May 14th, Sunday, we hit the road following a nice break just outside of Georgetown, South Carolina. We, Daisy and I, traveled 45km this day and would later stay the night at Murrels Inlet.
Georgetown has a few places that caught my camera eye and I spent a few hours touring and capturing photos of historic architecture and information markers. One photo, included, is of The William Doyle Morgan House. Due to the limits of my phone service data plan, I'll have to create, at a later time, a photo album strictly for Georgetown scenes.
May 15th, Monday, Daisy and I got an early start leaving Murrells Inlet on Huntington Beach State Park and continued north on Hwy 17 entering the Grand Strand for a total mileage of 26km for the day. I would later make camp near Warbirds Park in Myrtle Beach.
From my observations, the Grand Strand is a long stretch of beach that is unbroken by islands, marshes, or inlets which typically makes up America's east coast. Along the Grand Strand, I found Surfside Beach, Myrtle Beach, and North Myrtle Beach. Today, Wednesday, will most likely be our last dip in the Atlantic, until our next ocean dip in the Pacific.
May 16th, Tuesday, I rolled up my bed roll (slept under open stars this night) and got off to another early start. Bike week is this week in Myrtle Beach and traffic is a mess at any hour. Aside from that observation, I am compelled to mention others. Most notably, the fact that this entire stretch of beach seems to consist entirely of motels/hotels, restaurants (ice cream shops everywhere!), and miniature golf. I suspect that the Myrtle Beach area has more mini-golf per capita than anywhere else on earth. I think I'll Google this at a later time, perhaps when I don't have a book waiting for my attention.
Somewhere along Ocean Boulevard, I became aware that the towering hotels have recently disappeared. It was here that I pulled over and thought of contacting media to share our story.
Reaching out to media is no easy task when one takes into account limited power supply coupled with data limits. Nevertheless, I reached the news desk at WBTW News 13 who said that they were interested. We scheduled an interview for 1030 a.m. and when the call concluded, I did a little jig. This would put the days riding during the heat of the day but coverage of our mission for "Veterans and Their Pets" takes priority.
I met Nick Townsend of WBTW and we shared stories of eachothers exploits in dog rescue. Nick has 10 dogs, all of which were undesired (until his family got a hold of them) rescues. One memorable moment was when Nick asked, "What's your title?". My reply was, "Volunteer(s) At Large", a cute and appropriate snippet from my rescuers at "Veterans and Their Pets".
I got some more miles in, but called it an early day in the end. A certain amount of energy is drained when doing things out of the ordinary, not to mention that we covered over 60 miles in recent riding days. I found a hideout and rehydrated my body. It was here that I chose to splurge a little and treat ourselves to a pre-cooked meal.
A notable event took place in the street on our way back to our hide out from Kroger where I purchased a rotisserie chicken, canned milk, coleslaw, and a Greek pasta salad. A lady in the passenger seat of a tricked out golf cart in the lane next to mine had exclaimed, "We just saw you on the news!!"
Before I tell you how I replied to this excitment filled exclamation, perhaps it is the heat, physical exertions, and humidity that dulls ones mind. Perhaps it is my doubts than an interview will actually get aired/broadcast. In any event, my most ridiculous reply was, "Really?!?". This followed by my immediate follow up, with an excitement-brimming-thumbs-up, smile on my face, "Ride on!"
Now, what must this lady think? Who else but me could be traveling in this well worn and unique hat, same grungy outfit that I interviewed in, and hauling Daisy around the country on a bicycle? I am laughing outloud at myself right now.
As of this time, this point in my writing, the post hasb been published and no pictures uploaded. Blogger is becoming increasingly rebellious.
Please donate online at https://fundrazr.com/veteransandtheirpets and help Daisy and me make a difference. Thank you in advance. Until next post...
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