Tuesday August 15, 2006          BAR HARBOR, MAINE

TOTAL MILES TRAVELED = 3435

Sunday August 13, 2006 at 12:12pm we arrived in Bar Harbor. With tears of joy, excitement, amazement, and even a little sadness we pedaled side by side as we turned that final corner and road our bikes down the boat launch and dipped our front tires in the Atlantic Ocean!  We had finally completed our journey from Sea to Shinning Sea!

The final 50 miles of the trip were very emotional for both of us.  Devra began having problems with her Sciatica on the 10th.  After riding through the pain for 3 days (bless her heart) her body  said, "ENOUGH!"  But, as with all of the obsticals we have encountered along this journey we rallied and made a PLAN.  We met the Rockport Harbor Master, Kenny who became one of the first  Angels/Knight in Shinning Armour that we would met that day.  Kenny shlepped Devra into Camden where he dropped her off at the local Healing Arts Center.  Although no massage therapists were available she did meet another angel, Maya, who is a stress relief therapist who donated her time to sit with Devra and discuss alternative ways to help heal her Sciatica.  Our 3rd angel of the day came in the form of Tony who drove Devra the remaining miles to Bar Harbor.

In the mean time, with Devra safely underway to some much needed rest, Sherry pedaled on. She spent her last night sleeping under the stars at a campground in Searsport, ME.  Where she met her own angels of the day.  When she left Devra in Camden she didn't plan very well and arrived at the campground very hungry and with no where to get dinner.  Justin, MaryKate and their friends were camped next right next door. They opened their hearts and ice-chests to her. That night she dined on BBQ'd Tri Tip and even enjoyed a nice cold NewCastle. Her first since leaving Fargo, ND!

Sunday morning Sherry was up and on the road by 7:00am having slept little durring the night. She was just too darn excitted to get to Bar Harbor.  The 52 miles to Bar Harbor were so wonderful.  She was greeted by decent roads with wide shoulders and NO dump trucks.  (They must have all been at church)

Sherry met up with Devra (on her bike) just short of the Bar Harbor town center. We hugged and cried before we made our final decent to the Atlantic Ocean.  The streets were crowded with tourists who must have thought we were CRAZY because we were crying, laughing, whoopin & hollerin as we rode side by side through the center of town and on down  to the boat launch, dipping our front tires and our toes into the Atlantic Ocean.  From "Sea to Shinning Sea", a journey started, completed, but not really ending..........

Cell phones were promptly powered on and the minutes eaten up as more laughing, crying, whoopin, & hollerin were shared with Family & Friends!

We celebrated that night with a feast of whole Maine Lobsta and a nice bottle of champagne!  Toasts were made to each other and to all of the people who have supported us throughout this incredible journey.

The past two days have been spent exploring the island.  On Monday we spent the day hiking the peaks and beaches of Acadia National Park.  Mother Nature blessed us with a beautiful day filled with blue sky's and a cool breeze as we enjoyed the amazing expansive views of the Atlantic Ocean from the top of Gorham Peak.

Today we took the bikes out for one last ride around the block before taking them to Joe at Bar Harbor Bicycle Shop who is taking care of the arduous task of boxing EVERYTHING up and shipping it the 3435 miles back to the west coast. 

Tomorrow we pick up the rental car and will drive to Boston, MA where we will stay with Devra's niece, Ariana for the night.  We fly home on Thursday.  WOW!

The final pictures should be out to you soon.  Thank you to Matt at The Opera House Internet Cafe for his generous donation of the computer time needed for us to do the update and download the photo's.

Once we get home, get settle and have time to really digest this amazing accomplishment we will share some personal highlights and challenges that we encountered during the trip.

Until then, thank you everyone for all of your prayers, well wishes and support! We could not have done this without you.

Love

Devra & Sherry

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Friday August 11, 2006             Damariscotta, ME

Total miles = 3324

Hello from Maine!   Can you believe we are finally in the last state.  For those of you not familiar with Maine we have decided that it is the birth place of the Dump Truck!  They come in various sizes and colors. Red, Blue, Orange, Green, and even some Purple.  It seems that the Dump Truck is THE vehicle of choice.  I don't know what they are halling in all those trucks because they do not appear to be doing any road work.  Nor have they done any road work since maybe 1860.

We are going to need have all of our dental work redone when we get home thanks to the roads in Maine.

But aside from the lack of smooth roads, or roads that look like roads and not rabbit trails, Maine is very beautiful.  We do not have as many pictures as I would like, due to the roads I am busy hanging on for dear life and have not been taking many pictures. I'll make up for it once we get to Bar Harbor.

Last night we stayed at the most amazing place. Nezinscot Farm!  A working family farm that specializes in organic farming.  Lucky for us they also offer a warm bed and wonderful hospitality to cyclists.  From the moment we walked into the cafe/cheese room we knew we had hit pay dirt.  Wonderful bakery items and fresh vegtables greeted us as well as Everet & Roy.  They are the two youngest children in the Nezinscot Family and they soon became our best friends.  Although Roy informed us that he had "wauk" to do.  He had to go milk the cows.

It was very hard to say goodbye to Roy & Everet this morning but with Bar Harbor "just around the corner" we reluctantly waved to our new firends. And a very special Thank you to Gloria & Greg Nexinscot for all of their wonderful hospitality.  As we were checking out they very generously refused to accept any money from us!  We will be making a special donation to Camp Heartland in thanks for thier generosity.

Tonight we are staying in Damariscotta which is approximately 120 miles from Bar Harbor. (just around the corner)  Damariscotta is a harbor town and is just adorable.  It took us a little longer to get here today as we inadvertantly took the scenic route.  In bicycle touring thats known as WE GOT LOST.  But all is good, we found our way and even found the library!

Lots and lots of pictures to send but still no place to send them from.  We will keep trying.......

We think we will be in Bar Harbor by Sunday.  That is if we don't take too many unplanned side trips.  i.e. get lost

Devra & Sherry

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Wednesday August 9, 2006       Conway, NH

Total miles = 3230

After a wonderful nights sleep followed by homemade pancakes with fresh blueberry's and Vermont Mapel syrup we headed out to tackle the last two REALLY big climbs of the trip.  The first climb took us over Black Mountain where we followed the Ammonossue River the whole way to the top.  It was actually a lovely climb as the grade never seemed to exceed 8%.  At the top we were rewarded for our efforts by the most spectacular views, a beautiful lake, and crossing the path of the Appilacian Trail.  The decent into Lincoln, NH was very fun.  Straight down and the road was in good condition.

We enjoyed a lovely lunch of Tuna Fish sandwiches at the local Subway before heading up the Kancamagus Highway.  It seems like everyday we contiunue to be awed by the beautiful scenery but today was an exceptional day.  Mount Kancamagus tops out at 3,700 ft which for this part of the country is a BIG deal.  The climb starts as soon as you leave Lincoln and winds its way up for the next 12 miles.  The climb was very similar to many of the climbs around Tahoe, so we both felt right at home and really enjoyed the trip.  At the top we stopped for the "proof we were here" picture and met four nice people from Ontario.  They were very impressed by our journey and interested in the children of Camp Heartland.  Both couples gave us a donation for Camp Heartland!

From the top it was 22 miles of down, down, down, to Conway, NH.  The road down wasn't in as good of condition as the front side so it was a little slower, but anytime we can go down hill for 22 miles we don't really care what the road is like.  IT'S DOWN HILL!

Since we road a total of 75 miles we rewarded ourselves with a wonderful mexican dinner!  We are staying the night at the Conway Youth Hostel where we will hopefully get our very STINKY laundry done and get a good nights sleep.

We are about 230 miles from Bar Harbor.  We have been getting messages from riders we have met over the last 2 1/2 months who are starting to get close to the end or have actually finished.  Each of them have been  saying the same thing "It is so bittersweet to have to come to the end, but also good to know that they will be home soon"  I think we are having alot of those same emotions.

Devra & Sherry

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Tuesday August 8, 2006         Piermont, NH

Total miles = 3154

We left Middlebury, VT under cloudy, cool skies.  It was the perfect riding weather and what a beautiful day it was.  We thought we were going to be in the White Mountains but actually they were the Green Mountains.  Tomorrow we will start into the White Mountains. 

The climbing although short was very challenging and we have now developed more character than any one person should have.  But we hear that the White Mountains are even steeper than the Green so character here we come!  We be WOMAN, Hear us roar.  Today and yesterday we climbed several 10-18% grades with a few moments of 23% just for giggles.  Sherry was distracted by a beautiful waterfall today and almost fell down when whe actually pulled the front wheel off of the pavement.  Just to give you an idea of just how steep the "hill" was.  Devra was also distracted today and left her wallet in Bethel.  Unfortunately it wasn't until 20miles and several steep climbs later that she realized her error.  But not to dispair.  Federal Express to the resque!  It took a few phone calls but Federal Express will deliver her wallet to the post office in Greene, ME where we will pick it up in a few days.

