July 17th, 2021

The Last 1000 Miles
They say that a thousand mile journey begins with one step. In our case it will be with one pedal stroke. Even though I'm writing this from Chicago, our bike adventure has already taken us as far east as Hobart, IN. If you Google the cycling distance between Hobart and Boston, you get 1037. But, how did we get to Hobart, and are now some miles west in Chicago? We rode to Hobart two days ago and our friend Bill picked us up and we all drove back to Chicago for a well deserved rest and lite sighs seeing day. But as we wake today and get ready to pick up our gear and bikes to continue on our way, I thought I'd give you some trip highlights and maybe even lowlights thus far.

Highlights

• Cycled about 2300 miles thus far
• The many, many people who have somehow helped us along the way
• Warmshowere hosts (see above)
• People following our trip, through social media
• The weather, in general, it has been in our favor
• Illinois' bike paths
• Roads with ample shoulders or quiet roads
• Our rest days, Boise, Steamboat, Omaha, and now, Chicago
• Many, many ice cones
• Finding that jewel place to eat
• Seeing beautiful landscapes
• Bikes have generally held up well
• Getting stronger and fitter
• Losing some lbs (for the adults)
• Spending this much time as a family unit
• Having Bill SAG us, twice now!

Lowlights

• The first day of biking, while it was quiet and beautiful, we were not physically ready for that day. I couldn't even dismount when we finished!
• Long distances between towns out west
• The weather is not always nice
• Running out of water
• Being hungry
• Some really bad restaurants
• The stress of route planning
• Finding places to stay
• Roads without shoulders
• Busy roads
• Spending time as a family unit as families don't always get along
• Missing our home

Overall, things have really gone our way thus far. I hope this continues on the last 1/3 of the ride.