Punctures, punctures

Tuesday April 18th. 10 miles or 16 km. Day 44 Deridder to just a little past Deridder

After a very poor night of sleep I rose early. The traffic noise was horrible with trucks passing by, at a distance of maybe 100 ft. all night long. Security lights right above my tent so no flashlight needed. You get the picture.  Yet I am very happy with my spot at the First United Methodist Church and a good thing as I will sleep there again tonight.

Sue arrived at 7 am with the key to the shower and that was such a treat! Feeling clean and refreshed I began my day after a warm goodbye. 132 km for today so no time to fiddle around.

It was very cloudy and kind of cool. Once in a while some raindrops fell but nothing serious. The wind was noticeable so I anticipated to  have a strong headwind today. There was a wide shoulder beside a busy road but unfortunately, there was a lot of debris scattered across the shoulder. It was difficult to avoid some of it. 

By 8.30 am I knew something wasn't right with my bike. Sure enough. This time I had a slow leak in the recently replaced back tube. Luckily I has Sue's phone number so I called her. She was still in Deridder so she would pick me up. I unloaded Annie and then went in search of someone who could help me get Annie in the back of the truck. At the first mobile home there wasn't anyone home except several dogs that began barking at me. Thank goodness they were behind a high fence. Next door were a bunch of cars but also 2 dogs off leash. Luck would have it that a car pulled into the driveway and I was able to call out for help. The son was willing to help and within minutes we were back on the road to Deridder. 

Back in Deridder Sue drove me past the "Hang Jail". So goes the story: In the 1920's two men killed a black man. Once they were caught, they were hanged in the jail as the jail was designed for hanging people. Every year with Halloween you can take a tour of this jail which is highly decorated for this event, as well as the accompanying stories to highten the suspense. But back to reality. 

No bikestore in Deridder. Walmart didn't have the right tube so we had to drive 80 km to Lake Charles, the nearest town that has a bikestore. However, first Sue had an appointment at the "Flat Tire" coffee shop so off we went to taste their coffee. Debbie, the owner, was greeting her customers and I chatted with her for a while. She wanted my picture with the flat tube and my helmet and could she use it for their website. Of course she can. I am honored.

Fortunately the bikestore had the right tubes and they were able to fix my tire and put my bike back together. In the meantime we had gotten hungry so we went to a small Indian restaurant/store where the owner served us a delicious meal of rice, butter chicken and Naan bread. Time to drive back to Deridder once more and setup camp. But first a coffee as I began to mix up things. For one, I couldn't find my chair and figured that I must have left it at the side of the road. Yet I already had put it in the shed, and two I thought it was April 28 so David's birthday and began to write to him. But this doesn't make sense! And then I realized it is the 18th and not the 28th. Duh..

I hope to be able to sleep through the noise tonight and then start fresh again tomorrow. 

It’s so awesome to see you through this amazing trip! You are truly inspiring. Great job ❤️
-Shabbi