Got back this morning and had a great time. Only one real issue with the bike - a really noisy squeak developed on the rear derailleur. I thought it was the chain needing to be lubed but after cleaning and re-lubing last night at my friend's place it was back again today. I'll take it (Deore LX) apart and grease bearings on the pulleys and check the springs etc. It was really only noisy on the down shifts to a higher gear. Very irritating to deal with for over 170 miles.

The temps got hot - 90 degrees F yesterday - and that was my long 110 mile ride. Total time before I got to the brewery where my friend picked me up was 9 hrs 45 minutes.

Had some really desolate country so I suppose I could have picked a better route. On the flip side, there was often very, very little auto traffic. In one 15 mile section on Tuesday I was passed by three cars going my direction. The endless straightness of the roads, though, made for quite a bit of monotony at times.

Great experience and I thank all here who provide their insight as it helped me immensely. Some photos. I'll be updating my Crazyguyonabike journal with more photos the next few days.

First day:





I was going to get a hot dog or burger for lunch but decided on the huckleberry ice cream cone instead - delicious





Second day: