Well, the cheapest motel in Pueblo got us what we expected: two beds, a shower, and not enough locks on the door. Apparently, this motel was a hotspot for prostitution and drug dealing. Oh well! We left the next morning with no scratches and an itch to start “Flat Colorado”. That evening we stayed at Lake Meredith Campground, a free campsite on a “beach” with beach cows! It was near a cattle farm so the smells weren’t fantastic, but the view was so calming and made you forget about the trash-filled port-a-potties.
As we woke the next morning, I noticed a text from my mother. “If you care about your Grandmother on her birthday, you will stay in a hotel tonight!!” Apparently, my grandmother saw it would reach a high of 98 degrees that day and was very worried. Paula and I needed ever so much convincing to stay in a hotel room that it took all of … five seconds. We found one at our destination and booked it online. We were happy to get away from the stinky cows and start the day with a golden light at the end of the ride. (Thanks Grammie!) That night we watched a cheesy Hallmark movie and did laundry.
After leaving Eads, we had our final day in Colorado, ending at the Sheridan Lake Bible Church. There we met two other bikers: Matt (going East, like us) and Pablo (going West, and rocking an awesome sunglasses tan). We shared stories about the trip and laughed about each of our adventures. It was a fun night of socialization and we went to bed feeling ready to start sunny, flat Kansas.
The first thing we noticed about Kansas was that construction zones are a nightmare! While one side of the road was being redone, the pilot was going back and forth leading cars from each side over the single available lane. As we followed the pilot car, we were passed but assumed we would be let safely across. Usually, construction zones send us first and wait to even send cars going the same way but we thought it would be alright. All of a sudden, we see the pilot car coming towards us, followed by countless semis! Needless to say, we weren’t in the mood to play “Chicken” so we got off of the road and waited for it to be safe to continue.
Despite that, the rest of the ride went smoothly, and we stayed at our first “Warm Showers” of the trip! For those who aren’t familiar with Warm Showers, it is a service like Airbnb but only for cyclists, and the hosts are free! Many times, they are other cyclists but our lovely hosts, Ben and Brinlee, were simply wanting in on a part of the adventure. They were amazing people and we ate fajitas and played Settlers of Catan to end the night.
The next morning we flew through more of Kansas, and we completed the seventh map! We ate pizza and camped in the city park of Ness City, Kansas feeling victorious. Every time a map gets to be packed away feels so important and special.
We left Ness City a little late, because I woke up with a flat tire! We patched it up and went on our way, but when we arrived in Great Bend, Kansas, we realized we had booked the wrong RV park and that the one we went to had no tent sites. The park’s owner, Renee, was so sweet to let us camp in an open RV spot and let us use her shower and brought us three bags of fresh fruit! We were so appreciative of her hospitality and it put a “Great End” to the day in Great Bend.
As we left Great Bend, we went through the wetlands of Kansas (who knew) and enjoyed a break from the corn fields. When we were eating lunch on the edge of a farm’s lawn, the woman who lived there came out with ice cream sandwiches and ginger beers for us. We were so grateful for her kindness, but it didn’t stop there — she offered to ride us the last 17 miles! We were hot, and feeing sluggish so we hastily agreed. Robin drove us to the hostel in Hutchinson we were going to stay at and as we approached, we saw a familiar face: Matt! It was good to catch up with him again and see he was doing well.
We got grubhub for dinner and noticed that the forecast was for thunderstorms all day. We decided to stay an extra day in the hostel and wait it out. We’ll see what happens!
A Funny Moment of the Week: Watching the Hallmark movie in Eads was a highlight of the week for me. Everything was so low quality and every cliché was used. It was a little break from the usual as we watched an uptight real estate agent accidentally marry a movie star and (you guessed it) they fall in love 🙂
What We’ve Learned: Looking back at this week, the most important lesson I’d say we’ve learned or at least understood more is that people want to help us. From the unexpected angel Renee, to Ben and Brinlee, to Robin, it’s obvious to see just how caring people are and supportive of our trip. Paula and I have definitely been inspired to help others whenever we can and we are hoping to become Warm Shower hosts one day to return the favor!