DAY 7: Finding a way out of Appalachia

142 km (88 miles) - total: 1011 km (628 miles)

Elkhorn City, KY to Hazard, KY

Another day of reckoning up and down the slick Appalachians, dodging dogs, cars and egos. Today's action unfolded by the flapping sound of Confederate flags.
Another day of intense pressure on my legs and I have decided to take a day off tomorrow to ease the pressure. Much has been covered and so much more lies ahead but it is a story that is yet to be written. The US is a country to be observed and possibly to be feared just as locals here amaze at me when I innocently claim that I don't carry a firearm. What firearm? Who am I going to shoot? Take my money, I am just an amateur cyclist, an explorer of the land, a dreamer wishing to get close to America, to flirt and get giddy with it, to get so close that it will hopefully disclose its secrets to me, that it will whisper in my ear its innermost feelings. While the poverty of Kentucky is a tough deal, I am blinded by the constrained beauty of these mountains, by the enduring temperament of its inhabitants, by their visceral need to survive. How can one find compassion in the midst of drama? How can one see through the haze of pain? What is it that I try to find out when I conjure up a way to climb a hill, to crest a mountain, to tame a steep slope, to overcome my own fears burdened with a 12kg rucksack on my back. It is as if I imbibe the temperament of the people I come across through every pore of my body. I get stronger by the day, every pedal stroke is an injection of energy. It is a gradual contamination, a transformation of the mind and the body. A metamorphosis of sorts that will make me better and not uglier. It nurshes me, it does not detract, it feeds. Possibly because all is visible and no stone of pain lies unturned. I suffer on the hills but for many inexplicable reasons I can't get enough. I want more.

I hit the road later than usual today at 8.45 and immediately felt the mileage of 6 days of riding in my legs. Sure I could climb and climb I did but the spring was gone. Seated, I could not apply enough force to get up those three big hills so I had to stand on the pedals Contador-like and for a while I disregarded the forest on both sides of the road and focused on the ascent while sweat poured off my forehead.

The temperature hit 105f at 2pm and I could not wait to get to that finishing line. Up and down several times through the Kentucky hills, I ambled along and at 5pm with Hazard in sight I sprang to life. I did not enjoy the last 11km on a busy highway with big coal trucks roaring past me and when I got caught in the rain I knew I had enough of cycling today. What really counts is that there is only one big hill left between me and the Great Plains of the United States of America. But that belongs to tomorrow. I met more people today. They're all talkative and kind but I did not feel like taking pictures of them. I also wanted to take some shots of the trailer parks to portray the level of poverty but I decided not to out of respect for those inside. The unfortunate existence of those who cannot afford more is not to be ridiculed.

And then the dogs. I must have been chased by at least ten dogs today. They come out of nowhere and start barking and chasing after you like there is no tomorrow. I managed to outsprint most of them but one almost got hold of me and I began to yell like crazy and after a while he just gave up. Dogs are wild here as people abandon them on the hills, they just end up roaming the hills looking for food. Another sad reality of Eastern Kentucky.



A coal truck going to work


A huge coal mine


Ascent in the morning sunlight


Self-portrait on the way up


and the well deserved rest by the post office in the tiny village of Melvin


traffic could be heavy..


Kentucky is home to large Amish communities


1000 km!!!!