We Crossed over the Connecticut River just outside of East Thetford, VT and entered New Hampshire today.  We were promtly greated by a Dirt Road which is AKA Hwy 10.  However the dirt highways of New Hampshire are actually in better condition than the paved roads of Vermont.  Luckily it was only dirt for approx. 1mile and then opened up to beautiful farm fields dotted with old homes built in the 1700's.  Most have been refurbished and display thier original brick work.

Lots and lots of flowers in full bloom.  And lets not forget the dairy cows and their very distinctive aroma. 

Another wonderful surprise was the two Covered Bridges that we got to ride through.  We got some really good pictures that hopefully we will be able to send soon.

Tonight we are resting our heads at the Piermont Inn.  A wonderful little inn that was built in 1790 and has been well cared for.  We want to say a special thank you to the owners, Charlie & Karen Brown for making us feel welcome and even giving us a discount on the room.  

Tomorrow we rise bright and early and will attack the two final BIG "Hills" of the trip.  So goodbye, goodnight, sweet dreams and all that other stuff...........

Sherry & Devra

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Monday August 7, 2006           Middlebury, VT

Total miles = 3065

I can't believe it has been only 4 days since we last updated.  It seems like we have seen and experienced so many things this past 4 days.  Slowing down the pace and taking more time to enjoy the people and places has been a real treat.

After updating you in Boonville we returned to the verranda of the hotel to have a lovely diner of Steamed Clams and Chicken Wings.  I know it sounds like a horrible combination but we highly recommend you try it!   While sitting enjoying our once again VERY full stomachs and a glass of wine we met another cross country cyclist.  "Biker Bob"  rolled up looking very tired after just fininshing a 119 mile day!  Bob is from Minneaplolis and started his journey on June 18th from Anacotes, Wa.  (He rides much faster than us)   Bob joined us on the verranda where we shared tales of our journey and Bob realized "Hey you guys must be the Nurses"  He had been "hearing about 2 nurses in their mid 30's"   We bought him a glass of wine!   It must be the bike helmets that make us look so young.

Friday morning we were out on the road by 8:00 with the plan to ride only as far as Old Forge, NY but our legs felt good and the scenery was so darn beautiful that we rode to Raquette Lake, NY.  What a great little place!  We got a room at the Raquette Lake Hotel & Tap Room.  The hotel was actually an old boarding room type.  We had our own room but shared a bathroom which only had a Claw Foot Tub (no shower).  It was pretty rustic, but the water was clean and so were the linens.  While enjoying a nice cold MGD (we are back in BUD, BUD LIGHT, COORS, COORS LIGHT country) up rolls "Biker Bob"  Once again we enjoyed sharing the days journey over a plate of Chicken wings and afterward even went Square Dancing!

Back at the Hotel we met "Robin".  Robin has a home on Raquette Lake where he & his wife spend their summers.  (They are Floridians in the winter months)  Robin took us for a moonlight ride on the lake.  This was a real treat and the stars were all out to say hello.

Saturday we rode to Severance, NY.  Another beautiful day which kept us distracted from our legs and we rode 70 miles without even thinking about it.  We had a lovely diner and enjoyed a nice quiet night in the Adirondacks.  This would be our last night in the Adirondacks.

Sunday we crossed into Vermont via a Ferry Boat ride from Ticonderoga, NY to Shoreham, VT.  Vermont welcomed us with beautiful rolling hills dotted with farmhouses and YES more barns!  We stayed in the very lovely Middlebury Hotel where we sat on the verranda to have a dinner of cheese, salami, fruit and crackers with desert of New York Chocolate Chunk ice cream.  What brand of ice cream?  Why Ben & Jerry's of course!  Is there any other kind of ice cream in Vermont.

Now you know what we know and where we have been.  Goodbye for now, we are off to attack the White Mountains!

Love

Sherry & Devra

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Wednesday August 2, 2006       Fulton, NY to Redfield, NY

Thursday August 3, 2006           Redfield, NY to Boonville, NY    

Miles Traveled = 2903

On Wednesday morning we were up and out of the Motel aka "The pay by the hour place" bright and early.  No alarm was needed as the person in the room next to us had an early visitor who felt compelled to POUND on the door.  At first we thought it was just a bad dream but since we were both hearing it we knew it was not a dream but a real life nightmare.  The good thing is that it got us moving and we were happily pedaling along by 6:00am.

The ride from Fulton to Redfield was extremely beautiful.  We watched as the sun rose over the Adirondacks while the birds chirped their morning songs.  This time of day is so serene and was much appreciated.  As promised by the weather man it was another very warm day with high humidity but with only 45 miles to ride we took it slow and enjoyed the beautiful country side.

The town of Redfield sits on the banks of the Salmon Reservoir.  It is a main attraction for winter outdoor enthusiasts as they have an average winter snow fall of 382 inches!  We did not have snow, although a cold front moved through during the night and brought with it a very power thunder and lightening storm.  We were happily inside a cabin at the Crossroads Inn & Cabins.  This is a wonderful spot to stay.  After the night we spent in Fulton the Crossroads more than made up for it. Mitch & Tanya Yerdon are the owners and they made us feel right at home!

Today we are in Boonville, NY.  After enjoying coffee and oatmeal in our cabin we started pedaling at 7:00am under a drizzling sky.  The cool air was a welcome change from the heat of the previous days.  Todays ride was a mere 33 miles but with more hills.  So far though the hills are very manageable.  We met a cyclist heading west.  Chris is from Seattle.  He just finished a through hike on the Appilacian Trail and is now riding from Bar Harbour to Seattle. WOW!  He told us that the hills through the Adirondacks and White Mtns are not as difficult as the Cascades and Rockies.  This was much welcomed news although comming from someone who just finished the Appilacian Trail and who is now cycling back home I'm not sure our perspectives are the same.  But we will soon find out!

Boonville is the cutest little town.  We have a room on the second floor of the Boonville Hotel which is VERY VERY old but has been well cared for.  It is really nice to have these short mile days.  We are enjoying having time to relax and talk with and meet more of the locals.  Everywhere we go we continue to meet the nicest people.

This update is once again being done from the location of yet another quaint library, The Erwyn Library in Boonville built 1896.

We are going to spend the rest of our day sitting on the verranda of the hotel drinking ice tea!

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Tuesday August 1, 2006

Miles Traveled = 2824

Thank you Esther for keeping everyone updated as to our progress and adventures!

After we updated Esther via phone from the deck of "The Basket Factory Restaurant" we headed back out.  We decided to try Hwy 31 rather than stay on the Canal Trail as we were getting tired of pedaling on the crushed gravel.  BAD IDEA #212.  The stretch of Hwy 31 that we chose to ride on just happend to be in the process of getting re-paved.  The west bound lane was beautiful.  However we were not going west.  The East bound lane had been scrapped and grooved.  After 3 miles we decided the crushed gravel on the trail was a better deal.

In the little town of Holley, NY we stopped for ice cream (this along with McDonalds & Pizza is the reason neither of us have lost any weight and Devra's cholesteral probably won't be any lower)  But we usually meet nice people at the ice cream parlors and this one  was no exception.  We met Fred!  Fred is also cycle touring.  He started in Billings, MT and is going to Boston, MA.  We had a lovely chat with Fred and he even decided to stop in Brockport for the night so we could continue our chatting.  We had a lovely dinner together and shared our pedaling adventures and humorous tales.

Monday July 31, 2006               Brockport to Sodus Point          Miles = 72

Since the weather is getting hotter and the humidity higher we are trying to get started earlier in the day.  Today we started at 6:45.   (I thought we were on vacation)  Riding that early in the morning is actually very beautiful.  Since we are headed east we get to see the sun rise!  New York is so amazing.  We are awed at the beautiful country side.  Today we learned that the area we are riding in produces 40% of all the apples grown in New York.  In addition to the apples they have peaches, rasberry's, and blackberry's which are all in season!  Once we left the Erie Canal we have been on country roads which take us by lots and lots of fruit stands. And yes, we seem to be stopping at all of them!  YUM YUM!

Growing up on the West Coast you forget how young everything is.  As we pass through the many small towns we are always in awe to see the OLD OLD buildings!  In Pultneyville we stopped at the park to read about one of the battles of the war of 1812 and sat on the bank of Lake Ontario to look out at the bay where one of the great battles was fought.

Just outside of Sodus Point was yet another fruit stand.  The signs leading up to it advertised Fresh Peach Sundae!  (of course we stopped) While eating our sundae guess who pedaled up.  FRED!  It was nice to see him again.  Fred had started pedaling at 5:30 but took a wrong turn earlier in the day so he ended up behind us.  Taking a wrong turn on a bike is much more dissapointing than when in a car.  10 miles the wrong way on the bike is a 2 hour mistake!  But we enjoyed laughing with Fred about his error.  (Not laughing at him, because we too have made one or two wrong turns )  After ice cream,  once again we said goodbye to Fred.  Since he is headed to Boston this REALLY should be the last time we will see him.

