More Hills (Day 7)

Woke up around 10:30am and left my patch of weeds in the town of Chillisquaque, PA and crossed the river into Lewisburg, PA (much easier town to pronounce). From there, it was what looked like a straight shot west to State College... some 55 miles away. But my map was deceiving. Inside that "straight shot" were many tiny turns and hills, keeping my legs in full burn mode. And even though the cycling was long and arduous, I still took the time to take a detour north on a dirt road just so I could pass through a covered bridge. At one point, the Keystone state had something around 1,500 covered bridges, and today over 200 have survived through the years, so I wanted to pass through at least one at some point during my travels. Apparently, Pennsylvania has more covered bridges than any other state, giving it the grand title of "Covered Bridge Capital of the World."

After cycling through Mifflinburg, it was a good 20 miles of nothing but farmlands and forests, and I got especially caught off-guard when I reached Bald Eagle State Forest and faced a sudden long and winding hill. To add to the misery, there was zero shoulder, so while I struggled up the 10 degree incline, my wobbly bike and trailer weaving around potholes and roadkill, I also had to keep a watchful eye out for speeding pickup trucks zooming from behind. It was a taxing and tense time. I ended up having to take a break about halfway up the hill, collapsing in a bed of grass next to some narrow fishing access road.

After reaching the peak, I cruised down the other side of the hill at a nice speed, reaching the town of Millheim, where I bought two 20 oz. bottles of Mountain Dew Berry Blast for $2.22. From there, it was more hills and valleys for the next 12 miles into the township of Old Fort. There, I stopped at Brody's Diner for dinner. I got the "Baked Pasta Special" for $6.95, which looked like it was just all the old stuff they had lying around the kitchen thrown onto a plate. The Penne pasta looked and tasted like it was boiled at least three times prior to that evening. But, at least I got some much needed carbs... as tomorrow, I have one more major ridge on the Allegheny Mountain Range to tackle, and I need all the energy I can get! Carbs, do your work!!