Sandie and my own little beach
Wednesday, June 4 (Day 19)
Distance: 70 miles
Average speed: 11.3 mph
Max: 24.4 mph
After about 40 miles, I stopped for a quick break at the U.P. (Upper Peninsula) Sugar Shack, because I was getting hungry and the sign said baked goods.
I was welcomed by the warm smell of maple syrup and an older woman who introduced herself as Sally. Her son let me see what he was up to in the back: making maple sugar.
It was hot and sticky, but the sugar was happening right before my eyes. He heats up the syrup and then mixes it until it becomes granulated. Sally told me to look up her other son in Wisconsin, she said he's single and "always looking for sweet girls like you. Maybe you'll like him." Apparently he has four grown children and lost his wife a year and a half ago... I think this nice old lady may top my "creepy encounters" charts!
They didn't really have anything I could buy (a gallon of maple syrup, anyone) so I was getting ready to leave when Sally said "Let me just find a bag and I'll sneak you some sugar, I don't care if my son gets mad at me!"
So I left the shop with a small bag of maple sugar (what do you do with sugar, again?) and quite an interesting encounter to dwell upon.
The ride was lovely, no large hills or clouds of bugs, and a very wide shoulder. I liked the sign in front of a store I passed: "Honest Injun Tourist Trap".
I stopped after 60 miles to get groceries, and as I was repackaging and organizing my supplies, a woman named Faith spoke to me. After some preliminaries, she asked, "What have you got to protect yourself?"
"A pocket knife." (I haven't yet gotten around to buying pepper spray)
"Honey, you gotta get yourself a can of pepper spray. Tell your mom Faith told you to get a can of pepper spray. There are so many weirdos out there, I'm scared for you. Especially black men. Black men are so mean to white women. Good luck."
I had intended to ride about another 40 miles, but I was really ready to just get in bed so I decided to call it and look for a campground. I was on my way to a campground marked on my adventure cycling map when I passed a sign declaring an unmarked campground. I decided to have a look, and it was absolutely beautiful! I set up and went to find the host to pay.
Sallie is undoubtedly the coolest camp host I have ever met. She told me she keeps this place unlisted. Other than a twenty dollar bill, I only had $8 cash, and she said "oh, that's fine. What's money? As long as you can pay the bills. Money is the root of all evil, in my opinion. What do you think?"
"Oh, I agree!"
She told me about her life for a while, and it was really fascinating. She said she met her husband while she was "broke in two" at a bar, and he was living with his mom. She said "when you meet the right one, you know." They lived together for seven years before he proposed to her, out of the blue. They were on their way to a doctor's appointment! Now they've been together for 21 years.
Sallie has left encouraging little notes all over the bathroom and water buildings.
I set up camp and lounged on my own little segment of beach for a while, enjoying the respite from bugs, the warm sun, and the sound of the waves (which I'm still enjoying). For dinner I was in the lap of luxury from my recent resupply, with a pint of delicious blueberries and a pound of grapes.
I was in my tent when I heard Sallie come over. She returned my $8 and said she didn't need it.
What an incredible woman!
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