Today we woke up in Sulphur Springs in our motel room at 6am. My eyes were admittedly tired and did not want to open. Beds are quite comfortable! We packed up our stuff and loaded our bikes, and ate some breakfast. Our route would take us to Cooper Lake, and around the edge. This was where we had intended to reach the night before to camp, but it was nice to get some rest in Sulphur Springs and to sort out the trouble with Laurel's back tire. The road was good starting off, and the morning was moderate enough but not cloudy like the days before. This is the only day so far that we have NOT been rained on at some point, in fact. But the trade off is that no clouds means hot.

We turned off onto a tiny, narrow road passing between houses. Here, a group of dogs that looked to be behind a fence growled and barked loudly at us. And as it would happen, the fence was open at the driveway and they, like all their Texan brethren so far, made an angry bee line for us. This time they came darn close, and I even swerved off the shoulder a bit and into the gravel while shouting at them. Honestly. I'm so fed up with them. If I never see another dog again in my life, it will be too soon. Unlikely, though. Last night I also looked up some strategies for dealing with chasing dogs while biking. These strategies range from hopping off and walking your bike (that would be terrifying), shouting, carrying a stick, pepper spray, mace, etc. Let's just say I've got my eye out for some good pepper spray. I usually wouldn't ever think with relish about potentially causing pain to a creature, but I think it will be regrettably pleasing to use on the next batch of hounds.

After this short road, we reached the state park perimeter around the lake. This took us up onto a long bridge with a sweeping panoramic view of the lake and flatter surrounding lands. Starlings fluttered in large loops and clouds around us close in the sky on either side. After coming out of the park area, we took the road into the small town of Cooper itself, then on. The towns we passed through today were all very tiny, the roads all smaller highways or county roads.

As we went, trees became fewer and opened up increasingly into farmlands. So far, we have primarily been around trees or fenced pastureland and not as much cropland as might be expected. Today, we saw a lot more fields, starting with a field of sunflowers. The roads had some long gradual hills, ups and downs, with many sunflower and corn fields. The land is not exactly flat, but it is much flatter than we've had since the start, and also much more exposed and in the open. It's starting to look a lot more like how I envision Oklahoma --- which we are only a half day away from. The wind was coming at us from the side for quite a while, and this made slow going. When we were able to turn north on some sections, it made a big difference with the wind at our backs. As the day passed, it became hotter and hotter and sun stronger. We had really lucked out with the past five days of cooler temperatures, and we knew it would have to end eventually. I'm not so strongly affected by high temperatures, and though it was not especially comfortable, felt ok. Hills are what get me, but heat I can typically deal with. Laurel very much dreads heat, and this was our first taste of some of the long scorching stretches we might face as we go north through Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska.

We went through teeny towns, like Pecan Gap and Honey Grove, without even gas stations and which were spaced rather far apart. By the time we reached the small, small town of Ladonia, we were feeling rather desperate! Luckily, there was a tiny, worn gas station on the edge of town, run by a man from China. There were also some interesting characters we stopped for gas--including a very, very lanky and scraggly man in cowboy boots.

The section from Ladonia onwards was very hot, climbing up into the mid 90s, and exposed. There were some nice long downhill parts, though. We finally came to a town that was slightly larger, and ate lunch at the gas station and chocolate milk. I also inquired as to where I might find pepper spray. The cashier suggested the Dollar General down the way. No luck there for pepper spray, but as we were locking our bikes we were approached by an older gentleman who looked much like a cowboy. He asked us how far we were riding, and we told him about what we've covered so far and our goal to reach the Canadian border at least, if we can. He was such a charming character. He told us adamantly that if we ran into any trouble or needed any help, we could call him and he gave us his card. Call for help anytime, no matter what he will give us a hand. What a truly nice man! He also told us that he is what is called a mule man-- he owns a bunch of mules, and for a few weeks he brings them up to Colorado to ride. He definitely put a smile on our faces, and I'm thinking that after we've covered more ground, I might let him know how far we get. He might be happy to hear!

We were about 15 miles from Caddo national grasslands, and it was darn hot. The road was smooth and comparitively quick at least! About 5 miles from the grasslands turnoff I looked down at my back tire and thought it could maybe use a bit of air. We tucked ourselves into the fraction of share we could find, and I tried to pump a bit of air in to top it off. Except that somehow all the air came out. Part of the problem is that our pump is for regular tires, and I have some sort of fancy pants (aka stupid and frustrating) "presta" tire tube. I have a little metal piece that is an adapter for the pump, but to be honest this presta style tube is down right obnoxious. I just couldn't get any air to go in, and it kept flatter the more I pumped even though it had just needed a bit of air and wasn't punctured, etc. I was really frustrated. Laurel gave her dad a call, who has a bike with the presta style tubes. He said that because it lost air after trying to pump it so suddenly, the nozzle had probably broken as they are very delicate. What useless things, if pumping it can damage a nozzle and ruin a perfectly good tube!!! So I think I will have to look for a presta style pump so that I hopefully don't have to fuss with it so much. I changed my tube, and with one spare tube less, we were started again. While we were fixing my tire on the side of the road, no doubt looking like a sight, a lady from across the street drove up and asked if we were doing alright. We said we were just fixing it up, but thank you, and she gave us a heads up that there might be a house up ahead with some mean dogs. Laurel and I both picked up some rocks to keep on hand, in preparation in case they were out. Luckily, they were elsewhere.

