Day 29 of riding!

After a really great breakfast at the Comfort Inn in Willow Springs, Missouri, we headed out to US Hwy 60 at 6:50 under overcast skies.  The temperature was a comfortable 73 degrees with the sun hidden mostly behind the clouds.  There were pastures, then beautiful tree covered hills. 
We took our first short break about an hour later at a gas station in Mountain View.  About an hour after getting back on the road the sun began to peek through the clouds, there was still no wind.  The road was a wonderful 4 lane road with a great shoulder.  There were some steep and crazy kinks in the road, I thought this particular sign was funny!

We encountered LOTS of trees in Mark Twain National forest.

 I took this picture because my hometown is Fremont (Nebraska), but also - Low Wassie? What kind of name is that?

 At the crest of one of the monster hills we had a great view.

 This was SUPER steep!  Looks like he's climbing to the sky!

 We saw lumber companies along the way.

We saw this sign on the way to Van Buren.  Kinda glad Russ isn't into meat, we didn't eat there!

We arrived in Van Buren, Missouri just after 11:00 am and found a nice little motel with a pool.  By this time, it was about 95 degrees.  After checking in, we went to check out the nearby Big Spring - it lived up to it's name! 

 The water was aqua blue and beautiful!

On the way back to our motel we stopped at Jolly Cone for a little treat! Yummy!

 

This afternoon & evening we enjoyed the pool, and finally came in when the clouds rolled in, the wind picked up and we heard some thunder.
It's been a beautiful day, we are 83 miles further down the road! Russ has ridden 1943 miles since we started, that is hard to believe, isn't it?  When you think of the WHOLE distance, it seems overwhelming; but he has taken it a day at a time, a mile at a time, a hill at a time, pushing one pedal at a time. Sometimes when we face things that are challenging or difficult, we can feel overwhelmed...at least I do, anyway.  When we trust God and take things one day at a time, one hour at a time, one step at a time, we find He gives us the strength to do what we need to do.  I pray you feel the strength the Lord is giving you to face what is in front of you now.  Thank you for your prayers that sustain us!
Until tomorrow,
Russ & Carol