 Part of historic, soon to be demolished dowtown Cairo  Typical derelict dwelling, Cairo, IL |
 Crossing from IL to KY  On road repairs in a perfect spot, north of Tamms |
Grand Towers, IL to Wickliffe, KY
35℃ light winds from SE and clear
D113, T5.19, Av21.11, Total 5139
An early start was actually achieved today, following breakfast, departure from the park was 0630. Having been told not to be around Cairo (Kay-ro) near dark, an early start would achieve this.
At least four barge tows moved past the the camp between me getting up and daylight.
The early morning light coupled with their life giving presence provided a scene for reflection. How important the MR is to the people who live near it.These barges play such a significant role in keeping light bulbs glowing in the mid west.
Last night two men came over for a chat as they had never met an Australian or Kiwi for that matter. The accents are getting stronger the further south I travel.
It was a pleasure riding at this early hour, the wind was light and temps were bearable.
A BLT of some note and coffees were enjoyed at Rendlemanns Fast Stop, Wolf Lake. The forecast had been for 100 plus degrees, so keeping hydrated was a priority.
Noticeable, as the cropland decreased on the way south the standard of housing decreased with it.
Just north of Tamms near a factory that grinds up a rock found locally that forms the basic ingredient for womans facial powder, a flat rear tyre announced itself with a short rollercoaster ride.
Luckily this occurred near a solitary shade tree which I headed back to. Being the rear tyre everything had to be removed from the bike.
Getting organised, some music was played through a brilliant little speaker from the Ipod whilst the tube was removed. A piece of wire was the culprit. The rear tyre having covered 5000k here and 1000 at home is al but worn out.
On fitting the new tube and tyre,the leavers pinched the tube. This was discovered when the tyre would not inflate. Shit, two ruptures were present, having only 3 patches left, one had been used on the inside of trhe tyre, which left two.Lesson learnt. Patching the old tube was the only option. Fortunately the resultant patch was airtight.
The tree I was beneath had made this little bit of misfortune less of a burden as it was now in the low 30’s under the sun.
Stopping at Mounds, some 10 miles north of Cairo, the supermarket provided cool air and a basic meal of sliced meat with cheese followed by fruit.
Most customers were African American and were using food stamps to buy food. Again people were visibly doing it tough here.
By now it was 1430 and Cairo was still an hour south.
To get to Cairo before dark meant getting onto US51 interstate, a busy road, but having a wide shoulder, this also presented the potential for another puncture as it was littered with bits off cars and metal objects.
The approaches to Cairo were abound with vacant derelict buildings from better times. The road surface was a obstacle course. Pulling in at a Dollar General store the attendant said you won’t find much here. A puncture kit was needed.
The historic city centre was visited, it too was just derelict buidings, sad in it’s own way. A local paper read in Mounds over lunch had front page news describing how more buildings were being demolished in the downtown area.
This town is on the confluence of the Ohio river, mile marker zero for the upper MR. Vibrant would be one way of describing the town in days gone by, the number of once stately homes and business premises now in various states of repair attested to this. Riots during the 60's saw most of the business community pack up and leave Cairo and move to Peducah in western KY.
South of town the option to cross the MR to Missouri was not on as the bridge had been found structurally unsound.
My guide book mentioned the danger involved in crossing the narrow bridge to Kentucky, a concrete structure, arched, with minimal shoulder and at least 500m long.
As luck would have it no trucks met head on during my crossing and time was taken to stop and photograph the huge amount of barges and their means of movement on the river below.
The Kentucky state line was crossed with a very unassuming sign acknowledging the fact. The road to Wickliffe was dark black, very hot and dangerously narrow. The shoulder was mostly occupied by wake up grooves.
Wickliffe was a welcome retreat and the only motel was booked.
Upon arrival a load of washing was gathered and cleaned, it dried in half an hour in the searing afternoon heat.
My legs are now covered in small scabs, finding out yesterday that turkey ticks are also around here. My second greatest activity of the afternoon and evening was scratching these unbearable irritations. The rash cream seems to offer little relief.
Thankfully whatever is causing this has not discovered my groin area.
Later in the evening an acrid smell resembling sauerkraut had engulfed the town, on investigation, locals informed me it was the local wood processing mill.