We found the turn off for Caddo national grasslands, and it said 4 miles to Coffee Mill lake where I knew there was a campground. The air itself was so hot, and though the road rolled nicely, we were ready to be there. At last we found the the tub off, and made it to a self-service tent camping ground at a boat launch on the lake. No showers, unfortunately, but drop toilets and most importantly water. It was about 4:30, and we lounged about in the encompassing heat, washed our legs at the water pump and tried to cool off. Later, once the jet skis and boats and swimmers at the small boat launch had calmed, Laurel swam in and I sat in the water to soak my knees. We swam in our undergarments, and indeed walked around in them awhile if you can believe it. We gazed out at the lake and enjoyed the strong breeze. As I looked out on the beautiful water, and thought about the green forests and grasslands and fields around us, I thought more about how much we place our earth in jeopardy--I wonder often how we are able to do so, and how some can feel so unmoved by love for the land.

After that, I took off my pedal to try to figure out what is making the now VERY loud and noticeable click coming from my pedal/gears area. It started a couple days ago and has grown worse. I thought maybe something was loose, but after tightening the pedals and looking things over, I have no clue. I don't know anything about the chain and gears or pedals of the bike, and I know the such a loud cyclic click is likely to signal big trouble down the line. Let's hope I figure it out and it is a simple fix.

We slept without the rain tarp on, and it was still rather uncomfortably warm until finally cooling off late. I could see glimmers of stars through the oak leaves above, fireflies twinkling past. I have also been able to sleep on my sweatshirt, a good strategy to sleep easier on hard ground.

Tomorrow, we cross into Oklahoma, on our way to Atoka! I will miss Texas! It looks like we've got some hot weather in the upper 90s for tomorrow. Yikes!

This morning both Laurel and I were quite sleepy when the alarm went off a 6am. We dolefully packed up the tent and sleeping bags and got ready. The road out of the park was very hilly, and we had to back track slightly down 14 before taking Sand Flat Rd some distance to the end, then Jim Hogg rd among other back roads and connecting to Old Mineola Hwy. The skies were grey once again, and we have had a another remarkably cool first half of the day. This really makes the morning rides nice (well, for me when the road is relatively flat!). With all the hills, I am apprehensive for my knees, especially yesterday and the start of today. I took them carefully, but in the morning could hear some quiet popping and movement foreboding the pain that I experienced on my previous bike trip, so I was very nervous and cautious.

The back roads today were so gorgeous and green. We saw more cows today as well, and even some Texas longhorns. The old Mineola was really lovely, and even passed through a nature reserve. Which coincidentally had an oil pipeline run through it-- not sure what company this time, or if it was part of keystone though it is in the right general area. We have noticed, as with Tyler State Park, that there tend to be pipelines near many of the parks or forested areas. We are wondering what the motivation is behind this. Is it that it is less visible to public? Is it that it is more out of the way? Is it that the reserves are required to offset the pipeline? Eventually we ended up back on a more main highway, which we are actually quite quick on. Maybe it is the general forward motion of the traffic that keeps up our pace, as opposed to the calmer back roads?

Just as we were pulling into the town of Quitman, Laurel's back tire went flat. She had just had to repair it yesterday. We pulled into a driveway and changed the tube hoping to patch the other later. After reassembling it all, the brakes gave her a hassle as well. We set off again, but barely half a mile later the back tire suddenly went flat again. Poor Laurel! It was such a frustrating moment. To that point, I have had one flat, and that was her third in addition to being the second that day. We did our best to sort it out, but it was a stressful, angry moment. What was wrong with the back tire? How could a new tube go flat immediately? I decided to search the tire itself, and after running my hands over it multiple times felt a poke. There was a small staple that had gone through the tire! It must have punctured the first tube, and then the second after changing it. We were frustrated, but relieved at least for an explanation. We found the hole based on the location of the staple and patched it. This lasted quite a ways but as you will hear, not all the way.

