Lovely Ladies in Chenoa

We were rollin west down the historical Route-66 when we stopped at a gas station to get some grape juice and a rest. We ended up talking to this really nice gas station clerk that was interested in our story. After getting a quick rest, we mounted our rides and took off again, but we didn't get too far before we were greeted by Meg and Rachel in an SUV. They pulled up aside us and got right to the point, "are you guys riding your bikes across the country?" Rachel invited us back to her farm only a short way off of Route-66. We loaded our bikes into the back of the SUV and drove to her farm with our legs hanging out the back with trunk open. When we got there, we were introduced to her parents, Nancy and Joel and her dog Edy. They live on a farm and own 600 acres. It was Dwight and my first time on a farm, invited, so we took advantage of Joel's offer to check everything out. (I think they felt like they were boring us but it was really interesting for us, especially after living in the city or close to it our whole lives.) We got to take showers and use their computer to update the site a bit. Nancy made us some pasta and Dwight some vegan pasta.

We mentioned to Rachel that we were biking for a charity concerning a burn unit and she told us that her father, Joel is a trustee on the fire department. Joel made a phone call to the fire cheif and got permission for us to stay at the local fire department. I didn't know it yet but this was a saving-grace.

Rachel and her parents gave us a ride to the local fire department in Chenoa. They helped us assemble some cots for us, turned on the a/c and packed us some leftovers. We said our goodbyes and I thought that would be the last we would see of them...

That night I woke up at 3 am with a migraine...my head, neck and ears were killling me and I wasn't able to go back to sleep. I knew for sure it was something serious. I waited until 7:30am to wake up Dwight and told him about my situation. I knew I had to go to the doctors but it was Sunday and everything was closed except for a hospital 10 miles north of us in Pontiac but there was no way I could pedal that far in my condition. I didn't want to bother Rachel and her family after all they had done for us already but I was calling around using the yellow pages and couldn't find a taxi ride for less than $100 on a Sunday. Out of options, I called Rachel and she and her mother came immediately to pick me up. Rachel had to go to work for the day but Nancy drove us to the E.R. and waited with us for two or three hours while the doctors sat around scratching their heads. In the end, they didn't know what was wrong with me but with a lot of rest and some pain killers I was able to get back on the bike the next day. Thanks so much to Rachel, Nancy and Joel for being there for me when I needed it most.

Edy giving me a shot below the belt...

Chenoa

From Dwight we headed southwest on the famous Route 66. We got a late start (I mean a LATE start) and had the heat and the wind to contend with, so by the mid-afternoon we had only moved about 35 miles. Our luck changed (if not our mileage) when a couple of girls pulled up beside us and offered us their help. Apprarently the gas station attendant we had just been chatting with told them about our trip, and they decided to see if we needed anything. One of these lovely people was named Rachel, and she gave us a lift back to her farm in Chenoa, where we met her delightful family and had supper. They invited us to freshen up and use the computer, and Rachel's mom, Nancy, did our wash for us. They were so good to us. Ryan and I agreed that even if they had done nothing for us we would still feel grateful just to cross paths with such totally pleasant, wonderful people. Rachel's dad happens to be an authority with the Fire Department (imagine that) so he fixed us up in the Fire House for the night. I feel like the ancient Greek rites of hospitality are being observed throughout the midwest, most of all in Chenoa, Illinois. So we didn't go very far, yesterday, but after meeting people like this is it still felt like a huge success.

Dwight meets Dwight

We left Valparaiso with our panniers swollen with victuals, as Willis wouldn't let us go without all the contents of his pantry. We thank Willis and Ginger for sending us off as they received us, with overwhelming generosity.

I've fallen in love with another small, boy-named midwestern town, and this time I'm proud to say I share its name. Our 90 mile ride out of Valpo (a new record, by the way) left us in Dwight, Illinois. By then it was close to dark, and a bit of a ride to the next town, so when we heard that there would be a fireworks display worth writing home about, we decided to stick around. Everyone we met in Dwight was super-nice, took interest in our journey and was eager to help us out in any way possible. At the field where the evening's festivities were taking place, the representative from The Chamber of Commerce offered us free snacks, the fire chief gave us a spot to camp behind the fire house, and the police department agreed to let us shower in the station (the firehouse didn't have the facilities). We had more offers for places to stay than we could accept. The police station's shower wasn't working properly, and Ryan and I both independently reached the conclusion that it was like showering with a squirt gun ("super-soaker" was Ryan's terminology). The police were very apologetic about it, but it was all that we needed.

The fireworks did not disappoint. In a lot of ways I thought they were cooler than Chicago's. They were so much closer to us, and the explosions seemed to reverberate forever in the open space behind us. There was still a bit of lingering twilight that complicated the canvas on which the fireworks bloomed in an interesting and beautiful way. There was also a great variety of different fireworks, some of which I hadn't seen before, like these noisy white tadpoles that snaked hurriedly up the sky, or what I'm calling "the sleeper," which left a bright trail coiling up the lower part of the sky before suprising you with a big, colorful blossom way up above. The best part of the Dwight fireworks was the tempo. They took their time, delivering every blast with intention, savoring each one, combining them in deliberate, beatiful ways. They didn't succumb to the pressure to constantly crowd the sky with lights, which I respect. The orchestrators played with pauses, with darkness and stillness, clearing the pallette of the sky from time to time and holding the spectator in a moment of suspense before proceding with the next sequence. There were even a couple of tease-finales before the actual end, which I thought was really cool. Artfully done, Dwight, Illinois. Very impressive.

