Dunmanway, Ireland (65 km west of Cork...we may get there yet:)!)
18 miles and didn't get started (the 2nd time) til 4:30 because we were waiting for the rain to stop!!!!
And that about sums up today.
Packing up and leaving the hostel early 'cause we couldn't get any coffee nearby...then off to breakfast at a little bakery and cafe. An Irish vegetarian breakfast of baked beans, sauteed mushrooms, grilled tomatoes, and two very fried eggs with toast. It was tasty...I was surprised. Then I wandered into some stores to learn about rain gear and a new metric for waterproofness. 8000mmH2O was one coat. I think mine's around 2000, if that. If I can find a Goretex that I like (that's important...not just dryness, but likeability, too) I'll get it. I need to stay drier and this is a rainy summer for all of Europe I'm a-hearin'.
Another problem is my Keen bike sandals are falling apart. The stitching is breaking away on the heel strap.
This morning I attempted a fix using dental floss and a needle, but it didn't hold up walking around Bantry today. So on my long list of things that need to get addressed in Cork is taking them to a shoe repair shop and sewn professionally. Fuat's gonna have his sandals glued there too.
So then, in Bantry to pass the time, we went to the library. Felt like a hiker for sure then, but didn't use the internet because they wanted to charge me. Not paying for it. Against my religion! The woman there told me that the organic cafe had free wifi. Two birds with one stone: free wifi and good food!
So after a couple of hours in the library catching up on the Irish news, we headed off to eat again. Can't do that too much, but I'm trying to keep the portions small during the day. Very hard to pedal in the position with a full stomach. Just doesn't work and feels awful. Then we got brave and ventured out of town because it seemed to be clearing up. Nope. Wrong. One mile down the road, the skies opened up and we headed back. Not doing it. Not biking out in the rain. Let's wait til 6 when the library closes and see what it's doing then. Worse case, we'll just bike out of town and set up camp. I checked the weather map on my free wifi and saw the weather pattern. A second bout of rain was coming after the clearing mid afternoon. Let's make our break around 4 and see if we can get some miles behind us before the next cloud burst. So off we headed. Oh, why is always so hard to get started? My legs are working too hard. But we managed to bike nearly 3 hours and got to the next town.
We're camped in the field of a trotter track. They were nice and left the bathroom unlocked for us., too.
Ooops! My tent is leaking. Rain is dripping on me!! I think this thing is on it's last legs. We usually use Fuat's new REI Quarter Dome. But it's wet from when we packed it up yesterday. I really like it, but it would be too heavy for backpacking. I hope I don't have to buy a new tent on this trip. i had to resurface the tent floor before we left. Guess I should have resiliconed the whole thing! Silnylon must have a limited shelf-life. Anyone know what it is?
So here we sit, listening to it rain...AGAIN. At least we're mostly dry and warm. We'll make it through another night and then we'll be spending a few days with new friends in Cork. Can't wait to meet Heike:)!
I'm testing the 2 theories tonight. 1) wool is warm when wet and 2) clothes dry in the sleeping bag. I wore my long johns when we rode down off the mountain yesterday and they got drenched. They didn't dry out over night and I kept them separate from my dry clothes in the pannier. So tonight I have soggy long johns on for sleep wear...hence the tests. So far, so good. I'm warm and I think they're almost dry.
I must say we're getting much better at reading our 2 maps. But it does take a team effort for us to get anywhere. It will be a real test of our map skills getting into Cork and to Heike's house tomorrow. I have the address but my map app wants to always put us on the main roads. There's a walking option but I can't always get it to route it right. I know there's much I don't understand about this map app and learning on the road without being able to google it is challenging. And of course, there are no instructions that I can find build into the app. Anyone else ever used Sygic Maps Apps?
Enough for tonight. I'm ready for sleep.
Oh, dinner, you ask? A salad of cukes, tomatoes, snow peas, and cheddar cheese tossed with oil and vinegar. And humus bought at the farmers market with brown bread. Then spelt brownies and chocolate cake for dessert. Fuat spends his time biking thinking about what we'll have for dinner and I'm glad he does! I'm the one who always makes sure we have something for dessert:)
And an update on the itching 'cause I know ya'll worry about me...talked to a pharmacist today and he said some of my itching was due to midgie bites (that's the no-see-ums I was talking about.) He said they can last up to a week. I got an antihistamine ointment and it's calming everything down. Much better than a pill. Do we have that? Better idea.
Ok, now...goodnight and hugs and love to everyone!
Bug-Bitten BagLady
p.s. got several albums of Roy Orbison on my iPod...he's got the best voice!!!!
p.p.s have been listening to the book Wild on my iPod. Read it! That girl can write AND she has a good story to tell. It's as much about her life before the trail as it is about hiking. She deserves the recognition she's getting!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