Sodus Point sits on the edge of Lake Ontario.  Our camp ground provided us with a lovely shaded area for our tents and a panoramic view of Lake Ontario.  A lovely way to end the day.

Tuesday August 1, 2006       Sodus Point, NY - Fulton, NY        Miles = 44

The past 10 days we have been trying to pack in as many miles as possible.  The terrain has been fairly flat and the roads in good repair.  Why?  We know that the Adirondack Mtns, and the HILLS in Vermont and New Hampshire are "just around the corner".  By increasing our miles over the "flat land"  now we can "relax".  We have 23 days left in our adventure and each day we will cover approx. 40 miles +/-, which with the hills will still be challenging.

The weather man warned that today was going to be the hottest and most humid day yet this summer.  Heat index of over 100 degrees!  We started pedaling at 7:00 after stopping at "Carey's Cove" cafe for coffee!  A BIG thank you to Diane at Carey's for filling our water bottles and platapus with ICE!

The riding today was beautiful and we are starting to experience the early Adirondacks.  But nothing too terrible so far.  With only 4 miles left to go for the day,  we were both really starting to wilt from the heat and humidity!  We stopped at a "very little" gas station in hopes of replenishing our ice.  They did not have ice BUT they did have a walk in beer cooler!  Standing in the beer cooler was even better than ice cream!

After cooling off in the cooler we went back out and braved the heat for the remaining 4 miles to Fulton.  Remember in Dunkirk when Charlie advised us to not stay at "Dons Motel" because they rent rooms by the week, day, & hour.  Well we seem to be staying at the "Dons Motel" of Fulton.  But Hey, its a room with air conditioning and a cold shower.

With our cold shower taken and laundry done we are now writting to you from the Fulton City Library. Penny Keifien, Youth Services Librarian is an absolute angel.  Without her help we would not have been able to send you our most recent photo album.  Thank you so much Penny!  The entire staff here is to be commended for their kindness.  Devra has been able to get all of our pictures downloaded and we got everyone updated as to our progress.

Tomorrow promises to be another HOT day so we will be out on the road early. This time we are shooting for 6:00!  (Man I thought this was vacation)

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Sunday July 30th, 2006

" We are not responsible for misplaced property, political unrest, coaching decisions, bad punctuation, misspelled words or the ecomony. Our job is to sit down, shut up and pedal."

And with that disclaimer in place I have news from Sherry and Devra.  And lots of it.  They called me this morning having stopped for lunch in Middleport, NY along the Erie canal.  Today they have been riding along a crushed gravel path called the canalway trail, and it is quite beautiful and free of cars.  They were having delicious spinich salads at The Basket Factory Restaurant.  They wanted to let everyone know that while they are finding computers, none of the ones they have found seem to be able to upload the information to the website in a speedy manner.  So here is what they have been doing since leaving Chicago. 

But FIRST some very deep appreciation and thanks to the following folks.  As a repeat (and due to the loss of entries in this diary) a special thanks to Gina and Brian Kowalski , who are friends of Nancy's in Palentine, for making the new 2 Hearts 4 Wheels signs for the bikes.  The signs are very visable and are attracting a lot of attention.  (Be sure to look for photos of the new signs, which should be in the next batch of photos the girls send).  Thanks to Dan for coming to Chicago and being a superb tour guide around the town.  Thanks to Norb and Maurita for hosting Devra in Chicago.  And Sherry and Randy say Thanks to Chris, Laura and Rollie. 

Ok, on to the travelouge.  Since getting off the train in Cleveland on the 24th their ride has been wonderful.  They had a great time in Chicago, depite being beaten up by the roads and weather in Illinois.  The Ohio roads were fantastic with lots of wide shoulders and quaint towns to ride through.  On July 24th they rode from Cleveland, Ohio to Geneva on the Lake, Ohio which was a cute little beach community that reminded them of Santa Cruz in the 1960's.  They stayed at Ralph's Hideaway and pitched their tents right next to Lake Erie. 

On the morning of July 25th they headed towards Erie, Pennsylvania and stopped at Presque Isle, again right on the lake.  Here they stayed at Sarah's, and met Annie and Brian, the proprieters, who after hearing what the girls were riding for insisted on giving them the nights fee back.  The girls graciously took this gift and turned it over to Camp Heartland as another donation.  This campground was on the beach, they got to swim in the lake and they were really excited about camping close to the water.  Well, this may not have been one of their best decisions, because that night the MOST violent storm came through that included huge waves and hard rain.  They thought for awhile they were camping on the ocean, not a lake, it was so bad.  And what made matters worse, was that the next morning, not only did they have to pack everything up, they had to do it on a wet beach.  But they stilled loved Sarah's and have fond memories of all the campfires on the beach and even the lingering aroma of smoked trout still embedded in the tents as a reminder. 

On July 27th they rode from Presque Isle to Dunkirk, New York, which is an adorable little town.  About 20 miles outside of Dunkirk, they were filling up water bottles and happened to meet up with Charlie (73 years yound) and Bob (65 years young), who are members of the Niagra Frontier Bicycle Club.  These kind gentlemen accompanied Devra and Sherry the 20 miles into Dunkirk, and gave them tips about which places to stay and which to avoid.  They ended up staying at the Dunkirk Motel, which is across the street from Don's, (where they chose not to stay on Charlie and Bob's suggestion) as rooms at Don's may be rented by the week, the day or the hour!  They had no sooner pulled up under the awning at the Dunkirk Motel, said their goodbyes to Charlie and Bob when the heavens once again opened up.  Needless to say they were quite happy they had chosen to stay at a motel instead of a campground this evening.  They orderd Domino's Pizza for delivery (which along with McDonald's is becoming a diet staple on this trip--and Devra thought her cholesterol level would be down after this trip!)

On the 28th they took off from Dunkirk in a warm rain and headed to Buffalo, NY.  The rain was actually a welcome relief from the heat, and did not bother them at all.  It rained all day as they rode through the most amazing, beautiful country roads, lined with canopies of trees and esquisite homes.  Their ride was quiet with no cars and nicely paved roads.  On the outskirts of Buffalo the beautiful homes turned into mansions with ornate gates and fancy cars parked in every driveway.  It was awesome.  They did however, have the proverbial stripe up their backs from the water off the back wheels pelting them as they pedaled along in the rain.  It was around this time that Sherry needed new cleats for her shoes and a new chain, so they stopped at Handlebars, a wonderful bikeshop who took care of their biking needs.  That evening they stayed at the hostel which is located in the theatre district of downtown Buffalo.  For dinner they dined at the Anchor Bar, renowned for inventing Buffalo wings.  And, Yes, that is what they ate for dinner that night.  After dinner they walked through the theatre district and caught a street play in a back ally, complete with lights strung up and playing to a full house.  The street theatre production was a parody on the Klu Klux Klan in which Jesus comes forth and shows up as a black woman with a limp.  The girls thought the performers did a great job poking fun at the KKK.  Upon arrival back at the hostel, they found a note pinned to the door which was from Charlie, who had called to offer his services as a tourguide the following day along their route up to Niagra Falls.  Charlie was one of the nice gentlemen they met outside Dunkirk.  With his wife off visiting their daughter in San Francisco, he was free to be tourguide and riding companion.  The girls called him and said, "Yes!  We'd love to have you ride with us." 

The next day, July 29th, they met up with Charlie and rode from the US side of the Peace Bridge across and along the Candian side following a beautiful bikepath along the water.  Charlie pointed out all the battlefields and landmarks as they made their way up towards the falls, first spotting the mist in the distance and then hearing the falls as they neared the edge.  Charlie stayed with them as far as the Queenston Bridge where he turned around and rode back home to Buffalo.  Thank you Charlie for such a splendid tour of your area.  After waving goodbye to Charlie, the girls crossed the bridge and rode into Lewiston, NY, planning to stay at the KOA Kampground 3 miles outside of town.  As they pedaled toward the KOA they saw the gathering dark clouds and felt the cold air that can only mean...YES...A BIG STORM IS COMING!  Remember Sherry's three speeds?  Well this is where they had to shift into "Pedal Faster" mode in order to outride the storm.  And outride it they did!  They had no sooner finished putting up the rainflys, when POP, that cloud burst and the waters fell from the heavens.  But they were safe and cozy in their portable homes.  Once again they called on Domino's pizza for a tent delivery!  This morning they were up early and heading off to Rochester, NY. 

So that is all the news for today.  They hope to find some faster computers down along the way and will also send more photos within a few days.  So stay tuned.

E Star

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Saturday July 29, 2006

Miles Traveled = 2606

Hello from Buffalo, NY.  Since getting off the train in Cleveland we have had been having a grand ol' time!  And we would LOVE to share it all with you  BUT.....this computer is awful so I will have to give you the complete rundown later.  Today we are on our way across the Peace Bridge to Canada and Niagra Falls.

