Date: October 24, 2009
From: Sebree, Kentucky
To: Caneyville, Kentucky (Feltus Holler Farm) Near Falls of Rough on the TransAm
Route: Hwy. 56, Hwy. 136, Hwy. 140, Hwy. 764, Hwy. 54, Hwy. 736
Miles Today: 75 miles
TOTAL MILES: 2, 759 miles
Top Speed on this trip: 54.1 mph
Weather: High 50s with blue skies
License Plates Collected: 5 Montana, 8 Wyoming (2 motorcycle) and 1 Idaho (found in WY), 2 Colorado, 1 Kansas (Gifted from David of Baldwin City), 1 Missouri (To be sent to Grammy’s by our new buddy, Kansas City firefighter Shawn), 1 Illinois, 2 Kentucky (Gifted from of Beth and Garry Feltus)
Flats: 8
Broken Spokes: 3
Cracked Rim: 1
We knew today would be at least a 70-mile day and though I was still mighty sore I pushed on knowing that at the end of those 70 miles would be Feltus Holler Farm, home of Beth and Garry. They found us, via the Internet, early on in our journey and invited us to stay. We've really been looking forward to our visit. When we called to make arrangements and let them know we were traveling with Brian they graciously invited him along also.
Their home is 8-9 miles off our route and many more steep hills including one that was about 17-22 percent…(Brian's GPS said 17 and Gregory's inclinometer said 22), but we made it and enjoyed a beautiful Kentucky sunset in the process. They gave us a warm welcome and set us up in the cottage they were living in while their home was being built this past year. We opened the door to the smells of chicken and vegetables roasting in the oven and it was heavenly. Beth also informed me that Garry was cooking a ham up at the house! The cottage was toasty warm and we quickly settled into our comfy accommodations complete with a fridge stocked with beverages and snacks of chips and salsa and bananas in case we couldn't wait until to dinner. They also had 2 Kentucky license plates waiting for Gregory and a pumpkin and carving kit. They have just been so thoughtful in every way. How could they know how much Gregory and I love to carve a pumpkin every year. It is a tradition I had with my Grandpa Sapp, Dad, and my brother Dave and sister Kim when we were kids…
The shower felt heavenly and was just what I needed to easy my pain and set me right again after the long 75-mile day of climbing hills. Brian rode along with us today and commented on how much use we were getting out of our granny gear. Ha! We would be grunting up a nice steep hill and he would ride along beside us until a car came along and then pull in behind us. I was a little paranoid about having him watching me as I huffed and puffed along. He didn't even look like he was having to work at it. He also said, "It's a good thing you didn't do the Missouri Ozarks!" "Why do you think we did the Katy Trail," I told him. I told him I could just imagine how his blog for today might read…"Today I rode with the Williams Family. They are definitely going at a much slower pace than I am." I also hope it will say he had a good time exploring with us. We made him stop and check out the drying corn on the roadside and we cracked open some soybeans for him to examine, educating him about roasted soy nuts and Edamame. I also gathered up 4 of the big fuzzy orange and black caterpillars and put them in his hand. Unfortunately they decided to do their business on his new bike glove. He laughed about it and got a picture. I also pointed out the tobacco drying in the many barns along the roadsides. When we hit the 17-20 percent grade hill on the road into Beth and Garry's house, Brian would ride up and then loop back and ride alongside us for a while and then go up a ways and ride back. I told him he was a stinker and was going to get it! Despite my compromised comfort level and the enormous amount of hills, it was a glorious fall day with blue skies. It was crisp and cool but I rode without tights the second half of the day to increase the air flow. It was chilly at first but I warmed up.
At the farm Gregory's first interest was in meeting the dogs. Beth explained that Norm was the rambunctious one and showed Gregory Norm's command for sit. Nicky is their older dog and Robin is a herding dog they inherited along with the property. All three are just as sweet as can be and we had a great time throwing the Frisbee for them to catch. We met the cats when we went up to the house for dinner. Dinner was a feast of chicken, roasted vegetables, ham, macaroni and cheese and a delicious salad with feta and olives and a Greek vinaigrette dressing. I had seconds on salad since I never seem to get enough vegetables. With dinner they also served a delicious Bogle Cabernet and later a Bogle Phantom which is a blend of Petite Syrah, Old Vine Zinfandel & Old Vine Mourverde ~ V.2006. It has been a long while since we had some good California wine. Later Beth gave us each a taste of their homemade Limoncello. (Anyone who has seen the movie Under the Tuscan Sun with Diane Lane will know what Limoncello is!) We talked until almost midnight and kept Garry's mom, Jeannie up way past her bedtime. She has been so sweet and even gave Gregory a great big hug.
Back at the cottage it took no time at all for me to fall fast asleep and I barely stirred when a large plaster decoration came crashing down off the wall and on to the tile. I heard it but it wasn't enough to raise my head from the pillow. Gregory didn't hear a thing and slept soundly the entire night.
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