I apologize for taking so long to finally add words to these last few. I've been so sick of typing on the little keyboard on my phone each night. Blah. But here are the details - at least the ones I can remember from the past few days.
I woke up early - maybe around 5:30am - to break camp. I had heard that the first ferry departed at 7:00 and I wanted to get there in time for it. If I missed it, I would have to wait until 10:30 to leave the island. I packed my gear and was on my way. I found myself at the ferry gates at 6:45. Them I found out that the ferry didn't leave until 7:30. That was OK, it gave me time to munch on a breakfast of pop-tarts and enjoy the morning. Plus, I was first in line.
The ferry ride was beautiful. I didn't stay out on the deck very long - they had seats inside and AC. I also used the time to update the blog from the previous two days. Wow, I really am getting bad at keeping this up.
When we finally hit land, I traveled down long, smooth roads with my speakers blasting. It was somewhat nice to get away from the sand.
I eventually happened upon more water, but not the very salty type. A lot of fishermen populated this area. I also got to sea a lot of beautiful birds while on my trek.
You can kind of make out two of them in the picture below. I'm not sure what they were, but they were big and white and beautiful.
After emerging from the wilderness, I happened upon this fine boutique. I debated whether I should go in or not. But, the thought of cheap food finally overwhelmed me. I picked up some mac & cheese, spam, pop-tarts, and cookies. Oh, and some sour gummy worms. After making my purchase, I sat in the parking lot and housed the entire box of chocolate chip cookies. I got a little sick after.
Pedaling through this area got boring quick. Same old scenery - fisherfolk.
I was quite happy when I rolled into Newport, NC - my destination - at about 3:00pm. I had the pleasure of staying with Alex and Mary, and their two children: Ian and Cooper-Pooper.
They were about to head off to church and invited me but, feeling exhausted from the days heat, I declined. They told me to make myself at home and Alex gave me a bag of photos he had taken during his journey on the TransAm trail in the late 90's. I looked through each and every picture. The joy and excitement in those pictures made me even more excited, myself, for my own journey.
After much deliberation, I made myself spam and eggs for dinner. I had never had spam before - therefore this was a unique opportunity. I've got to say, it was not half bad. It was basically a loaf of Taylor Ham. Tasty, yet unbearably salty.
I finished my dinner and sat on the couch, watching movies on my phone until the family came home. With them, they brought pizzas and invited me for a before-bed snack. It was such a nice surprise. After munching on some grub and being shown the latest in video game technology, I set my mat up on the floor and crashed. Cooper-Pooper, wanting to join in on the adventure, did the same using his dad's sleeping pad.
Total mileage: 55 (on the bike), 75 (including ferry ride)
Thank you Alex, Mary and kids for everything! Off to Surf City tomorrow!
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