Thursday July 27th, 2006

Well, E Star here.  The girls are still pedaling eastward, they are just having a bit of a challenge finding computers.  I did receive a voicemail from them last evening letting us all know that they took the train to Cleveland and arrived safely.  They have really enjoyed their ride through Ohio, and thought that Ohio was one of the quaintest, most lovely spots in the USA.  That sort of surprised me as I lived in Ohio for 14 years and never thought much of it.  Obviously they went through Ohio on one of the 6 days in the year it was NOT raining.  Seriously, they said that the homes were lovely and everyone was so friendly and waved.  They did not describe the Ohio wave, so they will need to update us on that item when they next check in!  When they called, they were enjoying the Great Lake Erie and were camping near Presque Isle, which is on the lake and in Pennsylvania.  They had arrived and got to swim in the lake which was quite enjoyable.  The plan currently includes traveling on to arrive in Buffalo, NY, at Niagra Falls, by Saturday.  So stay tuned for more.  I am sure that as soon as they are able they will send us some news and more photos.  Devra did mention that Sherry has three speeds at which she rides:  1) Go Fast  2) Go Fast and Far  3) Go Faster and Farther.

You GO girls!  E Star

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Sunday July 23, 2006

For those of you who visit our site regularly you have probably noticed that all of our diary entries from July 15 thru the 21 are GONE!  Beleive me when I say we are just as upset as you are.  Poor Devra spent the better part of thursday afternoon on the phone with the company who hosts the site.  They have no explanation as to why they lost the entries.  Before Devra started talking to them they had lost everything going back to May 29th.  Then they found the entries up to July 14th.  Hopefully they will be able to recover the remaining entries. 

In the mean time.....we both enjoyed a much needed rest in Chicago.  Devra spent her days with Dan and friends up in the Northern Suburbs while Sherry spent her days in downtown Chicago with her husband and friends of theirs.  Sherry just returned from taking Randy to the airport and we will spend the night with Chris, Laura, & Rollie.  Tomorrow the journey restarts...........

Due to time constraints we will be taking the train from Chicago to Cleveland, OH where we will then head North along the shoreline until we reach Buffalo, NY where we then turn east across the top of NY..........

Wish us luck with the Web Site managers.  If they are unable to recover the lost entries we will try to re-input them. 

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Friday, July 14, 2006

Miles traveled = 2057

Wow, it seems like ages since we last updated.  We had such a great time in Minneapolis.We stayed with family and were treated to great food, good wine, lots of laughter, and got caught up on times past. 

We had planned to be pedaling by 8:00am yesterday but alas we had a better offer. We spent the morning with more family in Northfield, MN where we shared more laughter and caught up on more times past.  But we did finally make it back on the road.  Our ride began at Lake City, MN along the Great River Road Hwy.  This Hwy will be our friend for the next few days.  For those of you who are wondering, what Great River? That would be the Mississippi.  And so far it has lived up to its name.

More headwinds greated us as we began pedaling.  We thought we told everyone the night before that we would be traveling in a southeasterly direction.  Someone is not paying attention.  Please send us winds from the Northwest!

The weather is definately changing as we head further south and east.  Humidity seems to be the word of the day anytime you listen to a weather report.  And oh don't let us forget the temperatures in the mid 90's to low 100's.  Luckily now that we are in more populated areas the towns are closer together and we can refill our water bottles often.  We're a little worried that we might be depleting MN of their gatorade supply.  Yesterday we drank about 44oz every 12 miles!  You know that gatorade commercial where they sweat gatorade.........well thats us!

Since we didn't start riding until 2:00pm we got into camp a little later than we like.  But all was good once Sherry remembered how to set up her tent.  It has been so long since we have camped we were a little rusty.  It was still very warm when we went to bed and so decided to leave the rain fly's off of the tents in order to enjoy the breeze.  It seemed like a good idea at the time............at 2:30am when the thunder and lightening started it was no longer a great idea. We scrambled to get the fly's on before the showers started.  (you know, it's pretty dark in the woods at 2:30am) But we prevailed and got the fly's on and were back in our dry cozy tents just as the skies opened.  BOOM!  It continued to pour for two hours!  This morning we were very glad that it had stopped but we don't think our tents are going to be really dry again until Maine!  Nothing dries in this humidity. 

We are currently at the library in Lansing Iowa.  It has been a beautiful ride today.  Less wind, thank you!  The Mississippi is on our left side which is a nice landmark.  If we get lost on this stretch of the trip we REALLY need to examine our map reading abilities. And again, it is very hot and humid, but the riding is mostly gentle rolling hills and it is so darn beautiful that you really don't even notice the humidity.  Unless of course your eyes are stinging from the sweat that keeps running into them.  But I digress.

We have another 14 miles to travel today.  Harpers Ferry, IA  will be our destination, making todays total miles 70!  We plan on camping again and hopefully the tents will dry out a little before it rains again tonight!  A nice shower, laundry, dinner, and then to bed.  Ah, life is good.

We are still trying to find someplace to download the photos.  Please be patient with us, we promise they are worth the wait.

Sherry & Devra

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Wednesday, July 12th, 2006

Miles traveled today =  100 by "BIG YELLOW"  school bus, 20miles via bike

Today was a bitter sweet day.  We woke bright and early to get ready to leave camp.  As in past years the last morning of camp is always very emotional.  It is so hard to say goodbye to the kids and counselors.  Friendships are formed so easily in the positive environment that Camp provides.  But it was time for us to get back to the business of pedaling and for the children to go home. 

We were invited to travel with the kids to the Minneapolis Airport via the big yellow school bus.  Of course we had to say yes. Plus, it gave us the opportunity to spend just a little more time with the children. (even if it did mean riding 100 miles in a school bus)  The extra hugs we got when we said goodbye at the airport made it all worth it.

The good fortune and wonderful hospitality that we have recieved during the first 2000 miles of the trip contiuned with us today as we began the second half of our journey.  The Minneapolis airport was MUCH bigger than we had anticipated!  The only roads leading out of the airport are 4 lane interstates.  Uh Oh.......

Well, being the resourcefull, and now experienced bicycle travelers that we are.........Sherry marched herself into the airport and went to the Airport Police Station to ask for suggestions on the safest route out of the airport via bicycle.  After looking at her like she was CRAZY, she told them who we were and why we were at the airport.  Not only did they give us directions on the best route they provided us with a police escort!

Bicycle Officer's John Zizzo & Mark Dorsey rode along side us while Officer Tammy Caruso drove the police car bringing up the rear as they escorted us down the interstate and to the starting point of the bike trail which would take us through the city.  How cool is that.  Not many cyclists get the opportunity to have their very own escorts.  We are very grateful for their assisstance.  It was a wonderful Hello and welcome to Minneapolis.

Minneapolis has an abundance of paved bike trails that weave all around the city.  It would be very easy to never drive a car in this city.  Of course it might be a little uncomfortable come October thru March.  But the summer is beautiful!

Tonight we are staying with friends and we plan to be on the road early tomorrow.  We are looking forward to spending the next few days pedaling along the Mississippi River.  The goal is to be in Chicago by July 20th and since we both have friends & family buying airline tickets to meet us there we better make sure we do.  So please send us lots of good weather and winds at our backs.  Remember that we are heading in a southeasterly direction!

Once again we are having technical difficulties downloading pictures.  This seems to be a recurring theme for us!  The last 2 days at camp we were able to get some really great photos of the children and also the photos of us on the bungee swing.  We will try to get those photo's to you asap.

Sherry & Devra

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Tuesday, July 11th, 2006

We have spent two very incredible days with Camp Heartland.  All the miles, hills, rain, and wind were so worth it to get to this place.  We wish that everyone could have the opportunity to visit Camp Heartland.  The positive energy that flows through here  is inspiring.

A typical day at Camp Heartland begins at 8:00 with all of the children lining up by the dining hall.  They then proceed to sing a few camp songs and act generally goofy.(it's hard to hard to distinguish the kids from the adults)  The children are sent into the dining hall only after competing to see which cabin can look most like a "pan of frying bacon"  (remember I said it is ONLY 8:00am)

Meals are their own little adventure....Everyone at camp has a "name cookie"  This is a round piece of wood that has your name on it.  Everyone is expected to have their "cookie" on when in the dining hall. If you happen to forget your "cookie" and if someone happens to notice and they share that information with everyone else then the whole dinning hall starts chanting.......

• SPELL YOUR NAME WITH YOUR BUTT DEVRA & SHERRY
• SPELL YOUR NAME WITH YOUR BUTT DEVRA & SHERRY
• SPELL YOUR NAME WITH YOUR BUTT DEVRA & SHERRY

AND ON AND ON UNTIL YOU GO TO THE FRONT OF THE HALL AND ....spell your name with your butt.  I know it sounds weird and it probably is but hey, its camp and it works, you should try it sometime. Devra has some experience with this but this was my  first time having to spell my name with my butt at camp. I always make sure I have my "cookie."   Unfortunately our cookies were left in Reno & San Diego!