We warily continued onwards, towards Yantis and Sulphur Springs beyond that. The temperature began to climb into the upper 80s as the clouds split. Passing over the bridge over Lake Fork, we looked out at the waters, close on either side, and breathed the lake air. The road became bumpy and had scattered gravel over the shoulder of the pavement. This was jittery and slow for our bikes. By the time we reached Yantis, we were both very hot and hungry. Yantis is a very small town, and there was only one small area with buildings. First we grabbed some chocolate milks at the gas station on one side of the road, then crossed to the small cafe/subs and pizza shop on the other side. Here, we ordered grilled cheese subs and attempted to wash off some of the layers of grease we had acquired from the multiple tire changes. We looked pretty sweaty, messy, and bredragled I think! The waitress asked if we had been out hiking and we explained our bike trip. She was a very lovely young woman to speak with! And kindly brought us many water refills. The owner of the cafe, Denise, came out shortly thereafter and was so excited about our trip! She wanted to take a picture with us for the cafe Facebook page. I felt so flattered! She was so wonderful-- I could hardly believe it when she said the food was on her! She asked us if we wanted anything else, and then suggested buttermilk pie. Neither Laurel or I had tried this before, and it was delicious!!! We spoke a little more with the waitress and other workers (also learning that Lake Fork has alligators and alligator gars in it so it was probably good that I did NOT jump in it). She gave us some great suggestions for places to eat. An older couple who were eating lunch also asked about us, and told us how great they thought our trip is and how she wished she had done such a trip when she was our age -- and of course to be careful and bless us, which was very kind. Laurel and I felt so touched by the kindness we received at this cafe. A free meal, delicious pie, and wonderful people!!! So if you are ever in north east Texas, stop by Yantis and have a bite at Hometown, Subs and Pizzeria. They are so great, and really made our day!!!

We headed on our way feeling so happy. We followed some more back roads, tried to take a main road and met construction so turned back to the smaller roads to sulphur springs. Along the way we met just about our limit of dogs chasing us. It is so frustrating. So frustrating. I hate the dogs so much. Just seeing any dog now makes me angry. Why do people not teach their dogs better? We have been chased and growled and terrorized by them the whole trip so far and likely will be for the rest, probably more than 20 each day alone. So far we have snapped back and yelled harshly at them and they had gradually let up. One gave us an especially aggregate chase in the city of Suplur springs itself. I can't emphasize enough: I hate these dogs. They make me so frustrated it makes us want to quit. So if you have a dog, teach it properly and don't let it chase folks. Protecting your house is one thing, bolting after those on the opposite side of the road is another. Probably every dog in Texas has barked at us, sensing us sometimes miles ahead and barking. I even hear them in the distance!!

We got into Sulphur Springs proper around 4:30 pm. This is probably the latest we have been out biking so far. We went into th Walmart to get more tire tubes, and some other repair items and food. Afterwards, we sat outside by our bikes chuffing a quart of chocolate milk each and eating strawberries while we talked on and off with the employee lining up and collecting carts. He asked what brought us to such an out of the way town. He also told us that it is a very family oriented and nice city. So far Texas is just so wonderful-- beautiful land and friendly people throughout our travels here! I will quite miss it!

It was already past 5pm by this time, and we decided that we would just stay in Sulphur Springs instead of covering the last 15 miles to Cooper Lake State Park a bit north. We were both tired from the bike mechanical problems, and after two days of camping and riding, probably due for a good rest and wash anyways. So we found a cheap motel ($55) on the edge of town and have cleaned ourselves up.

Oh yes, and on the way to the motel poor Laurel's back tire went flat AGAIN. We just kept pumping it and riding till we could reach the motel over these last miles. When we arrived, we were discouraged and nervous about what to do. What was causing this? There seemed to be something absolutely wrong and we both knew it wouldn't work to continue this wa and worrying if we could somehow find new tires. Once in the room, Laurel tried to diagnose the issue and talked with family and boyfriend to sort it out. I took the time to call home, and when I returned to the keel room, Laurel announced proudly that she had found another pokey thing! That must have been there for some time, causing some of the initial flags, and then the staple causing more today. So hopefully things will go more smoothly tomorrow as we pass around Cooper Lake and onwards to the Caddo national grasslands.

We started off this morning from the RV park outside of Jacksonville, and were joined by Evan on his mountain bike to see us off. It started to sprinkle just as we had placed the last of our gear on our bikes and persisted for a little while. The first section of today's ride was on back roads, which were very scenic! At one point, we passed a horse pasture and the horses trotted along the fence with us as far as they could. Just before turning onto a slightly busier--though still agreeably calm--county road we set down our bikes and had a snack. I had a banana and a granola bar with me, and drank a lot of water. The light rain had stopped, and the skies were grey with cloud cover keeping the temperatures once again surprisingly moderate. Because of the moisture in the air--and of course our efforts--large beads of sweat formed on our arms and legs. Most of the ride through the morning was on pleasant roads, although the hills were again a major challenge for me. I'm hoping I'm improving at least a little, though I am wary of my knees. They have gone out on me on our previous shorter bike adventure from Madison to St. Olaf a couple years ago, mostly I think from pushing up hills. As we approached the city of Tyler itself, there were a few sections of wonderfully smooth road that felt great to ride on. Such smooth surfaces seem to make a big difference on the hills! The rougher pavement of the small roads is noticeably harder to climb. As we came into Tyler itself, the road became more busy and we lost our shoulder. Tyler seems like a very nice city, with some cobblestone roads and many nice houses. On these busier roads, though, and heading for the center of the city I admittedly began to feel stressed by the traffic everywhere. After some searching and asking questions we were directed towards the city hall area, and soon enough there was a subway. I was grateful for anything, and for a chance to finalize our end goal for the day. There was an option of adding a little distance to Mineola, or sticking with the plan of Tyler state park. I very much wanted to see this state park, and this is what we decided upon. It meant our mileage for the day was low, perhaps in the 40s, but I felt it was good to do lower mileage while we can and to see Texas.

