![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8432-copy.jpg\" "\\"IMG_8432")
<\/a><\/li>\n<\/a><\/li>\n<\/a><\/li>\n<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\nThe wind is coming up. My guess is I\u2019ll get some rain tonight. I just stepped outside to secure that new, green rain fly I picked up in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Maybe I\u2019ll find out tonight if it works as well as the old one used to. Better to get it ready now \u2013 and pegged down securely \u2013 than to wake up in a few hours and do it then, with the rain already falling.<\/p>\n
- \n
- #8444 \u2013 This is the owner, Troy, of the only cycle shop in Frankfort, KY \u2026 working on my Surly.<\/strong> Because of the two flat tires, also because I stopped to lay in provisions and have some lunch at a grocery deli on the outskirts of town, I didn\u2019t arrive until early afternoon. \u00b6 <\/strong>On second thought, rather than just changing tires and going on my way, I asked the mechanic to have a look at my bike and make sure everything was in good working order. Out of deference to my necessity as a touring cyclist, he put aside his other work and gave me priority. As soon as he set to work, I quickly took advantage of the tidy bathroom in his shop to wash my hair, shave, give myself a sponge bath, change my underwear and shirt. Whew. Then I joined Troy in his utility shed out back. \u00b6 <\/strong>It was a good thing I had him go over my bike. The headset needed tightening. I got new brake pads \u2013 and better quality \u2013 on both wheels. My old ones on the back were completely worn down, and the ones on the front were mostly gone. He cleaned my chain and made a couple other small adjustments. He also informed me about road conditions up ahead and convinced me to remove the heavy chain from my front rack and put it in one of my rear panniers. He said I was carrying too much of my weight up front. \u00b6 <\/strong>Troy is in his forties, with three children of widely spaced ages. His wife has a \u201creal\u201d job, as a social worker, which, he says, allows him to do this. He grew up right across the street from where he rents the small building that he runs his business out of. He\u2019s an ex-Marine. He started college as a photography student, then switched to a business major after realizing it would be tough to make a living taking pictures. After he turns 50, he plans to do his own serious, long-distance touring around the USA. \u00b6 <\/strong>Troy says people come from quite a ways to go mountain biking nearby. There are prime trails in the area. I had to memorize all the state capitals as a kid, but I must have either forgotten this one or gotten it wrong. Maybe a natural mistake, as Frankfort is one of the smallest state capitals in the country. Troy also informed me that Kentucky is the horse capital of the world.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8444-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8444")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8446 \u2013 Bob & Troy. In front of Capital City Cycles: bike in perfect trim, saddled up and ready to move out. I was here several hours, and (again) I parted with more money than I\u2019d planned. What I put into the bike was definitely well spent. About 40% of the total, however, went on a gamble \u2013 some pricey, rainproof footwear that will fit underneath my sandals. I am anticipating there will be cold and wet weather at some point farther up the road, and that in late October, at higher elevations, going barefoot in sandals will be too extreme. Time will tell if I wasted my money on this item or made a smart investment.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8446-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8446")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8450 \u2013 This photo doesn\u2019t do justice.<\/strong> I camped in a wooded ravine, offering seclusion, on another of those beautifully tended, wide-open, horse-farm estates. Except here there was no gate, nor was there a \u201cNo Trespassing\u201d sign.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8450-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8450")
<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\nSure enough, it\u2019s started to rain. Little droplets are tapping on the rain fly a few inches above my head. All my gear \u2013 and vital groceries \u2013 are packed securely for the night. The wind is rustling insistently in the treetops. Maybe I should just turn off the alarm and sleep in \u2026. What the heck.<\/p>\n
- \n
