Eastern Kentucky is full of dogs. I could say the same about many parts of the US, but the dogs in Kentucky are different. These dogs roam around freely, able to growl and bark and chase down any unsuspecting jogger (or cyclist) who happens to set foot (or wheel) on the street in front of their house. Not that that happened to me (or Austin), of course...
Anyway, we got to Booneville around 6 last night, and if the name Booneville evokes images of a tiny town in the middle of the wilderness, your image is very accurate. Although there was quite a nice shelter for traveling cyclists behind the Methodist church in town, which included a patio, bathrooms, and even a shower! We pitched our tent on the field there, between corn fields and the forest, and went to bed just as a slow drizzle was beginning. Two hours later, the drizzle had turned into a violent lightning storm, and our tent was soaking wet. Thunder boomed and lightning flashed every five seconds. I was terrified, but, luckily we had the Sprinter for shelter.
In the morning, it was still raining, so I stayed behind in town while Dave and Austin got biking. I went to the only restaurant in town, the Hometown Cafe, and was reading, eating oatmeal, and drinking coffee when I got a call from Dave saying that the rain was too heavy to ride in and they were taking a quick break. I paid my bill, and chatted with Trish (one of two employees in the restaurant at 6 AM. The other was the chef), before I left.
Hometown Cafe’s food waste stream is rather interesting: they have almost none. The owners of the restaurant feed the leftovers, and food scraps from customers’ plates, to their dogs: a jack russell terrier and a golden retriever. Even the potato peels and apple cores get used; they feed those to their chickens!
After leaving Booneville, I met up with Dave and Austin 20 miles down the road, where they were having coffee and seeking refuge from the storm. When the rain let up a bit, they continued on, but it was pouring again soon. As I was driving, I felt that the sheets of rain, branches in the road, and steep, winding Appalachian roads were hazardous to drive in, not to mention bike. As if they were reading my mind, Dave and Austin flagged me down as I was turning the next corner. We decided that taking the risk of biking wasn’t worth it, so we drove the rest of the route to Pikeville, where we stayed in a lovely hotel (with a pool! and a spa!) courtesy of the parents.
For lunch, we went to KFC to see if Kentucky Fried Chicken is better in Kentucky. The verdict? It’s not.
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