After leaving subway, we walked our bikes down the street hoping to see a grocery store. On the opposite street corner were three very old men holding large signs against guns and against war. As we waited at the light, they noticed us and we both gave each other a thumbs up. Shortly thereafter one of the old men began to cross the street and came to speak with us. He asked us about our trip, and told us that when he was much younger he did a similar trip--almost the same distance, coincidentally, of 2,300 some miles-- from Houston all the way to Seattle. He said they went at about 60 miles a day and finished in approximately 30 days. He recounted that they had met a pair of bikers along the way going the opposite direction, who were managing 120 miles a day! He explained that they figured out that it was because the prevailing wind helped these cyclists, while they were working against towards Seattle.

As we made our way the 12 or so miles towards the state park, we decided to stop at a gas station at the edge of town to grab some food for dinner. The town had become more and more rough as we went out, and this gas station had bars on the windows and doors. As I was checking out, the tattooed lady at the cash register (she seemed to know everyone who came in!) asked if we were biking somewhere and how far. I explained the trip, and when I said that we had come from Houston starting Tuesday her jaw dropped. She asked me where we were headed today, and if we knew the way. She seemed quite nervous for us, and told us bless us! When I got outside to where Laurel was waiting, I drank my chocolate milk and unlocked the bike. Then it began to pour. It looked like it would not last long so we waited. It gradually slowed, during which time another customer came out to get in her car and told us she had heard about our trip from the cashier and that we should be on the news, haha! She was also impressed. As we were deliberating whether the rain had slowed enough, the cashier came outside seemingly to smoke. She spoke to us again, as we all wondered about the rain. She then asked Laurel how old she was, and next me. When I told her I was 24 like Laurel she seemed disbelieving. She thought surely I was 16 or at least in my teens, and that she had kids 21 and in their teens. She seemed nervous for us, and as she asked us again about our route to Tyler state park, it downpoured heavily again. She told us that the farm to market road 14 we had intended to take was dangerously busy, with semis and traffic, and with no shoulder and no where to get off the road. She said that she drives these roads everyday, and said she had held us back to tell us a back route via lavender road that she takes, as she lives near the back of the state park. Although bumpy and hilly, she said it brings us there much more safely and only adds about 3 miles. We thanked her again for her help as she went back inside to work--what a strong personality and interesting woman.

Lavender road turned out to be absolutely wonderful. After coming through some homes and yards, it enters a bright green tunnel of trees. The sun had come out again, and it was beautiful (though there were still a few dogs! I am getting better at shouting at them). We zoomed down some long, smooth, exhilarating hills. A farmer on a small tractor came from the other direction and gave a wave. I try to give a little wave or nod to most trucks and cars on such small words, because it is friendly and courteous, and that is what you do on country roads. As we were still within the bright green tunnel made by the trees, there was a gap and a fence. It was a pipeline! We had located another section, and stopped to take a look.

Lavender road continued on, and the hills began to really climb without any or much downhill in return. I felt so tired from the continuous climb, and kept hoping that around each bend there would be a downhill not another uphill. We passed some noisy cows and bulls, and then finally we reached the connecting point to 14. Along here we saw two separate oil rigs drilling. Only a short ways down the busier 14 and we had reached the state park entrance. I felt a lot of relief to have arrived, even though we had not gone far that day. The hills definitely played a big factor and I felt I had used up most of my energy on them. Plus, as Laurel pointed out, previous three days are probably catching up. So I am very very glad we stuck to a shorter distance and hopefully our legs can recover.

The state park rangers greeted us warmly, and asked about our bike trip. They pointed out that the park has some great mountain bike trails, but that we probably don't want to so anymore biking! I said we might take a long walk!

We set up the tent and lackadaisically laid out our bags on the picnic table. The state park has a lot of very nice campsites, and is really spread out and large!!! It was built by the conservation corps in the 40s. There is a lake, and we walked down to see it, considering a swim. We went up to the park office to get a few snacks, and sat outside on the picnic tables under an overhang to relax. There was even wifi! At another state park! Not my usual camping, but on this trip I am definitely not complaining! Bright sunshine came out and there were many kids swimming. We never worked ourselves up to it. Big downpours and heavy winds from dark clouds came and went-- ad in fact we had been caught in one downpour as we walked the trail there. (I've really had quite enough of being wet!)

