Day 19 - 37.1 miles - Sonora, TX

I am in absolutely no rush this morning. Reason being, I am planning a half day or what I call a rest day. My rest day is a day of under 40 miles and finished biking by noon. This way, I still make forward progress but still have time to relax and rest my legs. After yesterday's 118 miles, my legs need a break. To be honest, I am getting my butt kicked out here. These winds just won't go away and they are sapping all of my energy. It is demoralizing pushing into these winds. I wish I could report that I am ripping it up, but that's not the case. What I must do, and plan to do is just chip away at it one day at a time. Maybe, just maybe the winds will switch and I'll be a happy camper again. I really don't know how I pulled off that 118 mile day yesterday. I still can't believe I did that. I guess the thought of running out of water can make you do things you didn't think possible. Today's plan is to just bike to the next town 35 miles east. No stops or services between but that's fine because it shouldn't take all that long to get there. Right off the bat, I got blasted with the lovely headwinds. I didn't let it get to me. I put in my headphones, played music, and watched to make sure I didn't run over any glass, screws, nails, thorns, goat heads, etc. Never mind the worries over the road conditions here in Texas. I still can't believe how quick they change. I can be all happy on a very smooth pavement one minute, than extremely depressed on the bone shaking pavement the next minute. Welcome to bike touring, and with all the experience I have in this field I should very well expect anything and everything. A fairly uneventful ride today. I did arrive in Sonora around noon. Sonora, is a small town but just enough services for the tired and weary traveller. I am being told that the real Texas Hills are ahead of me. What were those last hundred hills I climbed called, I thought to myself. I got cleaned up, and walked about the town. I found my dinner for tonight. An AYCE pizza and salad bar at Pizza Hut. Now that's music to my ears, and fuel for tomorrow's hills. Come on west winds, I need your help.

Photos: My metal horse on the shoulder of I-10 - Cactus still everywhere - I-10 rest area bathrooms but no vending machines - Welcome to Sonora, TX - Windmill in town - Road work in downtown Sonora - Today's route, Ozona to Sonora