Howdy, it’s Kawther! I’m writing this blog as I savor a cold glass of milk at our wonderful hosts’ house in Charleston, WV. Just kidding, it’s Jonathan ghostwriting for Kawther. What gave it away?
On day 50, we set out from our comfy airbnb in St. Louis. Tired of the lack of shade on east-to-west routes, we rode directly south to Farmington, where we stayed at Al’s Bike Hostel, one of the most famous bike hostels on the Trans-Am Trail. We had the whole place and its 20-something beds to ourselves, but we didn’t have too much time to spread out. We quickly changed, showered, and headed a few blocks down the street to get a scrumptious dinner with Katie, a Stanford alum in the area. We loved the opportunity to spend time with another recent Stanford student and talk about dorms, classes, sports, etc. after two months of explaining to people that we go to Stanford in California not Samford in Alabama (we love all of our conversations though!).
Pretty river view on the way out of St. Louis
Dinner with Katie! This restaurant was phonomenal in all respects except including me in our group photo :(
After a great night’s sleep, we reached a new state (Illinois) the next day on our ride into Murphysboro. After a quick dinner and some fun conversation with our host Jessica, we hit the hay in preparation for our longest ride of the trip on day 52.
Day 51 gravel + river crossing