DAY 16: Through the Mark Twain National Forest

128 km (80 miles) - total: 2054 km (1276 miles)

Farmington, Mo to Salem, Mo

Great weather, yet again, for my 80-mile ride today. This morning I was itching after a day of total sluggishness. Even though I am fully aware that rest will do me good I don't particularly enjoy the feeling of not making progress. Speaking of which, I made incredibly good progress for the first part of the day, having covered 100 km by 12. I reached Salem, my final destination at 2 pm and I was seriously tempted to go on but considering that I am only a few days away from the biggest challenge, the Rockies, I figured I need to plan this wisely and make sure that I have plenty of gas left in the tank!
Today I deviated again from the ACA official route, both to keep on going West on a straight line, which I partly did, and to cycle through the scenic Mark Twain National Forest. I followed route 32 all the way from outside Farmington to Salem. As I left town this morning at 8.15 I bumped into a cyclist doing a 30-mile loop around the St. Joe State Park and of course he enquired about my trip. He was very impressed with the amount of miles I put in every day especially considering the weight I carry on my shoulders and said he was very jealous of my trip. I later met another cyclist in the park and we had the same type of conversation. I notice that people are now beginning to comment on how far I have come instead of reminding me that I have a lot to go, which happened in the first week of my trip. This is definitely another encouraging sign of progress.

The ride through the forest was well worth the deviation from the ACA route and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The Mark Twain National Forest is huge, there are over 700 miles of trails and 40 miles of water trails. There are several things to see here, like the Greer Spring, which is the largest spring in the Midwest pumping about 220 millions of gallons of water per day. I saw a sign pointing the way to the spring but of course I didn't have time to wander off. The few houses in the park are all far-flung and there is only one grocery store in the whole forest. To provide for my drinking needs I made sure that I had plenty of liquids in my backpack which added a bit of extra weight on my rough shoulders! During my ride, I spotted pine trees, oak trees and several other types of trees which I don't know. I have learnt that the forest, located in the Missouri Ozarks, is home to 650 native wildlife species. The Ozarks are actually the US oldest mountains although they are often referred to as plateau. They don't feel like a plateau to me when I am cycling!!! Anyway, geologists consider the Ozarks range to be one of the oldest in the world, these are deeply eroded hills sculpted by rivers and the wind and are the only rugged area between the Appalachians and the Rocky mountains (and thank God for that!). What is even more fascinating about these rounded mountains is the history of the people that first settled here. They used to live, and to some degree still live, in isolation from other regions of the country and very much set in their old culture. The major tides of immigration that swept through the Midwest on the way to the Great Plains in the 1800s passed through here but only a handful remained. For almost a century they lived willfully isolated and relied on hunting with very little economic exchange activities with the East or the South. To add to the difficult scenario, the civil war in Missouri was brutal and run mostly by guerrilla bands which looted and ransacked at will. The sinewy history of this region made people around here resilient and slightly restrained but very courteous nonetheless. Overall, I am thoroughly enjoying Missouri. Even though the cities I stop in are infested with big eatery chains, under the westernized surface there is a general feeling of calm and well-protected remoteness.

About halfway through the forest, I stopped at the Grocery store in Bixby for a bite to eat and I chatted with the owner. Bixby is not even an hamlet, it is simply a collection of houses in the middle of nowhere. The lady told me that this place is the only pit stop within miles and their customers are all bikers (motorcycle riders) and tourists that visit the Forest as the village of Bixby with a population of 24 does not provide enough beef for their business. On my way out I ran into a group of bikers from St. Louis, 15 men and two girls! I chatted for a few minutes with one of the girls and she told me that they usually take to the road during week ends and ride around the beautiful roads of Missouri. These guys look very tough, they all wear leather pants and dark t-shirts and bandanas and look menacing but once you start talking with them you realize that they are very friendly and talkative. They may share a passion for riding the motorcycle but, as she told me, it is a far cry from all the clichés related to the easy-riders type of life characterized by the Dennis Hopper's 1969 movie. The motorcycle lady's name was Anne, she told me that the best time of the year to visit the forest is in mid-October to admire the foliage's unique fall rainbow of colors. I later read that the variety of colors in this region is pretty incredible, it includes oaks, sweet gum, sugar maple, sycamore, witch hazel (had no idea what it was!), elm, and other hardwood trees variations. The forest is considered one of the top five best places to see Fall color in United States.

For the last 20 miles or so the road abandoned the ridgeline of the park and I had to deal with some interesting hills. It must have been the full day of rest but I have to report that I got the best of them in pretty good fashion, standing on my pedals with little effort almost enjoying the challenge. My back has completely adjusted to the weight and shape of my rucksack. I felt in great spirits having just cycled through such a beautiful forest in very mild climate! I rolled into Salem with plenty of light, energy and miles to spare for the day but, as I said, I will give my legs and the bike a rest before things get serious out here.



The bike trail out of Farmington


Flat terrain but just briefly


Route 32, my baby today


2000 km!


Entering the Forest


The road through the Forest


All is well! Pine trees behind me


The store at Bixby


The group of riders outside the store


It is lonely on the road


Just before reaching Salem