there and come in the back door" park I thought as I wheeled patty to a fence, can this guy not see?
There was a lady in front of me and the guy was so frustrated. I tried to make small talk but he was having none of it. Turns out he is just really upset because the computer runs off the cell phone tower and is really slow. Wow.
Then two heavier ladies strutted in with HUGE boobs. Must have been mom and daughter. They walked in boobs first like there poop didn't stink. They tried to be cute with the man with the slow computer to get fort tour tickets. He wasn't havin it, charged them, and sent them on their way. They obviously didn't think that was an appropriate dismissal so again tried to be cute, "well where is ya'alls fort thing at anyway?" they didnt like his answer when he told them three miles back the way they came from. "you mean I gotta DRIVE all the way back there, we just drove all the way up here to get tickets" "yes mam" he said. I caught him roll his eyes as they strutted out.
The conversation almost sent me in tears. Here I am, this grubby little girl, standing in the office in my bike gear and helmet. All i want is a safe place to stay i have to listen to this.
I waited another fifteen minutes for the lady's transaction to go through as i watched the last of the daylight absorb into the forrest. When hers went through i stepped up to the counter and handed over my id and card. The guy just threw his hands on the counter and looked at menlike i was an annoyance "the computer is at a stand still"
I just did some of my laundry in the shower, I'm feeling pretty efficient.
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