Today’s Route: Bowling Green, Pemberville, Gibsonburg, Fremont, Clyde.

Today: 49 miles. Total miles: 3382      Riding time: 3 hrs 22 min
Elevations: Bowling Green: 673′    Clyde: 805′
Total ascent: 853’   Total descent: 778’
Calories: 2426    Avg speed 13.28 mph   Max speed 20 mph

Passed a beautiful town hall and opera house in Pemberville. Stopped at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museum in Fremont. All of today’s towns were small, but quaint and interesting. People with whom I spoke in each town felt their town was the best place in America to live! Nice to hear that!  Countryside was mostly agriculture. Level roads with good pavement but lacking shoulders for the most part. Light traffic.

Had two close calls (near accidents) today – lady pulling out didn’t see me and slammed on her brakes in the middle of the road; second near miss was a FedEx truck running a stop sign at a 4-way stop intersection and cutting me off as I proceeded through the intersection. Fortunately there haven’t been many situations like this on the trip, so far. But the whole trip has been about “defensive riding.”

Since we hit Michigan, drivers are driving faster with riskier maneuvers. In the west, especially in Oregon, Idaho and Montana, drivers will stop to let pedestrians cross the road whenever they see someone in a crosswalk, and very often when they’re not in a crosswalk area. This courtesy is almost unheard of in the east! Saw one driver today who actually stopped to let a pedestrian cross the road!

Decided to drive to the Elks Lodge in Norwalk OH to park in their parking lot for the next two nights – no hookups and it’s hot and humid, but it’s free of charge since I’m an Elk in Clifton Park NY.

See next photo!

The Opera House!

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Museum and Library in Fremont, OH.

Quote for the Day: “Why not go out on a limb? That’s where the fruit is.” Mark Twain