The children then spend the bulk of the day participating in various activities.  Archery, fishing, waterworld, landsports, dance, arts & crafts.  The older children do a challenge course which involves pushing themselves beyond their limits.  On the  high ropes course they climb up a telephone pole and then walk across a high wire.  Of course they are belayed but it doesn't make it any less frightening!  They also have a bungee swing!  This is really amazing & SCARY!  We went to the challenge course to "watch" which may not have been the smartest decision we have made on this trip.  The kids felt that we should also partake in the activities!  Well........how could we say no?  Sherry won first place in the "those who screamed the loudest category" when she braved the bungee swing. Pictures of todays activities will be included in the next album that Esther sends out.

Today is the last full day of camp for the kids.  Everyone goes back home tomorrow.  We will be riding on the bus with the children to the Minneapolis Airport bright and early tomorrow morning.   What a wonderful way for us to get back on the road again.  With all of the children to cheer us on as we ride away from the airport it is going to be another emotionally packed day! 

Closing Campfire was also held tonight.  Each cabin of children perform a "skit".  If America's Funniest Home Video's ever came to film this, Camp Heartland would win 1st place everytime. Lots of hugs and tears always accompany the closing ceremony.  New friendships made, old ones renewed, and addresses are exchanged before everyone heads back to their cabins for one last evening of reflection and devotions.

We spent the rest of our last evening doing laundry, updating the website, down loading the new photo's and sharing our own hugs, kisses and tears with the staff members who have made our stay here absolutely FANTASTIC!

The anticipation of arriving at camp was a big motivator for us these past 2000 miles.  Our motivation for the next 2000 will be remembering the faces of these amazing children!

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Sunday, July 9th, 2006                                                           Miles traveled = 1926

This was a much anticipated day and was even more emotional than we had anticipated. We left Mille Lacs Lake at 8:00 for what we thought would be a 60 mile ride to Willow River and Camp Heartland. As luck would have it we were much closer than we thought!  After only 41 miles and one gravel road we pedaled into Camp amoungst much fan fare and excitement!  Before we could even see the entrance we could hear the cheers and chanting....DEVRA, SHERRY, DEVRA, SHERRY, DEVRA, SHERRY....  as we rode up and over the hill our first glimpse of camp revealed a welcome like we could never have imagined in our wildest thoughts. As you know we have had ALOT of miles to think!

 We had so many tears in our eyes that we could hardly see to pedal. Old friends and new greeted us with Hugs, Hugs, more HUGS and lots of tears of joy! After having been on the road and away from family for 39 days it feels so wonderful to be once again encircled by love.

It didn't take long for us to fall into the routine that is Camp Heartland.  All the songs and silliness that are so much a part of camp came back to us like we had never been gone. Devra jumped right in with both feet or was that paws?  (see Scooby Do in photo album for further explanation)

We will spend the next two days at Camp.  Our plan is to send out a photo album for each day so be sure to check in with us daily so you can enjoy the kids and be a part of the fun!

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Saturday, July 8th, 2006

I have just received a call from Sherry and she asked me to update the website for them this evening.  However, I was on my way home from Costco, so I am not sure I will remember everything she said.  I do remember they are at a campsite, at Mille Lacs Lake, somewhere between Brainard, MN and Willow River, MN.  This is a huge lake that is over 100 miles wide.  It is so big you cannot see to the other side.  However, at it's deepest it is only 30 feet.  Sounds like a big pond to me!  I was able to find it easily on Google Earth, which is the program I have been using to track their progress, thanks to Dan at ParaPhrenalia.  Devra & Sherry are only a short distance from Camp Heartland and very much looking forward to arriving there either Sunday or Monday.  I think they deserve a rest day and should stay and swim in Mille Lac Lake.  They had great tailwinds today and while it was quite hot, they really enjoyed their dip in the lake before showers.  Sherry told me they have continued to meet the nicest people and they are enjoying so much telling folks about their journey.  It seems that the closer they get to Willow River, the more people are familiar with Camp Heartland.  One person they met was a radio DJ who plans to talk about them on his radio program this week and encourage his listeners to contribute to thier cause.  They are also lining up some TV coverage with the local stations who are interested in filming them as they arrive at camp.  How exciting is that?  More photos are headed our way, so as soon as they send them out to me, I will forward them on to all of you.  Remember, if you are not on the email list for photos contact me at Mindmed@pacbell.net and I will add your name to the ever growing list.  I think that was most of the news for updating for today, I am sure we will hear from them after their arrival at camp.  Stay tuned.

E Star

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Friday, July 7, 2006

Miles traveled = 1841 (45 miles on the wings of angels)

These past two days have been a great welcome to Minnesota!  Yesterday we didn't get out of Fargo until 2:00 because everywhere we went we kept meeting wonderful people. 

It started yesterday, while we were updating the web site at the coffeeshop.  We met Trisha O'Connor a reporter with KVLY NBC Channel 11.  Trisha saw our bikes and stopped in the coffee shop to hear our story.  She was very interested in Camp Heartland and asked if she could do a story with us.  Well of course we said YES!  So we made arrangements for her to meet up with us on Friday morning in Detroit Lakes. 

Next we went to Island Park Cycles where we met Larry & Tom.  Our bikes have been through alot since Whitefish and they went right to work on them and got everything back in working order.  It was so nice not to listen to squeak, squeak, squeak all day long.

Once we finally got on the road it was a long 61 miles to Detroit Lakes.  Very beautiful country road but lots of headwind.  We arrived in Detroit Lakes at 7:30pm.  We immediately met all the kids at the campground.  We tend to attract attention.......... 

This morning Trisha & her cameraman, Frode were at the campground at 7:30am and did a wonderful interview.  Trisha asked great questions which gave us the opportunity to talk at length about Camp Heartland. 

The children we had met at the campground woke their parents early so that they could watch the interview and then ride out of town with us.  It was so much fun.  The TV crew followed us through town, and  I'm sure they got some great footage of us riding with our new friends alongside.

Then the real work began.  Our goal today was to ride 92 miles to Brainerd.  Well we did make it to Brainerd but not without the help of our new friends.  The winds were incredible, 30mph coming straight at us.  We were doing well to average 7mph!  We rode 49miles to Wadena and just as we were riding into town our new friends from the campground, Anna, Maggie, Mark, Matt, Weston, and Ashley drove by honking the horn and waving the Minnesota wave.  I don't think they realize how much that lifted our spirits.  They waited in town for us at McDonalds and insisted on buying us a cold drink.  Then they twisted our arms and begged us to let them take us the rest of the way into Brainerd.  How could we say no to those little cherrub faces.  They SAVED us! 

So here we are in Brainerd, a little ahead of schedule and VERY VERY happy!  We are still too overwhelmed by their kindness to come up with the right words to thank them.  We will always remember them and look forward to sharing many a christmas card over the years to come.

Count down to our arrival at Camp Heartland.  Drum roll please................

2 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!

We plan to arrive on Sunday afternoon.  Because of the assistance we recieved from the Longendyke's today we did not lose another day which means we will get to spend 2 days at Camp Heartland.

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Thursday, July 6, 2006

Miles traveled = 1732

We actually did the update yesterday when we got to Fargo.  It was really good but when I clicked on "save" the computer "burped" and all our hard work and humor was LOST in computer land.  So now it is the morning of the 6th and we are in a REAL coffee shop!  Devra is having her first double mocha latte with an add shot, and Sherry is having a double vanilla latte.  We feel almost human again.

We have had some big days and Devra in particular has celebrated two personal bests.  On the 4th we rode from Devils Lake, ND to Cooperstown, ND 81 MILES!  We both decided that this day offered us some of the most beautiful riding we have had since leaving the Cascades and Rockies.  We were looking forward to spending 4th of July in Small Town USA aka Cooperstown only to discover that the town was CLOSED for the day.  The owner of the motel explained that because all the little towns around Cooperstown have centennial celebrations on the 4th, Cooperstown decided to move their 4th of July celebrations to the following weekend.  Leave it to us to pick the ONE town in all of the little towns in North Dakota that doesn't celebrate the 4th of July on the 4th of July!

But being the enterprising individuals that we are...............we bought our own Sparklers and got a little wild and crazy in the deserted parking lot of the motel.  After enjoying our gourmet meal of linguine & clams (cooked on our camp stove)  with spinach salad (mixed in a shopping bag)  and some REALLY bad wine (drank from plastic motel cups) we set the camera on automatic, lit up the sparklers and posed for what we THOUGHT was going to be a cute picture.  But alas being the smart, educated women that we are we failed to realize that sparklers won't show up in the picture if it is still light outside. 

After our wild 4th of July party we were still up and riding by 8:00 the next morning.  One observation we would like to share......In all the towns we have been through we have noticed that all the old gentlemen in town meet each morning at the local coffee shop.  And they say women gossip!  It is quite entertaining to eavesdrop on their conversations.  These guys not only know everthing about everyone in their town but also in the next two towns!

