Road Walking Through a Rough Neighborhood

This morning I woke up in the room around 6am. It felt so good to sleep in! And the room was so incredibly warm and toasty. We got up slowly after that and began packing up. I drank a big Reece’s latte drink from dollar general. Then did a few more things at the room before we headed out.

By 7am we were walking out into the cold once more. But this morning wasn’t too bad. I still wore all of my layers, but it was alot more comfortable than it has been. Today we have a whole lot more road walking to do! We’re 28 miles from the town of Perry and about 8-9 miles from the next gas station. So at least we have something to sort of break up the day.

Road walking as the sun came up.

This morning I needed music right away for some reason. That was just the mood I was in. Some days I hardly listen to any. Other days I need a podcast or something different to distract me. Sometimes I listen to music for an hour, and sometimes I listen to it for 10 hours straight. While I listened I finished up my blog and video for the day. Then just before 10am we passed that first gas station.

Risking it all for a gas station egg salad sandwich.

I used the opportunity to throw out some trash. Inside I grabbed a quick deli style premade sandwich to get some easy calories then. And while we were there we took off all of our layers which felt good. It’s a great sign that we can take our layers off before 10am. It’s been a cold last few days but it finally seems to be on its way out.

The road brought us right past a prison.

Leaving there we still had about 20 miles to go to get to Perry. Which seems like a pretty big town with alot going on. Having a goal I no mind for the day always keeps me on track and feeling motivated. But the rest of the day was just a whole lot of road walking! There really wasn’t much to see if I’m being honest.

Punisher up ahead along the road.

Over the course of the day we walked by one prison and then one jail later on. And other than yards with some dogs or a couple of sheep, the correctional facilities were the most entertaining part of the day. And we didn’t even see anything when we passed by. It was just one of those days! The hiking can’t always be breathtakingly beautiful or entertaining. I’m just glad we’re hiking together, which makes it all so much more fun.

Once I switch back to the topo terraventure shoes, I’m sure going to miss my matching shoes and shorts.

By around 3pm we made it to the outskirts of town. Then began heading into Perry. The route we were taking though wasn’t going to take us through downtown. So it turned out we weren’t going to pass by much. Though there were a couple potential places to stop off for food. What we didn’t know at the time though was that just about everything would be closed on a Sunday! There was one place that looked good and did hibachi meals with rice and protein. They were closed. Then even the gas station across the street wasn’t serving hot food. Instead, we filled up on water and I got a small bag of cheez its. I have plenty of meals to eat for dinner tonight. I’d just been thinking about town food for most of the afternoon.

A big oak tree just off the road.

This part of Perry was also quite run down. We passed a couple houses with the doors wide open and large dogs barking in the yard. It wasn’t a particularly nice neighborhood. I started to wonder how far we would have to walk to get past this area. Because camping in a place with a lot of transient people and drug use definitely isn’t smart. From the road we watched a young guy on an ATV either buy or sell drugs to someone in the local park.

Walking the road into Perry.

It was a trip! We passed one last gas station in town before making our way further out. I got one of those frozen ice cream cones. While I stood outside someone offered me a ride into town. But they here was no way we’d be able to get into Perry and then back out tomorrow morning. And taking a ride with a lot of the people around here was probably a regrettable decision.

A little pre dinner snack.

After that we just kept walking. We had a couple miles to go to get to a church. It seemed far enough out of town that no one would bother us. When we got there it was quiet and much was great. Right as we walked up Fresh Ground called so we talked to him on speakerphone. He’s been coordinating with Long Shot, who is planning to come back out and join us soon. Maybe as soon as this upcoming week! We’ll just have to see.

The sun peaking through the trees just before it set.

Once we got off the phone we got our tents set up. Then I boiled water to make a Bowl&Kettle meal. This one was street corn grits, and it was really flavorful and good! I’d never tried grits before this either. After I ate I did some video work and writing. Then stretched and called it a night. It’s funny, lately my feet feel more sore at the end of the day when we stop walking than they do when we are walking. I know as soon as we get to some dirt or actual trail all of this will subside. The road is rough on you. It’s some of the same sensation I felt when I was walking through Florida before. Which started around Pensacola, after doing 1,000+ miles of road across Canada and then Alabama. But it actually resolved itself somewhere around Orlando. So who knows. It’s only temporary.

Our tents set up in the grass by the church.

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Comments 7

  • bob : Jan 27th

    gas station egg salad sandwich!? one of the bravest things I’ve seen you do

    Reply
    • Lish : Jan 27th

      Made me laugh in agreement!

      Reply
    • DEB : Jan 27th

      LOL. Thought the same!

      Reply
  • Dan D : Jan 27th

    When you switched your shoes did you also switch your insoles with the ones that FG got for you? It seems like the foot pain is back since your new shoes.

    Reply
  • Wendy : Jan 27th

    I’m glad you 2 made it past the drug neighborhood safely! And glad the weather’s warming up for you!

    Reply
  • DEB : Jan 27th

    LOL. Thought the same!

    Reply
  • Ronald Mittelman : Jan 28th

    Ha ha. Been to Perry, FL!! You are brave!! I believe Perry’s claim to fame other than jails and paper plants is it’s the home of Dione Sanders I’m told!! Enjoying your journey very much. You are a beast!! lol!!

    PS: I did 2.1 mi today. Sorta wimpy!!

    Reply

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