In the evening we showered and set up the tent. As we showered, a raccoon dug through our small garbage bag which we had unwisely left on the table. A neighboring tent group had chased it away for us. I had completely forgotten about raccoons. I noticed slightly later that one of my panniers seemed to be unpacked, but I had been sure I packed it and closed it up. It seems the raccoon hadn't just gone through garbage bag, but had managed to open my bag and pull through things till it found my breakfast, a packages sweet roll! Darn!

Tomorrow, we are hoping to ride to Cooper Lake State Park. It is about 73 miles, so I hope that we are up to it after some rest today.

Day three: Lufkin to Jacksonville

Today we woke up about 6am and got on the road around 7am, with the initial destination being Rusk but with a goal of reaching Jacksonville in order to increase the mileage from 44 up to about 60 miles. After a nights rest in a bed, plus an actual dinner, I think we were both feeling better rested. The skies were grey, and the temperature surprisingly pleasant and even cool. We moved pretty smoothly and quickly northwards on 69. Of concern early on was Laurel's back brake, which was not stopping properly. Another concern is the strange cyclic clicking that my bike is making every time I pedal.

In any case, we found ourselves enjoying the morning segment of our ride, and very grateful for the mild temperatures. At first the road was busy, but eventually quieted down and passes through lush countryside, homes, cows, and horses even it was still a wide major highway. It is also increasingly hilly. The first section had long gradual climbs and about even descents to keep us rolling along. The more we neared Rusk, there were some especially looong climbs (in my opinion) and I was trudging away at the lowest gears, barely inching upwards. But they still felt much better than the day before, when I was running on absolute empty. Although I was undeniably slow up the hills, and they were a struggle, they felt manageable and more under control for me. The downhills were fun, of course. Of note was that I believe we were passing through an area of Caddo (indigenous culture) mounds, which would have been very interesting to stop at if we had seen a sign to turn to them. I will have to add more information on them by looking them up later. There were definitely some very large hills that rose up in this area, green and forested, and it seemed like we came up rather high.

Just as we surmounted another especially long climb, just coming towards the top, Laurel's back tire went flat and we pulled off to the side. There was a small red dirt road into the forest, perhaps a trail or small private road. This was more sheltered from traffic. Here, Laurel removed her gear since it was the back tire, took of the tire, and successfully changed the tube. She had not had a flat on those tires, and so they were quite old tubes, but I was surprised nonetheless by how well the held up for so long. We were only 3.5 miles from Ruskin at this point and set again on our way. We stopped in Ruskin for an actual lunch (subway) and to access their public wifi.

Next we were on our way to Jacksonville. Unfortunately the otherwise reliable and wide shoulder basically disappeared for most of the section from Ruskin to Jacksonville. This was probably the most stressful and frankly frightening part of our journey thus far, clinging desperately to the edge of the roads. At least it was two lanes, and traffic almost always moved over to the left lane for us. We also surprisingly got no angry honks at all (a relief). They traffic was not especially heavy, but there were still semis, and the speed limit was FAST. When we finally came to the bottom of a long hill, reaching the return of the glorious shoulder, we both felt that we had seen our life flash before our eyes (as Laurel described the experience). We headed in to Jacksonville, a rather large town, and for one of the first times in my life went to walmart. We got a bunch of snacks and chocolate milk-- quickly becoming a delicious staple.

Just after eating our snacks and turning out of the parking lot Laurels back tire went flat again. This was very surprising, as she put a whole new tube only some 20 miles previously. It must have just even bad luck. She pumped some air into her tire, as it was loosing air rather slowly, and we started the last 5 miles towards the RV park we would be camping at just outside of Jacksonville. (Twin Pines? Something like this). It has a lot if longer term mobile home residents, and we are the first to ever come through and camp on bikes (that aren't motorcycles). There were foreboding clouds coming in, so we set up the tent quickly in an RV spot to the back. While sitting and eating dinner on small table near a swing set, little kids one by one appeared around us -- curious about us. First a little girl (maybe 6 years old?) ran last to the swing set, then peeked at us from behind a tire swing. Eventually, she said hello. And then came an adorable six year old boy named Hank, who talked to us about all manner of things, and showed of all the tricks he could do and how far he could jump. Next came his brother Kenneth, followed by his 14 year old sister Ann. And then a mom and her young child, Malachie. And then a boy of around fourteen names Evan. We were surrounded by kids, all asking questions about the things we had on the table, like a towel and a tire tube, chatting about airplane movies and spider man, and even getting us to push them on swings. Their mom came out eventually to make sure they weren't bothering us. Quite the contrary, they were very endearing! Their family is living in the RV park and have been for about a month, but will have to relocate soon. They seem to have fallen on tough times, and I wished that I was wealthy and could give them all bikes, as they mentioned theirs had been stolen and they did not have one.