- #8451 \u2013 Another view,<\/strong> looking out of yesterday\u2019s campsite.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8451-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8451")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8452 \u2013 Looking back out towards 460,<\/strong> from the edge of my wooded ravine. It\u2019s good to be this far back from the road. It\u2019s quiet here, and no one can see you.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8452-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8452")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8454 \u2013 Yet another view from my ravine<\/strong>, into the characteristically well fenced, neatly clipped grassland all around it.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8454-copy1.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8454")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8457 \u2013 Miles and miles of this exquisite horse country. <\/strong>The long, autumnal tree line across the horizon traces a private road from somebody\u2019s estate back out to the highway. Some of the old homes, stone walls and gates date back to the late 1780s, and bear historical markers.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8457-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8457")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8458 \u2013 On the western outskirts of Georgetown this morning,<\/strong> I stopped at one of those Marathon gasoline and convenience store pit stops you see throughout this part of the country. I was looking for a simple map of Virginia. There weren\u2019t any. But the owner \u2013 with his less-than-perfect English \u2013 pulled out a personal atlas of the USA to help me, and one of his customers went back out to retrieve a fistful of maps from his truck, offering to give me any of them that I wanted. None of this was what I needed, though. \u00b6 <\/strong>My bicycle, ever the conversation piece, intrigued the owner of this establishment. As I was leaving, he followed me outside and practically begged me to take a bottle of juice with me \u2013 \u201cHave something to drink,\u201d he insisted. My bags were already bulging, and at that hour, coffee was all I wanted, so I lingered and enjoyed a cup of his machine-dispensed French vanilla brew as we chatted. \u00b6 <\/strong>Ashok has been in the US six years, but he has family members who have been here four times that long. He is from Gujarat, India, and he used to live in New Jersey. In fact, one of his sons is finishing high school there, and he has a girlfriend in Clifton! (Small world \u2026 haven\u2019t I said that before?) \u00b6 <\/strong>Ashok had been a court recorder in India. He\u2019d had several businesses too \u2013 clothing and ice cream among them, if I remember correctly. When I asked him if he likes living in Kentucky, he said he loves it everywhere. He enjoys meeting people, and he\u2019s passionate about learning \u201ceverything,\u201d though he mentioned philosophy specifically. \u00b6 <\/strong>I gave him my blog address \u2013 as I do several times a day anymore with people along the way. In fact, I wrote up a whole bunch of slips in my tent the other night (behind the school) so I could just pass them out like business cards. I wrote down the location of another Marathon station in eastern Kentucky, which is run by Ashok\u2019s daughter, but I don\u2019t expect to be going through that particular town. \u00b6 <\/strong>Note the handlebar bag that goes with me whenever I leave my bike, and the graciously offered cup of French vanilla coffee on the counter.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8458-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8458")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8471 \u2013 A typical stretch of autumn highway from today.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8471-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8471")
<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n- #8479 \u2013 Yes, I really visited Paris this afternoon. <\/strong>In Bourbon County, no less. (Make of that what you will. Someone told me this morning I should do the Bourbon Trail, and that when it comes to Kentucky whiskey, nothing beats Woodford Reserve.) I loaded up here on info, drinking water to pack off into the \u201cBoone\u201d Docks, and two pounds of local honey for Elizabeth. She loves natural honey, and says it\u2019s good for whatever ails you.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8479-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8479")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8484 \u2013 To my rear is the tallest three-story building in the world. In Paris<\/em>. No shit. I\u2019ll bet you didn\u2019t know that.
