to Lumberton

I was on the road at sunrise this morning, knowing I had a full day's ride ahead of me.  I made good time, mostly on two-lane back roads frequented by logging trucks.

I was all set to report to the list that, as in Oklahoma, no one in Texas had yelled at me from a car window.  But today some Texans had to go and spoil it.  They didn't yell per se, but several honked angrily, and two called 911 to complain about me, and one flipped me off.  The sheriff's deputy who stopped to talk to me just made sure I hadn't been doing anything unsafe or illegal to inspire the calls and let me go again.  I guess Midwesterners don't hold the patent on passive aggressiveness after all.

It was a beautiful day for riding, though a bit chilly in the morning.  I stopped midday to remove a layer, and I inadvertently left it on top of the trailer rather than stowing it inside, so it won't be travelling farther with me.  Fortunately long john tops and bottoms are sold separately.

For the past few days I've been trying to decide whether or not to ride into Beaumont, TX.  On the one hand, an old friend used to attend the UU church there, and Sunday is fast approaching; but on the other hand, I haven't heard from her in years and have no idea whether she still lives in the area or what her married name is now, and more to the point, once I got into town it would be difficult to go east from there without riding on an Interstate highway... so I decided against it.

I stopped for the night at Village Creek State Park, east of Lumberton, which in turn is north of Beaumont.  I opted for a "pack in" campsite with no electricity, etc., so instead of being surrounded by Friday night partiers, I have a little patch of woods and creek all to myself.  It's a beautiful last night in Texas.

51.6 mi