Today’s Date: July 14, 2024

Today’s Start Point: Marion, Kentucky

Today’s End Point: Owensboro, Kentucky

Total Miles: 75.40 Miles

Cumulative Miles: 3,343.31 Miles

Today I veered off the Trans Am route and went to Owensboro, Kentucky, no second guessing now. There was a heat advisory so my biggest fear for once was not the dogs but the heat. I left at 5:30 and headed northeast.

It was already very humid when I left, so I was glad to leave before the sun was up. The first ten miles were hilly but after that the road was only gently rolling.

I know I have given Kentucky a bad rap, but I should clarify I was mainly talking about eastern Kentucky. If it wasn’t for the heat and humidity, this would have been a very pleasant ride. The hills were not that steep and I rode through rolling farmland. Most of the houses sat far back from the road and had immense lawns, all neatly cut. The landscape was filled with cornfields and pastures for cows and horses. In addition, since I had left so early, the deer were out in great numbers. Even the steep climbs that were on the course were usually shaded by the trees that came right up to the road. The descents on the rippling road also cooled me down.

I apologize for so few pictures, but it was so hot that the moment I would stop it seemed like the temperature went up 20 degrees. My hands and phone were so moist that the touchscreen was difficult to use. This was a day I needed to concentrate on eating and drinking because I would be on the bike for seven hours in the heat. My primary goal was to get to my destination.

I went off route to get to Owensboro, Kentucky which is part of another Adventure Cycling route. The Google directions worked fine and I arrived at the hotel at 11:30 am. The staff were as friendly as can be and rushed to get me into a room since I looked like I had been riding my bike in the heat for seven hours.

Tomorrow I will start the new route which is the Underground Railroad route. Adventure Cycling describes the route as follows:

“The Underground Railroad Bicycle Route (UGRR) memorializes the Underground Railroad, a network of clandestine routes by which African freedom seekers attempted to escape slavery before and during the Civil War. [The entire] 1,997.1-mile Underground Railroad Bicycle Route [goes] from Mobile, Alabama to Owen Sound, Ontario.

I will not be taking the entire route obviously, but will pick it up in Owensboro and take it to Columbus, Ohio. If I had more time, the description of the things to see along it sounds fascinating, but it’s time for this boy to get home.