I located blank keys for the cable padlock and Coffs lockmart are sending them to a mates address in Rhode Island to be picked up during a road trip there in the next couple of weeks with a friend.
35℃ light winds from SE and clear
D113, T5.19, Av21.11, Total 5139
An early start was actually achieved today, following breakfast, departure from the park was 0630. Having been told not to be around Cairo (Kay-ro) near dark, an early start would achieve this.
At least four barge tows moved past the the camp between me getting up and daylight.
The early morning light coupled with their life giving presence provided a scene for reflection. How important the MR is to the people who live near it.These barges play such a significant role in keeping light bulbs glowing in the mid west.
Last night two men came over for a chat as they had never met an Australian or Kiwi for that matter. The accents are getting stronger the further south I travel.
It was a pleasure riding at this early hour, the wind was light and temps were bearable.
A BLT of some note and coffees were enjoyed at Rendlemanns Fast Stop, Wolf Lake. The forecast had been for 100 plus degrees, so keeping hydrated was a priority.
Noticeable, as the cropland decreased on the way south the standard of housing decreased with it.
Just north of Tamms near a factory that grinds up a rock found locally that forms the basic ingredient for womans facial powder, a flat rear tyre announced itself with a short rollercoaster ride.
Luckily this occurred near a solitary shade tree which I headed back to. Being the rear tyre everything had to be removed from the bike.
Getting organised, some music was played through a brilliant little speaker from the Ipod whilst the tube was removed. A piece of wire was the culprit. The rear tyre having covered 5000k here and 1000 at home is al but worn out.
On fitting the new tube and tyre,the leavers pinched the tube. This was discovered when the tyre would not inflate. Shit, two ruptures were present, having only 3 patches left, one had been used on the inside of trhe tyre, which left two.Lesson learnt. Patching the old tube was the only option. Fortunately the resultant patch was airtight.
The tree I was beneath had made this little bit of misfortune less of a burden as it was now in the low 30’s under the sun.
Stopping at Mounds, some 10 miles north of Cairo, the supermarket provided cool air and a basic meal of sliced meat with cheese followed by fruit.
Most customers were African American and were using food stamps to buy food. Again people were visibly doing it tough here.
By now it was 1430 and Cairo was still an hour south.
To get to Cairo before dark meant getting onto US51 interstate, a busy road, but having a wide shoulder, this also presented the potential for another puncture as it was littered with bits off cars and metal objects.
The approaches to Cairo were abound with vacant derelict buildings from better times. The road surface was a obstacle course. Pulling in at a Dollar General store the attendant said you won’t find much here. A puncture kit was needed.
The historic city centre was visited, it too was just derelict buidings, sad in it’s own way. A local paper read in Mounds over lunch had front page news describing how more buildings were being demolished in the downtown area.
This town is on the confluence of the Ohio river, mile marker zero for the upper MR. Vibrant would be one way of describing the town in days gone by, the number of once stately homes and business premises now in various states of repair attested to this. Riots during the 60's saw most of the business community pack up and leave Cairo and move to Peducah in western KY.
South of town the option to cross the MR to Missouri was not on as the bridge had been found structurally unsound.
My guide book mentioned the danger involved in crossing the narrow bridge to Kentucky, a concrete structure, arched, with minimal shoulder and at least 500m long.
As luck would have it no trucks met head on during my crossing and time was taken to stop and photograph the huge amount of barges and their means of movement on the river below.
The Kentucky state line was crossed with a very unassuming sign acknowledging the fact. The road to Wickliffe was dark black, very hot and dangerously narrow. The shoulder was mostly occupied by wake up grooves.
Wickliffe was a welcome retreat and the only motel was booked.
Upon arrival a load of washing was gathered and cleaned, it dried in half an hour in the searing afternoon heat.
My legs are now covered in small scabs, finding out yesterday that turkey ticks are also around here. My second greatest activity of the afternoon and evening was scratching these unbearable irritations. The rash cream seems to offer little relief.
Thankfully whatever is causing this has not discovered my groin area.
Later in the evening an acrid smell resembling sauerkraut had engulfed the town, on investigation, locals informed me it was the local wood processing mill.
I located blank keys for the cable padlock and Coffs lockmart are sending them to a mates address in Rhode Island to be picked up during a road trip there in the next couple of weeks with a friend.
