Day 48: August 8 Clifton, KS to Manhattan, KS 54 miles

Kansas tree.

Saturday, 8/8/81
Manhattan, KS

I left for Manhattan at 9:00 this morning. Got a flat on those damn thorn weeds, but made it to the edge of Clay Center (my pump didn't work). Had lunch at Riley rest area. Took old road down Wildcat Creek to Manhattan. Got another flat, but made it into Keats.

Got to Manhattan at 3:00 PM. Nice town. Went straight to Housing office on campus, which was open this and next Saturday for this purpose. Had a lot of trouble on the phone--everything was taken. Finally went to $65 and up on the edge of Aggieville. I took the last $100.00 apartment. It's in the basement near the kitchen, which serves the whole building and the laundry room. They spray for roaches etc. once a month. Three good things: price, location--six blocks from campus, across the street from City Park (Parkvista Manor, no less). Now I have to get my stuff from [my mother] Barbara.

I traveled approximately 3,000 miles on this journey. Used up three back tires. I can say without a doubt that this has been the greatest adventure of my life, tame as it is. If I do another bicycle trip (and I would like to), I’ll tour the parks of the southwest, including an extended stay at the Grand Canyon. Whether this will ever come about remains to be seen.

The friends I have made along the way I expect to know for quite some time. As it stands, I have standing invitations from California to Florida. The warmth and friendliness of the local people along the way was something to behold, too. It reaffirms my faith I humanity, which can get a bit jaded when you work downtown in a large city. All in all, it was great!
 

I left Seattle June 21, spent 7 days in Denver, 5 days in Clifton, arriving in Manhattan August 8. That comes out to 37 days of riding, averaging 70 miles of riding per day.

Happy endings: I did eventually graduate from KSU, BTW, with a Master's degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. I moved back to Seattle, met my future wife playing volleyball, and lived happily ever after!

Day 47: August 7 Clifton, KS 30 miles

Friday, 8/7/81
Clifton, KS

Went for a 30-mile ride today around east of here. Strong winds from the north, but it cooled the temperature and humidity.
Got my KSU stuff from my girlfriend. Now I can leave tomorrow for Manhattan. Bert and Ed went to a wedding this evening.

Day 46: August 6 Clifton, KS 0 miles

Thursday, 8/6/81
Clifton, KS

A thunderstorm came through this morning, dropping the temperature 10° in one hour. Standing on that flat farmland and watching the storm approach, as the wind picked up the the fat drops started to hit me, is comparable to standing defiantly at the ocean's edge. It reminds me of a living entity moving over the land.

Look at the storm in this photo. Absolutely riveting. Bert and Ed thought I was nuts.

Thunderstorm approaching from the west.

Day 45: August 5 Clifton, KS 0 miles

Wednesday, 8/5/81
Clifton, KS

I went with Ed today visiting with neighbors and looking at culverts. All the rain this summer is washing the dirt out around them. The township is responsible for taking care of them and Ed is on the board. They've got a lot of work ahead of them. We watched tv at night.

Day 44: August 4 Clifton, KS 0 miles

Tuesday, 8/4/81
Clifton, KS

Slept in till 9 today. Cooked bacon and eggs for breakfast, then read Time magazine to catch up on the news. I went to town with Bert and Ed to run errands. Clay Center's pretty big--4 to 5,000 people. I walked through the cornfield--I love to do that. Watched tv all evening.

Day 43: August 3 Rest area, KS to Clifton, KS 78 miles

Monday, 8/3/81
Clifton, KS

I made it to Clifton! John and I had breakfast at a Mankato cafe and then split up. I headed southeast to Concordia for lunch at 52 miles. Ate lunch at city park and watch hundreds of swimmers at pool for an hour.

An aspiring cycle tourist in Ames invited me to spend the night, have dinner, a drink, the bathroom, etc. I used the phone and talked cycling and had a drink. Where was he when I needed this!?!

I made it to the farm by 6:30. Bert took two pictures of my arrival and I got to take an air-conditioned shower. Fantastic! We had supper at 8 and they answered my myriad questions on farming. Nice to sleep in air conditioning.

I arrive in Clifton.

Bert (Bertha) and Ed are my grand-aunt and uncle. They have farmed in Clifton, Kansas their entire lives. It was just a happy coincidence that they live 60 miles away from where I went to graduate school. I got to spend the next week or so with them before continuing to KSU.

Day 42: August 2 Norton, KS to rest area, KS 90 miles

Sunday, August 2, 1981
Rest area, Highway 36, KS

Dead tree near Agra, KS

Me at the Geographical Center of the
(Lower 48) United States

It was overcast when we got up. I had to change a flat in front. The clouds broke up by the time we got to Phillipsburg. Lunch at Kensington rest area. Humidity got worse as the day progressed. We turned off for Lebanon and the Center of the U.S. monument, but all the stores were closed. No water at Center of the U.S. rest area. I fixed a flat and John fixed a broken spoke. Went to rest area ten miles farther, still no  water. We ate my emergency chili and sandwiches and begged hot water off some travelers. Thousands of little red and black bugs were getting in our food and eyes and tickling us and driving us mad. They left when the sun set. There was a new moon with Venus and Jupiter and Saturn. Very dramatic. Humidity made me sweat crazily in the sleeping bag. I would have to get out and sit up to dry off. Mosquitoes drove me back in. I did get to sleep when it cooled off, though. Woke up still wet. 

That day, the temperature and humidity were both 90. I could hardly believe what I was experiencing. John, who had spent some time in Oklahoma, told me the humidity was only 40 or 50 and wait till it really gets bad. I was miserable because this was where I was going to spend the next four years of my life.

Old limestone house near Smith Center

Home in Concordia