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8484-copy1-e1318432852137.jpg?w=225\" "\\"IMG_8484")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8486 \u2013 The main drag in central Paris.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8486-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8486")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8482 \u2013 Main crossroads.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8482-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8482")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8491 \u2013 Kentucky\u2019s finest,<\/strong> coming over to investigate. Is that another horse there \u2026 or what?\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8491-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8491")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8498 \u2013 Every time I came across the prettiest piece of road I\u2019d seen, <\/strong>and stopped to photograph it, a little bit later I\u2019d come upon another view that looked even prettier.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8498-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8498")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8502 \u2013 One of those locked gates,<\/strong> leading to a home and grounds whose opulence I could only imagine.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8502-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8502")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8504 \u2013 Way back in the distance here,<\/strong> you can see what looks like a house \u2026 if that\u2019s the proper term.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8504-copy1.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8504")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8511 \u2013 This is a rare shot when I paused,<\/strong> steadied my camera on a fence, and used the telephoto zoom. It testifies again to how vast and elegant these Kentucky horse farms are.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8511-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8511")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8512 \u2013 More affluence,<\/strong> under lock and key.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8512-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8512")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8513 \u2013 The historic quarter of North Middleton.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8513-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8513")
<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n- #8515 \u2013 My present campsite,<\/strong> facing out towards the road, which lies beyond a creek, across a dilapidated stone and concrete bridge.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8515-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8515")
<\/a><\/li>\n- #8517 \u2013 There was time for supper,<\/strong> standing beside the sturdy bench against which my bike is propped \u2026 before it got dark, and a soft but steady rain began to fall.\u00a0
![\"\"](\"http:\/\/blamming.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/10\/img_8517-copy.jpg?w=300\" "\\"IMG_8517")
<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\nIt did rain pretty hard for pretty long last night, but my tent, with its new rain fly, kept me snug just the way I remember it always used to.<\/p>\n
I\u2019d set the alarm for eight but woke up comfortably a little before that. The rain had stopped.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m in a major gas station, convenience store and Krystal fast food place with Internet wifi. Right on the north edge of Mount Sterling, where 460 crosses I-64. A little ways farther south, just past a burg called Jeffersonville, I plan to drop off into more remote territory, starting on the local road designated 213. I\u2019ll go through one more fairly good-sized town called Stanton, where 213 crosses I-15.<\/p>\n
After that, I expect to meander around out in the sticks until I get to Pikeville. I doubt that I\u2019ll find another Internet hook-up, or much of anything in the way of civilized amenities over the next few days.<\/p>\n
I generally dislike and avoid fast food, but this has been a good place to take my first break today. The breakfast plate \u2013 grits, eggs, sausage and toast \u2013 was not bad. Plus I get all the French vanilla coffee I want. The young black woman who took my order was very sweet. She kept calling me \u201choney.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s still heavily overcast, so I\u2019m expecting to get more rain. But yahoo weather says the sun will come out in Stanton this afternoon, that the temperature is in the fifties there right now, and that they\u2019ll have thunderstorms tomorrow.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tuesday night, 11 Oct, from my tent. South of North Middleton, KY, along Hwy 460. The countryside through this whole area is gorgeous. It reminds me of Duchess County in Upstate New York \u2013 these immense estates, with locked gates and palatial homes set so far back from the road that you almost can\u2019t see them. Vast patches of land here are fenced in \u2013 some of it for cattle, but mostly for horses. You wonder how so much prime, and beautifully maintained real estate can be dedicated to grazing horses on. Some of these folks out here must have tons of money. The drawback, from my point of view, is that it\u2019s hard to find a campsite. Everything is fenced in, and most of the countryside is open. I require easy access and privacy. Whenever possible, I also favor attractive surroundings. Over the years, much more often than not, I\u2019ve camped in beautiful places. I usually start looking an hour before sunset. But today, as I\u2019ve done at other times on this trip, I started looking earlier. I\u2019d already noted this area didn\u2019t offer many possibilities, so I needed to be sure I\u2019d find a place before dark, and I wanted to enjoy a leisurely dinner in camp \u2013 peanut butter, crackers, an apple and a splash of Southern Comfort from one of my plastic Platypus bladders. Also, rain is in the cards again now. The sky has been overcast all day. So I wanted to give myself plenty Continue Reading →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-386","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/386\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ehomba.ro\/blamming5\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- #8452 \u2013 Looking back out towards 460,<\/strong> from the edge of my wooded ravine. It\u2019s good to be this far back from the road. It\u2019s quiet here, and no one can see you.\u00a0
- #8446 \u2013 Bob & Troy. In front of Capital City Cycles: bike in perfect trim, saddled up and ready to move out. I was here several hours, and (again) I parted with more money than I\u2019d planned. What I put into the bike was definitely well spent. About 40% of the total, however, went on a gamble \u2013 some pricey, rainproof footwear that will fit underneath my sandals. I am anticipating there will be cold and wet weather at some point farther up the road, and that in late October, at higher elevations, going barefoot in sandals will be too extreme. Time will tell if I wasted my money on this item or made a smart investment.\u00a0