Almost There!

As of this minute, Bethany and I are in Starke, Florida. We are planning on moving along after we're done blogging, and we should touch the Atlantic in St. Augustine tomorrow! What an adventure. I should note that we lost a lot of our motivation these last few days. Somehow being so close to the finish line has a reverse effect on us. We had a couple of days where we only did 30 miles! Otherwise, we could have been finished by now. We'll chalk it up to the fact that we want to extend the trip as long as possible... :)

Of all of the states we have been through, I think Bethany and I agree that Colorado was our favorite. The landscapes are breathtaking, the people are polite and helpful, and most of the roads had a fairly nice shoulder (how lame that we judge the states by the size of the shoulders!?!?!? I'll answer that. VERY lame). I would go as far as to say that 75% of the people passing us in vehicles waved. Compare that to the .01% of people in Florida. Something to think about, Florida. Be nicer. Jerks. :)

On one of our days in Colorado, Bethany and I were sitting outside of a tiny general store sipping on some Gatorade and getting up motivation to continue on the trip for the day. We were right on the Arkansas River, so buses were always driving by with giant rafts, and a load of people that had just survived the rapids. It looked like such fun!

While we were relaxing, two older ladies sat beside us on the bench. They had their lunches....sandwiches freshly made at the little deli inside. We started up a conversation (just in case you were wondering, a loaded bicycle is a surefire conversation starter. I happen to have one if you want to borrow it when I get home:). We talked with them for a long time, and found out that one of the women was a cancer survivor....stage 4 lung cancer! What a tough chick. Another young man had joined the conversation by this time, and he had survived a brain tumor as a child. He was only 20 years old (he was hitchhiking back to his job at one of the raft companies - he had surprised his mother for July 4th. Aww!). Hearing about their ordeals made the fundraising portion of this trip feel a little bit more.....real. And necessary.

Unfortunately, the ladies eventually had to leave. They had generously offered to give the hitchhiker a ride, so all three were going together. Before leaving for good, one of the women walked over and pressed some money into my hand. She was inspired by our trip, and she wanted to help....so she gave us $40! I'm never quite sure how to respond when people hand me money, so I'm sure it was just some nonsensical babbling. Either way, Bethany and I thanked her profusely. It is oddly moving when a stranger makes such a generous gesture, whether it is $5 or $400. These are the people that I'm so happy to meet on this trip.

Anyway, there is more to the story, and it can be long, so I'll try to condense it.

We were still sitting on the benches outside the general store, still trying to get motivation to continue. It was a particularly hilly day, and it was rough trying to get back on the bikes. Across the road, a guy came blazing by on his Kawasaki motorcycle. He stopped in the store to get himself something to drink, then he came outside and sat on the bench with us. Again, bicycles make the greatest conversation starters! We were explaining our bike trip, and he explained that he was a river guide on the Arkansas, and he lived a few miles up the road. We talked for a little while, and he offered his house as a place for us to stay the night. Without much thought, Bethany and I agreed.

As it turns out, "a few miles up the road" was really about 40, and we were in the middle of nowhere. Steve's house was on a plot of land that allowed you to look in almost any direction and see the Rockies. It was quite bizarre and amazing at the same time. We cooked up some awesome microwave dinners (Yum! And ewww!) and sat on the porch to watch the sun go down. It was quite possibly the most beautiful sunset I had ever seen. The Rockies turned purple, and it was almost like a postcard. When the sun was all the way down, a little deer pranced out of the forest and walked around the house. Steve talked to her, and the deer wasn't afraid at all. And there were a million hummingbirds!! They were all chasing each other and zooming around at a thousand miles an hour. I felt like I was in a Disney cartoon. I half expected Thumper to come out of the forest next. It was a little bit surreal.

Steve told us that he would take us the next day to go white water rafting on the Arkansas River. I was a little concerned at first...we had to make it to Pueblo by the next evening, because we were staying to a coworker's parents (hi, Bob and Phyllis!), and we didn't want to be too late. But the chance to go whitewater rafting was hard to resist. I love taking adventures that could cause my death.

We got up bright and early and headed down to the River. It was about half an hour away from where Steve lived. Then again, EVERYTHING was half an hour away from where Steve lived. We got there early, and we were set up on a raft. Before the raft left, Steve took us over to the Royal Gorge, one of natures other wonders. The cliffs were straight down, and the river was rushing through 1,500 feet below. America's highest suspension bridge crossed the top of the gorge close to us. There was a fence that said "For Your Safety, Please Do Not Cross Fence". So, naturally, we crossed the fence. Steve showed us the perfect place to climb to the top of the rocks so you could look straight down into the gorge. One false step and it was lights out. Completely scary and breathtaking at the same time....a lot like Bryce Canyon's trails without a fence to separate you from falling into the canyon. We took plenty of pictures to freak out our parents, then went back to get on the boat for rafting.

Aside from "popping wheelies" with the raft, the trip was pretty normal and uneventful...certainly not worthy of explaining in detail. There was a short section where the guide allowed us to jump out of the boat and float down river, and I was amazed at how fast the current was moving, even when it didn't look like anything was happening. Oh, yeah. And the water was freezing. It took my breath away. I guess it has something to do with the snow runoff? News to me! We pulled off the river right before we went into the Gorge, which would have been an awesome experience as well. I guess we weren't experienced enough:)

Not to mention, this trip was free. Steve used his "comp" and got Bethany and I on a boat for no cost. It wasn't until later that I found out that a trip like ours normally costs $53. I think if I would have known that sooner, I would have given Steve a big bear hug. He had only known us for under 24 hours! That seems to be the story of this trip. Extremely generous people.

I can't wait to be back in Miami and have some time to process this whole trip. It shouldn't be long now! It will certainly be nice staying in one place longer than one night. But more than anything, we're so excited to touch the Atlantic Ocean. Our cross-country will be complete!