Wednesday, July 5th was another personal best for Devra and her tuberosities. 96 miles!  And her tuberosities hardly even yapped.  I think they have decided that she isn't going to listen to them so they might as well sit down, shut up, and enjoy the ride.

So here we are enjoying our coffee and sharing our memories with our friends.  Our last day in North Dakota!  We always have mixed emotions as we travel from one sate to the next.  It's excitting to break out a new map but sad to be leaving our gracious host states.  We have a few things to do before leaving this morning.......Victoria's Secrect for lotion and soap, Walmart for toothpaste and deodorant..........

This journey is about raising peoples awareness of the children in America who are affected/infected with HIV/AIDS and the amazing joy and support that Camp Heartland brings to their lives.  Our goal has been to sponsor 10 childrens participation with Camp Heartland.  To date we have raised close to $12,000 towards our goal of $35,000.  

We  plan to arrive at Camp Heartland in Willow River on July 10th!  We are looking forward to seeing the children and sharing our wonderful adventures with them.  As we draw closer to camp we are reminded what this journey is all about.  If you are reading our diary you are one of our supporters and we would like to again Thank You. 

One more item.  If you are not recieving our photos and would like to be added to the list of recipients, send your request to Esther at mindmed@pacbell.net.

Keeping the rubber side down,

Sherry & Devra

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Monday, July 3rd, 2006

Miles traveled = 1547

Wow it seems like ages since we last updated you from New Town.  We've been busy girls, it probably hasn't hit the west coast yet but let us be the first to tell you.  We are now FAMOUS, no not infamous we are FAMOUS. You can ask anyone in Minot, ND and they will tell you who we are.

While riding from New Town to Minot we were met by the local CBS & NBC news stations.  They both did a really nice interview about the two of us, our ride and Camp Heartland.  Since both stories were going to be on the news that night we opted to stay at a motel.  Hey, we had to watch!  We were able to stay awake for the 6:00 news but we had to set the alarm for the 10:00 show.  Devra, being the very ingenious person that she is had the idea to take pictures of the TV.  Ha, it worked quite nicely and as we know you are all sitting on pins and needles to see it we will do our best to find a computer in the near future that we can download the photo's on.

The next morning when we went to McDonalds for our now, traditional breakfast of Hotcakes and Sausage, everyone we met kept saying hello and wanting to shake our hands.  The manager at the McD's even bought us breakfast.  Thank you Amarin!   We thought that was pretty darn cool.  Our ride that day from Minot to Rugby was 70 miles, we rode through a few small towns on the way and everytime we stopped someone would say, "Hey, I saw you guys on the news last night"

RUGBY ND

The geographical center of North America.  Pretty cool!

Rugby was a mystery to us.  We knew we had a place to stay but we had only spoke with Theresa Paul on the phone.  (Her son is a good friend of Sherry's husband)  She seemed nice on the phone but we had no idea how wonderful our stay with her would be.

When we got to Rugby we called the house and got directions. As we turned down Theresa's street and started looking at the numbers on the houses we knew exactly which house was hers.  Her granddaughters, Emily & Abbey had made a "Welcome Sherry & Devra" sign which was prominately displayed on the front of the house!  From that point on it just kept getting better and better.  Theresa welcomed us into her home as if we were family.

The first item on our agenda is usually a  hot shower but we had been anticipating opening our care packages from home since we crossed the ND stateline.  So open them we did.  Sherry's co-workers sent a box full of goodies, everything from new underwear (from Tamara) to homemade cookies and the ever important Chocolate!  As well as several other items that we won't go into on this site.  But hey they are all nurses, use your imagination!

Theresa fixed a wonderful "Home Cooked" meal for us and several of her children and their families joined us for dinner.  Let us tell you.....Theresa knows how to give a dinner party!  There was plenty for all plus left overs for the next day. YUM!

On Sunday Theresa and her friend John drove us to the International Peace Gardens.  If you ever have the opportunity to visit ND, the Peace Gardens should be a "must see".  ND is called the "Peace Garden State" the gardens are a joint venture between Canada & United States cellebrating the contiuned friendship that two great nations share.

We wish that you could all have a chance to meet Theresa and her family.  What an amazing group of people. Kind, warm, generous, funny.  We felt so comfortable and welcomed that it was very hard to leave.  Theresa sent us off with our tummys full and our hearts overflowing.

Thank you Theresa, and your wonderful family especially Emily & Abbey whom we look forward to sharing our journey with.

So now you know what we have been up to.  What's next?  We are currently in the Devils Lake, ND Library.  Devils Lake has no streams or rivers that flow out of it so it just keeps growing and growing.............because of that most of the camp grounds are now underwater!  Where to pitch our tents..............we will let you know how that all works out.

Sherry & Devra

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Thursday, June 29th, 2006

Miles traveled = 1337 by bicycle   (50 via other form of transportation)

Last update we were in Williston.  That was on Tuesday and we had planned to take a rest day the next day.  However we felt so darn good after our wonderful dinner tuesday night that we decided that on Wednesday morning we would ride to Lund's Landing which is only 22 miles from Williston.  We were told that it was a very cute RV/Campground and even had a nice cafe.  So we thought, what the heck, it's only 22 miles up the road we can do that in less than 2 hours and use the rest of the day as a rest day........................................................................

Well our 22 miles started out with sustained headwinds 20-30 MPH!  It took us 2 1/2 hours to go the 22 miles only to find that the very cute RV Campground was CLOSED!  So there we were in the middle of Nowhere, North Dakota with empty water bottles and only rice and beans (our emergency meals)  Now you may be asking yourselves WHY would those silly girls head off into the middle of NOWHERE without being better prepared?  Well we will tell you........Two days before we had called and talked to the very nice lady at Lund's Landing to make sure that they were still open. We had a very nice conversation with her.  However, the very nice lady neglected to tell us that they would be closed on the 28th & 29th!

So, we ventured off to a nearby mobile home and the nice lady who lived there let us fill our water bottles, we pointed our bikes into the now 30+ MPH headwind and started pedaling towards New Town another 55 miles up the road.  Ugh!  Nice rest day we had planned.

It was pretty grueling and alot of up and down hilly terrain, but it was still very pretty and we tried to stay focused on the beauty rather than the wind in our faces and the pains in our thighs.  We must have looked pretty misserable and haggard.  About 30 miles from New Town a very wonderful, kind, thoughtful, generous, benevolent soul stopped and asked if we would like a ride in to town.  Never a pair to turn down the chance to meet someone new we felt obligated to accept his very wonderful, kind, thoughtful, generous and benevolent offer.  The bikes and BOB's were loaded into the back of the pickup truck in record time and we were seated with our seat belts on before he even had time to finish with the offer.

We are now enjoying our much needed REST DAY in the big town of New Town so named when they dammed up the Missouri River which flooded the two towns that were next to it.  They had to build a new town and give it a name.  New Town was born.

One note of dismay.  Yesterday the wind became too much for "Babs" either that or she decided to go back to Montana.  Anyway somewhere between Williston and Lund's Landing she dissapeared.  We are very sad not to have her with us anymore but it is kind of nice to be ridding with a little less weight.  (for those who are not sure who "Babs" is, she is the blond bobble head that has been ridding shot gun on the top of the flag pole on Sherry's Bob trailer)  Devra thinks she ran away with a good looking bobble head in wranglers.

Tomorrow we are off to Minot.  We have a TV interview somewhere along the way with both NBC & CBS to talk about the ride and Camp Heartland.

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Still Tuesday, June 27th, 2006  Addendum by E Star

Devra & Sherry called me this evening while they did laundry and asked me to let you know that they are at the Buffalo Trails Campground.  They were so excited about the dinner they had tonight, because it came with REAL salad and REAL vegetables.  It seems like a lot of places in Montana serve canned vegetables and iceberg lettace, so tonight was special in that they enjoyed and savored every bite of their spinch salad and real lettace.  Oh they are so easily amused!  One other note, the mosquitos there in Williston are quarter-size.   

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Tuesday, June 27, 2006 Williston, North Dakota

Miles traveled = 1284

Thank you everyone for your thoughts of sunshine and dry skies, it is working very well.  We have seen nothing but beautiful clear blue skies for the past four days!  I know we had talked about the winds and we wanted to make sure that everyone understood that we are heading in a northeasterly direction.  The reason we feel we might need to point this out is that the winds that you have been sending us are coming from the EAST!   That would be aka HEADWINDS.  Please, please send us some winds from the West!  Of course I'm sure once you do that we will be asking for something else.  But you have to understand, we have ALOT of time to think about these things.

We left Wolf Point on Monday morning.  It was very difficult to say goodbye to Mary, she was such a wonderful host.  We rode 65 miles to Culberston, MT.  We spent the day riding into headwinds +/- 20mph but the scenery was spectacular as usual and helped  to keep our minds from thinking about our quads.  With the warmer weather, water is becoming much more important. Much of our route planning is centered around where the next water stop is.  We wonder if that's what occupied Lewis & Clark as they made thier way West? 