Eventually, we returned to the tent and Laurel tried her best to repair her bike. She struggled valiantly with the brakes, and the frustrating tire tube which kept loosing air. In the meantime, the young boy Evan chatted with us, told us about his guns and bike repairs and atvs, and the national mud race grounds that are just down the road. This seems like such an awesome kid as far as his independence, and his knowledge of all manners of repairs. Such a cool young guy! I biked around with him up the road to a church and back, and while Laurel worked hard on her bike, I conversed with Evan as he did fast turns on his mountain bike. His dad and him live at this RV park during the summer for his dad's work as a welder--hard, hard work, and you can see the mentality of hard work that his son has inherited. He also told me all about hunting rabbits (and various other creatures) and how to eat them-- he can hunt and cook them all on his own! I'm very impressed!!

We then met two youngish men, one from Tennessee, who are here for work. They were really interested and excited about our ride, and wanted to learn more about our motivations. They were super impressed with the trip, and even the distance we've covered from Houston. They also offered their help in the form of tools if we need any, and gave us their advice and their input. Really lovely to meet them! Laurel also had a chance to talk more with the parents of the younger kids after she showered and I was back at the tent repacking after moving the tent-- apparently where we were gets flooded with sewage when it rains. The parents said that there are a lot of people who work on the pipeline construction living here temporarily. Some of whom have to drive up to two hours to work daily. These jobs only last a short time, sometimes weeks. It will be very interesting if we get a chance to hear their experiences!

The next morning, the young boy Evan had woken up at 6am (he had asked when we would wake up that evening) and had made coffee for us! I don't drink coffee but Laurel loves it. It was so kind of him! We had an extra surprise when he biked with us up the road a short ways.

Day two: lake Livingston to Lufkin

We woke up around 6:30 am in our tent at lake Livingston, and started packing our gear and getting ready. The air was still somewhat humid, and I figured I would not even unroll my sleeping bag and just use a sheet. Mostly this worked, though I felt a bit cold later in the night. Mostly, the ground was the main discomfort, as I was sleeping only on the sheet. One day soon I should admit defeat and get a sleeping pad. I have been to obstinate to do so as of yet, and also I do not want to have to carry one. When I was younger I could sleep on the ground without trouble. Now, my body most be getting older and I find my hip, back, neck etc hurting after a few hours. The frogs and other nighttime creature were singing loudly into morning. There were perhaps a few light sprinkles as we "slept" -- I know I did not sleep much, but oh well. I love camping so much, but I actually quite prefer to sleep outside of a tent.

Originally, I had been adamant about keeping the mileage of first two days low, to ease us into things. This gave us two options that would take us to campgrounds on the one fork or a cheap motel on the other. I explained that I thought biking through the Davy Crockett National Forest to the Ratcliff campsite or further still to Mission Tejas state park would by far be more beautiful than the banal large highway 59 and certainly give us a better idea of the land and I really wanted to see this area. However, I was also nervous that these "farm to market" (county roads) would not have sufficient shoulders, and according to a friend would have heavy log truck and 18 wheeler traffic. Whereas the screeching highway 59, though very busy and with a high speed limit would at least have a wide shoulder. Both do these options would cover a very comfortable distance of around 55 miles, a great distance for starting out. I especially wanted to protect my knees by beginning conservatively. Talking with Laurel the night before, she was hoping for a bigger mileage day and urged for trying to combine two days into one. The routes that I have chosen over the past weeks kept in mind wanting to ease into things, following the general direction of the pipeline, and also keeping in mind cheap lodging options as endpoints. The lodging issue tends to be a limiting factor on daily mileage -- many towns or campgrounds following the route of the pipeline are either spaced too far or too close, which leads to many days in the 60mile range, as 100+ miles is unrealistic for the gear we are carrying. I've done a lot of looking at options, and the route I have made is after much consideration. After strategizing, I reluctantly agreed that perhaps we could make it into a 73 mile day and reach Mission Tejas instead of going 55 miles to Lufkin or Ratcliff. If we could have made it to Mission Tejas, it would have been nice, and cut off a day, though still farther than I wished so early. It was not to be.

We got going by about 7:30. I was a little sad to leave, admittedly! It was so nice. Both Laurel and I have remarked many times that Texas is quite different from what we expected-- it is quite green and forested and beautiful, and the lake itself was huge! It is also wetter.

After only a short while of biking, we looked to the skies and they were ominous. There were dark clouds hovering, and we knew they promised rain. I had checked the weather when we arrived in Houston, and it forecasted storms and showers all week. Alas. Sure enough, we could not outrun and it began to rain. This also happened just as we came from small local town roads out to the intersection of the busier and high speed 190. The rain combined with the spray from the many zooming cars made us immediately nervous, especially about visibility. Getting wet is not really a problem, even if it is a bit of an inconvenience. Mostly, I worried for safety. Just as we were standing there with our bikes, a truck turned and pulled off. An older man told us that his office was just at the corner and that we could wait out the storm there, and that he had called to let them know. We were very surprised and grateful! We hurried over to the office just down the road, and a younger man let us in. It was a small soil, mulch, stone, landscaping etc business. There was a big, friendly grey cat wandering about and seeking affection, and a small lap dog that periodically barked. We asked the young man if he knew much about the roads and the area, as we tried to determine if there was a less busy back route, or if the highway before us would be safe enough. The young man told us that many of the drivers are quite bad! We waited for perhaps 20 minutes, and the rain slowed. We decided that we could perhaps make a break down the busy road, switching on our lights and me donning my bright orange vest. Then we would shift to farm to market/county roads as quick as we could.

