Day 64

Thorn bushes
It wasn't long before I was on another bridge over the Mississippi. State 21! Three gas stations greeted me on the other side, so I stocked up. Google wanted me to go through the city, but it had a lot of turns. It looked shorter though, so I grudgingly obeyed. It took me a few blocks to remember that I needed to look for a post card. I stopped by a flower shop- it worked last time. Alas, no post cards. But te lady there mentioned several places to look, then took it upon herself to start calling all the stores to check. The drug store was a sure bet- I had to backtrack a few blocks. These were a dollar- more expecive than any of the other ones. I'm glad though. I'm sure the reason why most places don't have post cards is because it is impossible to make much money off something that costs 25 cents. The cashier said the post office was 5 blocks down- the UPS guy said it was 3. I figured I'd find it if I headed that way. I didn't. I would be in Missouri for a while- I'll find another post office. I crossed over a one way bridge over a small stream. I glanced down and could not believe my eyes. Slithering through the water was a snake! The first water snake I had seen. It came up for air and I think it saw me- it took off under the bridge and I couldn't find it anymore. I continued on through the city. Once I was on the highway again, I saw a Walmart. Might as well check it out, I still needed good tubes. I could check for a portable battery pack and get hotdogs. It had the same tubes as last time, no battery, and I didn't feel like hunting down hotdogs. I got back on the highway. It was pretty easy riding- great shoulders, straight path. I saw a cop go by in the other lane- the paint on the side and the lights usually catch my eye. About 45 minutes later, it passes by in my lane, gets really close to that point where you know he isn't going to pull over, and then he pulls over. Not again... I actually wasn't worried at all. My encounters with other cops were always somewhat positive. I knew I could find another route to where I was going, it just would be less pavement. The cop said he stopped me because I had looked thirsty, so he got me a cold water bottle from the store. I had plenty of water, but I can always use more, especially if it's cold. I thanked him and continued on. I had to pass through a decent sized city. There were soccer players- I haven't played in forever! I got onto a gravel road right at sunset. It looked like it was going to be like this for miles and miles, but eventually there was a nice paved road out in what seemed like to me the middle of nowhere. It was field after field, farmhouse after farmhouse. No good places to camp. I finally found some trees. I had to go down what was probably a private road, but I didn't know when I would find another place. I went farther than I would have in order to put distance between me and the house near the road. Once I was halfway set up, a dog started barking. It was far enough away to not worry to much about but close enough for me to know that I needed to be careful. I just sat in my tent, not moving, until it had finally been long enough that I got out my sleeping pad and went to sleep.