As we entered Culbertson we rode past the Rolling Hills Winery & Car Wash (only in Montana) I guess that goes in the same category as the beer selection.  We have really turned into quite the party animals.  We were told the oldest bar in Montana was in Culbertson so after taking our MUCH needed showers we walked down to the Montana Bar.  Well, as it turns out we were mis-informed.  It might be the most rundown bar in Montana but it is not the oldest.  But being the party animals that we are, we had one beer, returned to our hotel room and were both asleep by 8:00.  Wahoo our last night in Montana.  Montana was wonderful to us but we are happy to be entering North Dakota. Here's a little fact that you may not be aware of.  People in different states have different wave protocols.  In Washington the wave is kind of nonchallant, maybe just a tip of the head or a brief toss of the hand.  In Montana it has kind of a big arch of the hand starting at the elbow.  In North Dakota they really get into it.  Their wave starts at the shoulder and the hand gets to flappin.  There is never a doubt as to whether they are waving.

We arrived in Williston this afternoon.  It was a beautiful ride. As we got closer to the North Dakota stateline the terrain became much more hilly.  Lots of little ups and downs.  We like to call them whoopdy do's.  (this is what happens to your mind when you have way too much time to think)  We have also noticed that each state paves their roads a little differently.  This is something that is very noticeable when you are going 10 mph.  When we crossed into North Dakota we both started noticing this snapping noise.  We stopped about the same time and asked each other if their bike was making a funny noise.  After investigating we realized it was the tar on the road.  The heat from the sun was making little bubbles in the tar and as we rode over them our tires were popping them. 

Our friends the mosquitos found us again!  We thought we had lost them after we left Saco, but oh no.......they found us again about a mile west of Williston.   So once again we smell like DEET!  On that note.  We are all out of our Victoria's Secret Shower Gel and lotion so if anyone is sending us a care package to Rugby you would be the absolute BOMB if one of those care packages had the above mentioned items.

Our first stop in Williston, (right after the quick mart for our post ride Chocolate Milk) was the library.  So now you know what and where we have been.  We are on our way to find somewhere to rest our weary heads for the night.  No wild parties tonight, we are pretty wore out and weve been told that there are more whoopdy do's tomorrow.

We hope to have more photo's to you soon.

Sherry & Devra

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Sunday, June 25, 2006

Miles traveled = 1179

Last we talked we were just leaving the library in Glascow.  Everyday just keeps getting better and better.  This morning we woke to another beautiful blue sky and much warmer temperatures than we have been subjected to in the previous weeks. 

We decided to splurge on breakfast and rather than dining at the Golden Arches we went to the little coffee shop across from the campground.  Great decision, not because the food was so great but because of the people we met.  Although, the food was good.

While eating we spoke with a few of the local residents who all gave us their oppinions on the route we should take to get to Wolf Point.  (For those of you who are not Montana savy you may not be aware that Montana has 4 seasons, almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction)  Well we seem to be in the road construction season.  Anyway..........the locals were very helpful in giving us some alternatives to avoid the 10 miles of gravel road that we would encounter on Hwy 2.

We also met the riders from HPDrelay.com who are riding from Huston, Tx to Victoria, Canada.  There are 6 team members.  They ride a 24 hour relay.  This means that someone on the team is always out riding.  I think each person does approx. 75-100miles/day.  While that person is on the road the other members are in the SAG car.  Sounds like fun!  This is their 25th year of supporting this ride for Leukemia.  Very nice group.  One of the members is a police officer in Maine and was kind enough to give us his phone number and e-mail in case when we get to Maine we need anything.  Then..........Devra started talking with the couple sitting at the next table who mentioned they were from Rugby, ND.  Devra told them that we would be stopping in Rugby and were planning on staying with Theresa Paul.  Yes you guessed it.....Theresa Paul is their next door neighbor.  The world truly is small.  So now when we get to Rugby, in addition to staying with Theresa we will also see our new friends Christ & Judy Heintz.

Now don't go anywhere, it gets better.

The ride from Glascow to Wolf Point is 55 miles.  We took the detours that the locals told us about and were treated to a wonderful, almost vehicle free ride.  About 3 miles from Wolf Point Devra got her first flat tire of the trip.  And just like in East Glacier when she rescued Sherry by changing the flat on the BOB trailer, she had her tire off, flat fixed, and tire back on in record time.  The nice thing about this is that it delayed our arrival to Wolf Point. 

Why is that a nice thing?  Well........because we were delayed by the flat, once we got to town we met up with another rider coming from the opposite direction, Mary Madison.  Mary lives in Wolf Point and is an avid touring cyclist.  She opens her home to cyclists who are traveling through Wolf Point.  She is truly an Angel. She meets us on the side of the road gives us directions to her house, hands us the keys to her house and says, "I'm going riding for a few hours just let yourselves in and make yourselves at home. I'll see you in a few hours"  Can you believe that!   We just keep meeting wonderful people like this.  We've heard the stories but now we are living them! God bless America and the people who live here.

So we are at Mary's for the night.  Oh yea, Mary is a retired nurse, she toured from Montana to Bar Harbor last year.  She did this in celebration of her 70th birthday AND she did it alone!  You go girl!  We want to be just like Mary when we grow up.

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Saturday, June 24, 2006

Miles traveled = 1120 

Yesterday morning was a milestone.  We passed the 1000 mile mark of our journey!

First things first.  Happy Birthday to Randy!  (Sherry's husband)

We have had two very wonderful days.  Of course all of our days are pretty darn wonderful, some just happen to present us with less challenges ie. weather than others.   We left Harlem under beautiful sunny skies with the plan to ride to Sleeping Buffalo +/- 55 miles down the road.  But we were having such a great day and enjoying the sunshine that we decided to add another 15 miles and rode instead to the town of Saco, MT.  All the people we have met along the way have been warning us that the mosquitos will get very LARGE and PLENTIFUL once we reach Saco.  And they were right!  But we found that as long as you ride no less than 10mph you're ok.  They can't keep up with you. But as soon as you slow down they are on you like white on rice.  We think they like us because they sense new blood.  By the time we rode into Saco the weather had started to turn and no sooner had we got into our hotel room, $42.00 a night @ the Saco Motel, the sky turned absolutely black and for the next 90min. it poured its heart out.  But Ah!  We were dry and toasty,  enjoying happy hour at OB's Bar.  And let us tell you, they had every kind of beer you could want.  They have Bud, Bud Light, Coors, Coors light, Bush, and the import beer.....Miller Genuine Draft (in the bottle).  And you can have your pick during happy hour for $1.00ea.  We never tasted beer so good.  We also enjoyed dinner at OBs cafe which is right next to OB's bar.   If you place your order in the diner they will bring it to you at the bar.  Now how is that for small town hospitality!  For you inquiring minds we both had the Prime Rib Sandwich WITH french fries.

Saturday morning we woke once again to beautiful blue skies.  We rode with the wind at our backs all the way to Glascow.  It is nice to get to town so early in the day.  It is only 11:30!  This will almost be like a rest day, it's funny how now a 43mile day feels short.  On our way here we met a pair of cyclist heading East.   Ann & Michael.  They left from Northern Conneticut a the end of May.  They are moving to Seattle and shipped all their STUFF and decided to pedal to their new home. 

It is so fun to see other cyclists.  You feel like you've just run into your best friend that you haven't seen in years.  Instantly there is a bond and conversation just flows.

We only have a few more days left in Montana so we'll leave you with some wisdom about Montana.

You might be a Montanan If......

You are proud that your region makes the national news 96 nights each year because Cut Bank is the coldest spot in the nation. 

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Thursday, June 22nd, 2006

Here is the latest message from Devra and Sherry, who are now in Harlem, MT.  I spoke with them this afternoon and they had an incredible day, which they asked me to share with all of you. 

They started their morning in Havre, MT being interviewed by Nikki, from the Havre Daily News.  Nikki has titled the piece, "HIV Ride" and it should be published Friday.  She took some photos of them riding off in a light sprinkle of rain which hopefully will be posted on the website along with the article if all goes well.  We can all check the website at www.Havredailynews.com 

They stopped for breakfast at the local McDonalds, as they have become connoisseurs at the Double Arches Breakfast Club.  After a late start they hit the road at 10:00 and headed toward Harlem on a pretty ride, despite the headwinds.  Sherry and Devra say that the area is so big and so vast and there is so much space that they can understand why folks from this region feel claustrophobic in our bigger cities.  As you know they have been riding pretty much continually for a long stretch of time now.  Today was no exception and they have pretty tired legs but were thinking about the rest day they needed but felt unable to take because of number of factors.  One factor is that they do not want to get behind schedule and the other is that there are not many places on their route right now that lend themselves to a place for a rest day.  They had planned to go about 40 - 45 miles today but got to thinking that they would just "Let this day happen".  In fact, Sherry told me she was thinking that if they happened to be stopped somewhere, and if by chance they met anyone they felt comfortable whith and who offered them a ride, they might take it. 

