Day 19 Safford, Arizona

Stats
Daily mileage 87 Ride time 6hr 15min
Avg speed 13.89mph Total mileage 1063

I woke up this morning hoping my ankle enjoyed the early finish yesterday as much as I did. I went for breakfast but didn’t feel like stuffing my face. I ate responsibly and returned to my room and to have another shower. In case you are all wondering, my improved hygiene regime has eradicated those nasty little boils in my private region.

Today was a bizarre one. My Achilles had not improved and the pain was spreading around the ankle. I decided to take it real easy but I was still flying along. Mentally I was somewhere else all day. I thought about everything from Christmas presents to what adventure I want to do next. The main thought was regarding my career. I am pretty sure I do not want to go back to the police but it annoys me that I had to wait several years to get in and then discover its not for me. The question is, what do I do? Send your answers on a postcard!

I travelled nearly 90 miles but can hardly recall anything. I have noticed they are harvesting a lot of cotton in this region. However, this was due to a machine was cutting the plant and parts of the cotton were floating in the air and getting stuck in my beard!

I got to Safford and enquired at a few a hotels for a nights sleep. It was starting to annoy that I was even considering paying another 60 bucks for a room. I said right from the beginning that I would be camping for the majority of this trip and here I find myself looking for another room. It was still early and I decided to find a RV park instead. I stopped at the local tourist information and the lady was a dream. She rang around the parks and found a campsite for me for 5 bucks. She then produced an apple and a variety of cereal bars for me to devour.

I got to my campsite and sun baked for an hour before erecting my tent and winding down for the evening. I cooked myself some super noodles and made a hot chocolate, delicious. I could not believe this was only my third time I had used my cooker.

When I left Vegas I set myself two goals and that was to cycle 500 miles and pass through Arizona in seven days. It looks as though I am on course for both predications. In fact, I may have cycled about 550 miles in seven days if everything goes according to plan tomorrow.

I just remember something that I saw today. My very first sightings of a racoon and a skunk, albeit they were dead on the side of the road. I must digress one moment. Since I had my bike accident a year my sinuses are constantly blocked. However, when you hover over such road kill it was amazing how quickly it cleared the nostrils! Forget Sinex, they need to bottle the smell of rotting flesh in the boiling heat! Good night chums!