I have no idea why or how, but I awoke at about 9:30 in the morning on the couch completely un-hung over. Ryan was upstairs sleeping and Betty had long since gone, so I packed my things, left a note, and wandered out the door to the grocery store.
After getting a few more things at the store I stopped in at another Waffle House on the way out of town. I’m not quite sure, but I think the guy at the next table over was the Love Shack guy from the night before. After breakfast I took off down Route 46, and a long road it was.
Not much happened that day since the road I was taking was so far back road that contact with people was at an all time low. The country was beautiful, and I did manage to see my first gas station with a tanning salon in it, but other than that I made my miles and bedded down in a lofty field. I did, however, put my mini recorder to use and in my last mile or so broke out the harmonica and found out I’m not so good on this new one. I also told myself some silly stories that don’t even have a slender thread of plot or coherency to them. I’m not even sure if they qualify as stories.
My campsite was quite beautiful though. It was right on the county line across from a creek up a grassy hill to a slightly wooded flat ridge. As I sat in my tent that night getting dinner ready to cook I noticed deer everywhere. I couldn’t help myself, and with a little patience, I sat with my B&W camera with the zoom lens and got some pictures of them. The rest of the night I ate and looked over my maps again before sleeping.