Day 3

Elma to Centralia today. It was so gorgeous! Best ride so far. We followed quiet streets though farmlands and meadows. We had a late start and Kevin's knee hurt for the ride so we took it easy. Picnic for lunch in a field of daisies off of the road. We stopped at one point later on where a path cut off from the main road. It was lined with tall grasses and fairy tale flowers and blackberry bushes, leading up through a dark wet forest until it cleared and dipped down into a perfect still meadow of flowers. I was constantly hungry for the whole day. Were going through Gatorade powder at record speeds. Stopped for cherries by the side of the road, Kevin's lip had a run in with a bee and the bee won- that and his knee made for a quiet, stewing ride for a little bit. When we got into Centralia, we headed straight to the nearest cafe which was a starbucks. It was like an oasis of air conditioning and huge arm chairs. I got a large coffee and obviously I don't speak Starbucks because I got a coffee big enough to take a sponge bath in. I could probably have fit my entire head in the cup. It was a little ridiculous. The campsite we were planning to stay at no longer existed and we didn't have a backup plan or any more daylight so we got a hotel room for the night. 35 miles today. I'm itching to do more but Kevin's knee takes precedence. I just hope it passes and doesn't last for the whole trip. It's probably not a bad idea to take it slow though to start. We still two weeks to go and I'm totally sick. Which means that in a few days, Kevin will probably also be totally sick.