Warm Showers. In More Ways Than One.

After two great nights in Greenville, it was time to move on once again. Thanks again to Njeri for hosting, cooking, and great company – I really enjoyed my visit.

When I posted yesterday’s update, my tentative plan for today was to head to White Oaks Campground – in between New Bern, NC and Jacksonville, NC. That plan was made irrelevant when I received a favourable response from WarmShowers.org. “Marshall and Betty” in New Bern informed me they were available to host. As this would be my inaugural WarmShowers.org experience, I was pretty excited. With New Bern being only 66 km from Njeri’s, I was poised for a short riding day. And, with the forecast calling for thunderstorms, that was okay with me.

The weather forecast in question hadn’t magically changed overnight. Rain was going to be a big part of my day. Fortunately, warm weather was also going to be part of my day. As it happens, this morning’s ride started very early because Njeri had to be at work early and I left when she did. A little before 7:30. When I went outside around 7:00 to load up my bike, I was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by warm, humid air. And the skies were deceptively clear. However, the wind was also very much a factor and I didn’t expect the clear skies to last. My only hope was that my early start would limit my time in the rain.

Despite all the mileage I’ve pedalled so far, my legs didn’t seem particularly happy to be pedalling this morning. And the wind didn’t help matters. That said, not pedalling wasn’t an option and so I pedalled on. Even with the wind and unhappy legs, I still managed to put 20 km behind me by 8:30. This was shaping up to be a very short day. By 10:00 I was in Vanceboro, only 26 km from my WarmShowers’ hosts. With time very much on my side, I stopped in at yet another Subway for a very leisurely early-lunch – or late breakfast.

Before hitting the road again, I found myself using my phone for the second day in a row. What’s happening to me? Be afraid. Be very, very afraid. Anyway, today’s call was to Marshall to get directions to my first WarmShowers.org host.

The rain that I’d managed to avoid all morning had decided that I had been dry long enough. About five minutes after returning to the road, the first drops started to fall. And, once they started, they had no intention of stopping. The official forecast called for “isolated showers”. I don’t know how accurate that was in the big picture but they were definitely isolated on me for the rest of my ride. On the upside, the warm and humid air made the rain somewhat pleasant. As much as possible anyway. Perhaps it was somewhat fitting that I was riding in warm showers.

By 1:00 I arrived at Marshall and Betty’s, where I met Marshall. He welcomed me into their very nice house and showed to my very large room. After a quick shower and change into some dry clothes, I joined Marshall in the kitchen where he had put out a full plate of cheese, crackers, apples, trail mix and granola bars. It was practically a feast! We chatted about WarmShowers.org, his previous guests, trips, my journey, and more. It was great.

Since arriving, the rain has continued to fall. It’s fluctuated between heavy rain to very heavy rain to downpour – which is pretty much the current status. I’m hopeful that this will all blow over by tomorrow morning. Early forecasts indicate that it should. We’ll see.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 66.15 km
Time on bike: 3:03:25
Maximum speed: 29.81 km/h
Average speed: 21.64 km/h

While today was a relatively short distance day, my total distance for the trip is now over 7,000 km! (that’s just under 4,400 miles)