Washington and the pull of home

Not my bike but a kindred spirit. Kevin (At least I think that's what his name is. Man, I am bad with names) from Ontario, traveling on his Valkyrie for the summer.

So I rode today from Castle Rock, Washington to Eatonville, Washington. It was only 80 miles and I was hoping to see Mt. Rainier but the clouds would not allow it. It was overcast and drizzly all the way through.

I've been feeling the pull from home pretty strongly. I've crossed a line. When I had left on this trip, I was a traveler. Now, I'm a tourist. I no longer seem to feel the need to run up every hill I see just for the view. Now I'm content to pull to where I have a good view, snap a picture, and move on. There's a difference between seeing a place: the way most people travel on their vacations, and experiencing a place: the way I've been trying to travel.

Rushing saps the purpose out of visiting a new place. If you're rushing, you're missing things. If you're rushing: it means your mind is elsewhere, and if your mind is elsewhere then you can hardly live in and experience the moment.

I've learned something about not rushing. It doesn't matter where you are, if you're not rushing through, you'll never run out of beautiful amazing things to see. I could spend the rest of my life on my bike circling the country, and never get bored of any one place I've passed through.

Meanwhile, on the home front, life is moving quickly. And when life moves quickly, shouldn't those on the move head home?

For the first time in a while, 80 miles seemed like a little too much time to spend in my own head, still heading away from home. Of course, I haven't seen a patch of blue sky in 2 days. Could my mood be accounted for by the grey skies; Seasonal Affective Disorder - S.A.D.? It's only been 2 days though. Sudden Onset Seasonal Affective Disorder? S.O. S.A.D.? Do I need a special lamp that plugs into my bike and mounts on my handle bars to prevent me from getting S.O. S.A.D.?

I'm getting to Vancouver. I'm almost there. That is the farthest point that I am getting to, and then I am turning home. There is not nearly as much on this part of the trip that I want to check out as there was on the first part. Vancouver, Mt. Rushmore, The Badlands, some friends in Missouri and Indiana, and Nova Scotia. 7 places. I think I'm going to up my daily cap from 150 miles to 250 miles. It's time to get home. Just need to stop at a few places along the way.