We were able to safely bike this route, and the farm to market roads through forest lands just north of Livingston were really lovely, even if we were drenched. I was encouraged by the relative calmness of these roads. Unfortunately, this route ended up bringing us to a long gravel road, that would have covered around 10 miles. It was muddy, even if it was compacted. This made me very apprehensive. We want to absolutely avoid gravel roads. I know for a fact that my bike cannot handle it, and they are slow in any case. We only continued a short ways before I admitted that I did not think I could go so far on such a road, and feared that my bike would breakdown. Thus, we had to reroute and back track. This did, interestingly, bring us directly to part of the pipeline. I looked to a clearing across the road, and there was part of the pipeline protruding above ground, flags continuing off into the distance, and a long span of open space that had been cleared around it. So that was lucky to find so accidentally.

It was still rainy, and we were wet. It was admittedly a very frustrating moment. I wanted us to cut our losses and go for a shorter day as planned. But by this time, due to the weather, and due to the roads, we were out of the way. This resulted in cutting across towards Corrigan to try to get back on track via Farm to market (county) roads. During this time, the rain slowly stopped and though the sky was overcast, it kept things at a pleasant temperature as opposed to some of the uncomfortable moments of beating sun the day before. These back roads were so beautiful, but for me there was a major trouble-- they were hilly. I am so slow and terrible with hills. I don't know why. They always give me trouble. The weight of my packs and tent combined with the unexpectedness of the constant up and down, and upppp of the hills was definitely a challenge for me. And something I had hoped to avoid so early on. So far, that day had included rain, gravel roads, some disagreements, and hills, all things I had hoped to forestall. (Oh yes, and a whole lot of barking dogs chasing us throughout, which we have thus far been successful in shouting at to get away). And we had also been biking for nearly four hours nonstop. And without eating more than a couple Clif bars for dinner, and a couple more for breakfast. My legs were drained, and tired. I knew I needed to stop. I knew that we needed to be eating much more, and that it had no fuel left in me -- only weak fumes. I sloooooowly trailed Laurel up and down the hills. Relatively small in elevation, but because of my tiredness and lack of hill stamina, really a bad spot for me. Laurel is so strong, and though I know she likely felt very tired too, she is very impressive in her strength and stamina. I am not in nearly so good of shape. So while the land and ranches and green was so beautiful, and I did appreciate them, all I could think of was reaching the town of Corrigan to finally eat something. And to drink a lot of water.

Once we reconnected with highway 59, I gave it all I could and we went at quite a speedier pace. At Corrigan we stopped at a gas station and I ate two bananas an orange and a chocolate milk in very short time. We bought a few more snacks to store in our bags. This must be a priority-- eating enough, to maintain enough energy and not become so weak by going so long without proper intake. Hopefully we will get in a groove as we go. After eating food, our pace became much quicker still. For the next ten miles, we were flying. I could immediately feel the effect of eating something, although I think that I was so behind on energy that I burned through it before we reached our destination and could feel the weakness of my legs and cells! So in the end we went at least 15 miles out of our way, only to end up going to Lufkin. So a total of some 70 miles, only to go a distance that was otherwise 55. So much for an easier day. But we did our best, and hopefully things will go more smoothly. There were many very challenging moments, and some very great ones even so.

I was also able to pick up some more tire tubes in Lufkin. It is a very large town! And it seems to be a very pleasant one too. There is a history of Texas forestry museum here, and Angelina College. I very much wish I could have gone to see the museum!

We were able to find our motel, Lufkin Inn, which for $56 is really pretty spectacular. And feel luxurious after our ride.

Tomorrow, we head towards Rusk and Jacksonville and perhaps further, then towards Tyler. Wish us luck, fewer downpours, and no mean dogs.

Laurel and I started our ride from Houston this morning to Lake Livingston State Park (only about 55 miles). So far, we have met quite a few people who have been so excited about and impressed by our ride. But it's only the first day, so not to much to be impressed about yet! The start of the ride was a bit anxious -- Houson is humid, we had just put together our bikes last night, and we were completely unsure of how the roads would be. Getting out of the Houston area and the first few roads were a bit nervewracking, with tons of cars and large sections that were literally highway and us. And exit ramps, which we had to be careful not to take! We were on highways 59 and parallel to 69 for many sections, including some roadwork. Always a bit unsure if we could even be on these road. It rained lightly halfway, and before that was darn hot. But so far so good, and once we got closer to the state park, the country roads were really beautiful. AND we passed right by a pump station in Goodrich, our first one up close! There was a thunderstorm following us, as then wouldn't you know it my front went compleeeeetly flat. And it's only the first day! So we pulled off to the side, and strategized. Walked a bit to the turn off, still about 5 miles from the park (and inconvenient though it was, couldn't have been a better time for a breakdown). I changed the tire tube myself on the spot, with Laurels help! It was our first tire change, all on our own in the middle of nowhere. Very exciting, and also have us confidence that we could fix the situation on our own in a rather remote spot. We made it to the state park as the storm clouds gathered, and talked a bit with the rangers. The state park is pretty large, and has a lot of amenities like showers. And wifi. Which is how I'm able to update you now! We are perhaps the only tent campers, in a section all to our own. The thunderstorm rumbled through, sprinkled awhile as we showered and walked the park roads, and now we are watching the sunset at Lake Livingston on the Trinity River. Tomorrow, we originally planned to go through Lufkin, but it looks like we May head towards the Mission Tejas state park making it a longer ride than expected for this early in the trip, but help out later on and be a good route. A good day! We made pretty good time, and the route so far was flat (like my tire). Maybe some hills tomorrow! Wish us luck!

• We arrived last night at the Houston airport. It was a smooth flight, although preparing my bike for it, and packing everything up (especially flying with Spirit airlines, notorious for frugality and hidden fees) I was very nervous. Not to mention how nervous I am about the bike journey itself! There is a lot that can go wrong -- my family is quite terrified! --, and I definitely wish I knew more people along the way. Especially people who might host us for a night -- both Laurel and I are going to have to be ridiculously tight on money, and the route unfortunately has way fewer campsites than I had hoped. I was also nervous for my bike, flying in a cardboard box and in the care of the airline. After landing, I made my way to the baggae claim and shortly thereafter my bike in its big cardboard box clunked heavily down the carousel with a handful of bags on top of it! Oh goodness. I think it caused the carousel to jam, though, because no more luggage came after that!! Well, let's hope it was just a coincidence. I cringed to see it, sure that the tires would be bent or there would be other damage. The box had taken some squishing en route. Texted Laurel, and she had also just landed. We both got in about 11:15PM. Luckily to the same terminal! Before I knew it, there was Laurel! And then her bike showed up as well. I had made sure to find a motel for the night with an airport shuttle and after calling it, and dragging our bike boxes through the airport, we found it. Quite embarrassing to load up our big boxes! I felt bad for the driver, and tried to help load it myself. I can carry it all well enough, so it is not too heavy just bulky. We reached the motel, then learned we were on the second floor with only stairs so lugged the bikes upstairs. Then we apprehensively started assembling our bikes, sure that they would be destroyed. So far so good! And I'm impressed to have been able to put everything back together smoothly. I am taking advantage of the motel wifi to update you all. Today we will hopefully bike to Lake Livingston state park. Our tentative route through Texas is Lake Livingston, Lufkin, rusk, Tyler, Cooper Lake, and the Caddo National grasslands before crossing into Oklahoma. So keep an eye out for us!

Laurel and I have made it to Houston. Tomorrow, we ride!

For more background on our ride following the Keystone pipeline and Keystone XL expansion, please see our title page located HERE. Meanwhile, this blog will serve as a way for those interested to follow us and keep track of our journey -- I will update as we ride when I am able to, depending on access to internet or computers (which will likely be very limited).

Laurel and I booked our tickets to Houston a couple weeks ago, and so it looks like we are going to be starting our journey! We will reach Houston airport the night of June 23rd, and begin our ride in the morning after assembling our bikes and gear. I will be honest when I say I am very nervous about it, but excited all the same. A mixture of nerves and energy. We are hoping to stay safe and stay strong over the miles.

I have been making our route, so far as far as Steele City (Nebraska). We are hoping to stay at campgrounds when possible, but it looks like we will have to rely on quite a few motels (if we can afford it...). Of course, if you know of someone near to the pipeline route in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana or Alberta who might be willing to host us for a night -- we are pleasant guests, I promise! -- we would be very grateful. We are also always grateful for contacts in these states who might be willing to offer us aid in the case of an emergency.

In the past days, I have been dissembling and reassembling my bike, attempting to box it and pack up my gear, gluing myself to google maps, and generally feeling overwhelmed. But I will do my best!

On another note, last week I was so happy to receive a JOOS Orange portable solar charger. This was extremely generously donated to support our ride by Solar JOOS. I couldn't believe the incredible news after contacting them and receiving a response from Dan. He shipped a JOOS Orange to me, to help us charge our devices along the ride. It is so exciting to me that we will be able to utilize solar power on this trip -- I believe it sends an even more powerful message that we can move to more sustainable ways of living! Great companies really can make such a big difference, and I am so grateful to Solar JOOS. I charged it in the sunshine after unpacking it, and tested it out to charge an iPhone -- it worked beautifully and surprisingly quickly! It will be so helpful to be able to charge our devices wherever we are.