October 20

Only 52 miles today - brutal headwinds, and high temperatures - and I rode eight hours to do that much. Rested a lot.

South Carolina. I'm camped by the Great Pee Dee River. I've seen live oaks, palmettos, pelicans, and something that looks like prickly pear but is soft, doesn't have spines and can grow to 6' tall. The local pine is longleaf.

I met a couple in their early 60's today who are riding a tandem bike along my route. They started from Bar Harbor on Sept. 2nd. They go faster than I do, but I caught up with them because they spend more time sightseeing than I do. Real nice people, enjoying themselves immensely.

Also met a guy on a motorcycle, who pulled over to talk to me. He has ridden all over North America, north of Mexico on a bicycle. Went through Chester in '86. He was generous with advice. Offered to let me stay at his place, but it was only 2 PM and I could make at least another 25 miles, I thought, so I declined.