Day Eighty-four, 090512 - Chipley, FL

Day Eighty-four, Date Saturday, May 23, 2009
Time in Saddle: 9:36
Distance for the Day: 88.58 miles From Milton To Chipley, FL
Accumulated Trip Distance: 3689.24
Altitudes: Starting/Ending 78’/0’, Highest: 209’ Accumulated: 1821’
Speeds: Avg: 9.2 mph, Max: 28.8 mph
Weather: 69°, thunderstorms
Expenditures: $9

I woke up about 5:30am, and got up, broke down, and was ready to roll by 6:15am, but it decided to downpour, so I waited another 15 minutes for it to let up some before starting out. This was a definite rain day. It rained pretty much most of the day, but let up some in the late afternoon. I think what I thought was my waterproof rain jacket isn’t waterproof at all, and is really just a moisture resistant windbreaker, because when it rains, it doesn’t seem to keep me dry at all. I found out a pretty good technique for being a little more comfortable, though: when I get really wet, I can stop and use my hand towel to dry off most of the water, so that I’m only moist, instead of wringing wet. This is a lot more comfortable, and worth doing every now and then. Unfortunately, my “plastic bags around the socks” trick didn’t seem to work, this time, so my socks got totally wet, plastic bags or no plastic bags. Since it wasn’t cold, though, it didn’t really matter. I plugged away the whole day, not stopping for much, except a hot cocoa and Danish ($4) and more trailmix and soda ($5). At 7pm, I stopped in at a house just off the highway and asked to pitch my tent on their lawn with my usual spiel (don’t need anything; will be gone by sunrise), and they agreed (yes!) (N30 46.580’ W85 35.153’) The clouds were broken up and it hadn’t rained for the last few hours, so I was able to set up dry, and by 7:27pm was ready for bed. Unfortunately, my clothes and sleeping bag were still moist from the day’s activities, but I was warm and mosquito-free, and quite comfortable. I listened to my iPod for a couple of hours, and then went to sleep at around 9:30pm. I noticed it showered lightly once during the early morning, but thanks to my new tent, it was not a problem. I really like that tent (or couldn’t you tell). (No pictures today - too wet to take out my camera!)