So it's my last night before the start of this thing. I was pleasantly surprised when my father offered to drive me down to Yorktown VA for the start, especially considering he is not fully on board with my plans. I thought I would start from the Jersey shore, maybe Atlantic City, but this is preferable for multiple reasons. Mostly, I will enjoy being able to spend those last few hours with him despite the obvious tension at hand. I'm just anxious at this point to get it started!
The last few weeks have been great. I've spent much time with friends, many of those late nights. It was difficult to leave Chicago, much more than I would have thought just a year ago. I'm not sure if it's coincidence or one follows the other, but I felt I was finally starting to really settle in over the last several months there.
Coming back Lebanon/Lancaster has always been a pleasure. Lancaster is still a place I can see myself moving back to someday. But not yet. On Friday I was able ride from Lebanon to Lancaster and catch up with friends at some of my favorite spots, the Lancaster Brewing Company and Quip's. It was my first ride with a loaded bike (40lbs?) and the hills of PA. Lancaster is beautiful country. Saturday I rode around town, reminiscing, and visited the market where I met several people wanting to ask questions about what I was doing. I even met a fellow biker on a two day race from Pittsburg to Philadelphia. There is an immediate social opportunity that comes with just being on the loaded bike. I finish my pack in the morning and get the final weights of my gear. I'll look to post that soon along with my initial experiences. I guess I'm actually going to do this.