What a difference two weeks makes in terms of temperature. Today was in the 80’s and, for the most part, sunny. My one complaint (which Mike heard for at least 2/3 of the way) was that the wind was fierce – sustained 30 miles per hour in our faces. I swear I was bent double just to move forward. Not my favorite scenario – but it’s another 12 miles done and a valuable lesson learned: always put sunscreen on my face because the wind causes my sun hat to morph into a useless tri-corner wind sock. On the plus side, our feet appear to have toughened up. Many fewer blisters!
Our second day included nice walking weather (low 70’s, mostly sunny and a slight breeze), more interesting scenery and almost no traffic. In fact, on the last half of the walk we had a country road all to ourselves – not a car in sight. My feet are blister free but Mike has PTT (prototypical tootsie trouble – a “Mike”ism – this is what he spends his walking hours thinking up). We had two different cars stop and ask if we were okay. Friendly country folks in this part of the country. The severe thunderstorms have held off until we were safely back at the car both days, for which we are most grateful.
The third day was the best weather so far this trip. Temps in the high 60’s, sunshine and just enough wind to keep us from getting too sweaty. Today we had four encounters with Illinois natives – the Lee County sheriff, two road maintenance men, a farmer, and a guard dog. All were very friendly, just checking to make sure we were okay, and provided a nice break to the monotony. We have rejoined Route 30 – a quieter, more walkable 30. The best comment of the day belongs to one of the road maintenance guys who told us that we were the oddest thing he has ever seen. He might have been referring to the fact that we were lying on the side of the road soaking up some sun during our lunch break, or he might have been commenting on our unusual walking attire. Either way, made me laugh.
Walk Across America 