Dwight's historic windmill

This old lady smelled something interesting in Ryan's bag, and wasn't shy about investigating

Yesterday's roadside casualties included one big, beautiful snake, one red squirrel, one grey cat, and several raccoons, their upturned, ruptured faces frozen in an expression of mortal outrage.

All along our trail these constellations of white, feathery seeds have floated across our path. I used to attribute them to the Catalpa trees that abounded back in southern Pennsylvania, but their numbers have diminished and we still encounter these phantom germ clouds like apparitions with no discernible source. It almost feels like some benevolent spirit is sending them down to us on the wind, a little blessing, a little reminder of the infinity of possibilities that face us, like the forest of possible trees that drifts before our eyes.

Powerfully Smelling Onions

Is apparently the meaning of "Chicago." Wow. Our first night in the city we went to a pub with Uncle Tommy (though a pub deemed not authentically Irish by the two full-blooded Sons of Erin who were my companions), followed by a tour of the city by water at sunset. We dined on vegan delights at the Chicago Diner, and finished the evening off at a nice little place in Boys' Town known as Hop Leaf. The second night we explored the northern neighborhoods with some friends of mine from school, and later on went out to all you can eat Sushi and a short-form improv show at Comedy Sportz, one of Chicago's many improv theaters. Thanks to my good buddy Neal for giving us a place to stay. Day three we mostly lazed about in Neal's apartment eating hummus sandwiches, before getting it together in the afternoon to go check out Millenium Park and the Art Institute. After that we didn't have long to wait before Chicago's fireworks display over Lake Michigan (they do it on the night of the third), which was awesome. Then we hopped on the train back to the south shore and spent one last night at Willis and Ginger's place.

Millenium Park

Ryan on his noble steed, lugging his gear through yet another lightning storm. Notice his ever more grizzly beard.

The last of the hummus sandwiches. Ryan was forced to resort to the heel, which made for a very attractive sandwich, I thought.

Chi-Town

This was a long-awaited visit for me...

Willis and Ginger Dickens, our friends from Valporaiso, Indiana, invited us into their house with open-arms and a full refrigerator. They insisted that we make ourselves at home and stay as long we wanted with them. They provided us with everything we needed and more. They even went shopping, specifically for Dwight and his vegan diet, they were awesome.




From the Dickens' house, we took off for the city. We left our bikes behind at their house and took a train into the city to avoid the hassle of navigating into the city by bicycle through the rough parts of South Chicago.

The Fireworks in Chicago

When we arrived into the city, we were greeted by my Uncle Tom. He took us on a water-taxi ride along the Chicago River and out onto Lake Michigan. It was a great way to see the city and take some pictures of perspectives you normally wouldn't have, especially at sunset.

After the water-taxi tour, we went out to eat at the Chicago Diner, a well-known vegan/vegetarian restaurant in Uptown, Chicago. Dwight was pumped and so was I. They had a huge selection of raw, organic, vegan/vegetarian dishes and drinks. We stayed at my Uncle's apartment for the night and we had our own couches to sleep on.

Chicago

Uncle Tommy is tha coolest.

We have not been to Chile

But we have been to Valparaiso. Indiana, that is.

We awoke, the other day, from blissful slumber on the most attractive, most well-groomed lawn you've ever seen, anticipating a solid, 80 mile ride to Valparaiso, where Ryan knows friends from his last trip through the area. Midway through the afternoon we were setting a pretty leisurely pace, having spent some time in a library in Lakeville, updating the blog and talking with a few cool kids (what's up Bryan, Jacci, Kimmi and Austin?). We were about 30 miles along the trail, riding passed a cemetery in North Liberty on Route 4, when some guy in a pick up drives by in the other direction and says, "Guys need a ride to Valpo?" So I'm like, "that guy just offered us a ride. Who is that guy?" And Ryan says, "is that him?" And I'm all, "Oh yeah, it probably is. You are sharp." So our host Willis had borrowed a pick-up and surprised us en route, and so we covered more ground yesterday in the seat of a pick-up than on the saddles of our bikes. Is that cheating? I guess so. But on a 3,500 mile plus journey, we're calling it negligible, and hoping to be forgiven. Excuses, excuses. You can tell I'm a little guilty about this. But just LOOK at these LEGS!

And these tans!

And these flowers!

So, clearly, we could have made the trip, if we had to. Any way, Willis, his wife Ginger and her mom, Phyllis, have offered us everything imaginable and made us feel as at home here as we could possibly feel. We're in good hands in Valparaiso, Indiana. If we had only reached the Chilean version, we would BE at the Pacific, already. But think of all the fun we would miss going through that vortex! There's a La Paz nearby, too. I think there is a strong latino demographic, here, which might explain the naming trend.

It looks like a hassle to navigate safely into Chicago proper from here, so we're going to leave our bikes, spend some time in the city, and pick up the trail where we left off in a couple of days.