Northern Tier Day #18 Monroeville, IN to Fletcher, IN
Northern Tier Day #18
June 6, 2019
Monroeville, IN to Fletcher, IN 99 Miles
Ride Time 7:34
Tour Total 1437 Miles
I slept alright on the floor of the Monroeville Community Center having woke up several times during the night. Somebody’s alarm went off at 6am. After that there was no choice but to get up. I’m not clear if I’m on Central Time or still on Eastern. I pedaled over to the Blueberry Pancake House for breakfast where I was joined by Simon, Florence, and Bob. I ordered the ‘2 x 4’, two blueberry pancakes, two eggs, two pieces of bacon, and two pieces of sausage, along with an orange juice. We all compared our routes and camping/lodging options. Florence and Simon were headed to Fletcher, which was 93 miles on the ACA route. They were using Google maps, though, and said it would only be 80 miles for them. Bob and I had both contacted a Warm Showers host in Wabash, who was 6 miles off route. Wabash was a 65 mile ride. It was a gray, overcast morning.
Florence works in the renewable energy sector and Simon works with the financing of start-up companies. They hail from Grenoble. My French is rusty, but I did my best. They told me that my Boure sweater meant drunk in french. I think technically that another R needs to be added. Bob is used to work in the medical field. He’s retired now, and does criminal justice work. At every small town, he stops at the police station to talk to the officers about criminal justice.
Simon and Florence were using Google Maps to route themselves from New York City to Colorado Springs. After Indiana they would head southwest and dip into lower Illinois and then head west through Missouri and Kansas to Colorado. They had taken an off day in Monroeville.
After Blueberry Pancake House, I cut south on State Route 101 and then took a right on two-lane Hoagland Road. There was little traffic and soggy cornfields to both sides of the road. The French couple were right behind me, but Bob had gone to the library to use the Wi-Fi. So far on the Northern Tier I’d say that AT&T is a good carrier.
Hoagland, like Monroeville, had a decommissioned fighter plane proudly displayed in it’s community park. Simon and Florence had checked the wind forecast and had heard that we would have a tailwind today. That might have somewhat been the case, at least when I was headed due west. All of the county roads run north-south and east-west. The road spacing is generally every mile. Adventure Cycling had me stair-stepping generally towards the west. I rode through the small towns of Poe and Yoder. Yoder had a grain silo and a post office, and that’s all.
The last mile into Zanesville on South County Road was on crushed gravel, which makes me uncomfortable when my feet are clipped in. The terrain rolls a little bit here in Indiana, but the roads are basically straight. I was disappointed in Zanesville because the store/pizza parlor didn’t open until 11am and it was only 10:30am. It didn’t look like there would be any services for the entire next map panel.
Near the crossing over I-69 the air was really stinky. There was some kind of animal poo and a lot of it. I was riding down 200 East County Road and I could feel my rear tire pressure getting low. Sure enough, I had a flat. I pulled over and decided to just change the tube. The horseflies started biting as soon as I stopped. I couldn’t find anything wrong with the tire or the deflated tube. I’m worried that the nail in Conway left a sizable hole in my rear tire that opens and then pinches the inner-tube. I might need to put a tire boot in there.
A day cyclist slowed down and asked me if I needed any help, and I declined. It was nice to know there were other cyclists out there. I felt like I was out in the middle of nowhere. The sun was now bright and it was difficult for me to read the display on my phone, including my map directions.
I heard back from the Warm Showers host in Walbash and he was unable to host me. That was ok. It was less than optimum. I rode over the Salamonie Dam, and then stopped at the visitor center to clean my black hands, and fill my water bottles. Riding through Salamonie River State Park was awesome. I was in the shade under a canopy of trees that protected me from the harsh sun, and it was a delight. I had the entire park to myself. Camp firewood in Indiana goes for only $1 a bundle. They’re good size bundles to boot!
I was desperate for a cold beverage when I rolled into Lagro. The ice cream store opened at 3pm and it was only 2pm. This was the second time this had happened to me today. Thank goodness there was a Marathon station open down the road. I got myself a large pink lemonade with ice, two pulled-pork sandwiches, and a giant cookie. A local guy, who reminded me of Tormund Giantsbane from Game of Thrones, came in and wanted to know about my trip. He asked me if I needed anything. I thanked him and declined, and he replied, “Hey, That’s Hoosier hospitality“. I noticed several farmers planting their fields today.
Abdullah Zeinab is still the leader in the self-supported TransAm race across the country. He just entered West Yellowstone. The racers started in Astoria OR and are speeding across the country to Yorktown, VA.
I predicted that I wouldn't again use my long sleeve jersey on this tour. We’ll see. Too much sun will make you miss the cold and rain. There were no services in Chili. However, in Denver I found a store that was open and purchased two Gatorades and a small bag of cashews. After Denver I picked up the Nickel Plate Trail, a converted train line to bike trail, which was pretty nice. At one point I could see the piled up discarded old wooden ties to the side of the trail. A chipmunk ran across the trail, as well as a pair of bunnies.
As I neared my destination there was corn planted in the fields to the right and left of the road. The plants stood about a foot off the ground. Fletcher is a tiny hamlet without services. There is a small campground next to a lake. Florence and Simon had arrived about ten minutes before me. They hailed me on the side of the road and introduced me to the proprietor. I paid him $7 and he gave me the most amazing wonderful cold bottle of water. I heavily sprayed myself with OFF and began editing this report.
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