About mid-day, as they were riding through Chinook, MT, they stopped off for an ice cream cone at the local ice cream shop.  As they sat there, just "letting the day happen" up drove a big cattle truck with a ranching couple who had just taken their cattle up for summer herd.  Herman and Rita Gebert joined them for ice cream and they all became fast friends as Devra and Sherry shared their mission and travel stories.  By the end of their visit, Herm said, "Well, if you girls are going to Harlem you could just put the bikes in the back of the cattle truck and we could take you there.".  The girls were on that in a heartbeat, cow plop and all!  Sherry and Devra jumped into the truck with Herm, Rita and their two dogs and headed off to the vet's to pick up the cat.  They then drove the 21 miles to Harlem at which time Herm and Rita took them on the grand tour of Harlem, population 224.  They drove by all the landmarks, the city hall, the grocery store and the best restaurants.  The girls said it is a darling little town, very tidy and you can tell the people who live here have respect for their town.  At the City Hall they met Tim, the town clerk, who pointed out to them that directly next door to the City Hall was a park, specifically for bicyclists.  In fact, there is a big sign that says, "Welcome Bicyclists, Camp Here".  There are picnic tables, barbeques and tent sites.  Right behind this area is the pool and they were able to use the showers there for free.  And next door is City Hall, and when the city knows there are bicyclists camping they leave the doors unlocked so the campers can use the bathrooms.  And oh, yes, the Police Department is also right there so tonight we can all rest assured that the girls are in good hands as the Sherrif will be checking on them.  Sherry said, "This place feels like Mayberry". 

Once settled in their new home away from home, they met Frank Orlando, who is now retired but was the town pharmacist forever.  Frank gave them a very detailed history about the town of Harlem.  After a delicious dinner of vegetable stir fry and chicken, with watermelon for dessert, they planned the ride for the next few days.  Their route will take them through the Indian Reservation, and far from many facilities.  They plan to ride about 70 miles tommorrow and hopefully will get about 12 miles east of Malta.  The day will most likely be long and flat, with more of that Montana Sky.  They are not sure what type of facilities they will find in Malta, but they do know they will meet up with the world famous Malta Mosquitos.  They are prepared for this meeting having purchased lots of "Active Off" which contains 15% DEET. 

They were also invited by Rita and Herm to come out this evening and help brand calves, but as the evening came on they decided that was too much for one day and will instead stop by to enjoy coffee and breakfast with their new friends on their way out of town.  They continue to meet the most wonderful people and make new friends on every pedal of this journey.  Good Luck girls, pedal safe and we look forward to hearing from you soon.

E Star

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Wednesday, June 21, 2006  Havre, MT

Total miles = 974

After a restful night spent at the MX Motel in Chester MT we woke to a beautiful blue sky and warm temperatures.  It was very appropriate that on this, the first day of summer it is the first day since the start of the trip that we haven't had to dress like we were riding in the dead of winter.

The ride from Chester to Harve was dotted with quaint small towns about every 10miles.  We stopped in most and each time we met very nice people.  In fact the Pub in Inverness was so accomodating they even fixed Devra a Chocolate Shake at 9:30 in the morning.

Lots of wheat fields and small rolling hills.  Boy they aren't kidding when they call it Big Sky Montana!  Miles and miles and miles of roadway that just seem to stretch out forever.  Gives a person alot of quiet time to think about stuff.  So if any of you have any problems that need solutions just send them to us I think we will have lots of miles to think about them and come up with an answer for you.

After riding most of the day under sunny skies when we got about 3 miles from Havre the sky turned very dark with ominous clouds.  But we have learned and we immediately started to look for shelter.  Our shelter came in the form of the Beaver Creek Golf Course!  They were more than happy to let us pull our bikes and trailers under the overhang.  We then spent the next hour chatting with Nikki.  Nikki is 10 years old and is very interested in one day riding her bike across the United States.  Isn't it funny how things work out?  Had we not pedaled for cover from the storm we never would have met Nikki.

We are now hunkered down for the night at Montana State University, Northern in Havre MT.  They open one of their dorms as a hostel during the summer.  It is wonderful.  We have showers, laundry, and high speed internet that actually in HIGH SPEED.  We are downloading the remaining pictures and will get them to Esther so she can send them out.  We hope you enjoy them!

Tomorrow we leave for Malta, MT.  Everyone we met today who we told we were going to Malta warned us about the mosquitos.  I guess they get very LARGE once you get to Malta.  Oh the adventures!

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Tuesday, June 20, 2006  Chester, MT

Total miles pedaled = 911

Before we tell you about our day we want to thank everyone who has been sending us e-mails.  You don't know how much the encouragement and support mean to us.  Especially on those days that have been both physical and mental challenges.  When we get to the library and read your kind words all the misery of the day dissapears.

Yesterdays ride from East Glacier to Cut Bank, MT was delightful.  We got our first glimpse of the BIG MONTANA SKY that you hear so much about.  The plains stretch out forever.  We rode under dark ominous looking clouds which cast a purple shadow on the distant Rockies behind us.  We hope that the camera captures some of the awe that we experienced.  Oh and don't let us forget to tell you about the AWSOME tail winds! They have moved us along at incredible speeds.  Our bikes don't know how to handle it.  Although there was no climbing and the riding was very easy our legs were no less tired by the end of the day.  We must have been using different muscles?

Each day it seems we are fortunate to meet wonderful new people.  Last night we met Jim & Sandy Rice and their grandaughter Renee.  They are on their way to visit the San Juan Islands.  We went for a walk with them and were treated to a show from mother nature.  Across the Marias River we watched while a den of 4 red foxes played.  It was so neat to see them in their own environment.  They must have been pups as they were chasing, wrestling, and running around.  It was quite the show.

One thing we are starting to notice is how LATE the sun goes down.  Last night it didn't set until after 9:30 and even then the sky remained light.  Sherry woke at about 1:30am and thought because it was so light out that she must have overslept.  (Silly Girl) 

Today we rode 69 miles from Cut Bank to Chester, MT.  It was a record day for us. 69 miles in 4hrs 30min.  Did we tell you how much we love those tail winds!  Please keep sending them our way.  For those of you who know our friend Esther  you will know how good she is at what she does.  Thank you Esther for the imagery.  Our bubbles are full of tail winds!

We wish you could all be here with us to experience the vastness and beauty that is Montana.  Right now the wheat fields are all about 3 feet high with beautiful seas of green for miles and miles.  With the wind blowing it gives the appearance of an emerald green ocean. 

Tomorrow we head to Havre, Montana. Population 10,200.  Oh my gosh what will we do with ourselves.  We haven't been in a town bigger than a few thousand since we left Arlington, WA. Do you think they'll have a Victorias Secret and an REI.  We do have our priorities.

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Monday June 19, 2006       East Glacier, MT.

We left West Glacier sadly, knowing we were not going to be able to ride over the Logan Pass. But, we did have a beautiful ride along highway 2, over Marias Pass, and the continental divide. We rode side by side as we crossed it, and we were looking at some pretty incredible mountains.  The whole way to East Glacier we passed swollen creeks, running madly into the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. We saw some beautiful waterfalls like the Silver Stairs, and as usual, the birds were singing and unlike the previous week, the sun was shining on us. Oh did it feel good to have that sun on our backs. We were even blessed to see deep down a canyon wall about 4 white Mountain Goats making their way precariously along the steep slopes.

About halfway through our ride Sherry's BOB got a flat tire, a large "staple". We stopped and found we had one tube the wrong size, so Sherry patched the puntured tube, and we were back on the road again. We aren't quite sure where the next bike shop is, but we will get the right size tube this time.

We found a nice RV park with a nice view, and we met a couple of backpackers, Alistair and Gail from Calgary, Canada. They had just packed for 7 days in the park, and were coming out to re- stock and continue along the divide to Mexico. We had dinner with them, then went back for a nice sleep. Today we will set out for Cut Bank, MT about 46 miles from East Glacier, and begin our time on the high plains. It will be nice to have some flat, but we are sure we will be bored very soon and begin to dream about our climing in the Cascades and Rockies. Today it is overcast, some dark threatening clouds. We are prepared these days for whatever we run into, but wish us tail winds and clear skys.

Sherry and Devra

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Saturday, June 17th, 2006

West Glacier, MT and a well earned day off for the girls, the bikes, and the BOB's.

Yesterday we woke to partly cloudy skies.  After retrieving the girls aka Bikes from Glacier Cyclery aka  "the bike spa" we headed out of Whitefish down a beautiful back country road to West Glacier.  Eric Traber, Anchor Reporter for CBS KAJ18 in Kalispell met us on the road and did a very nice interview about the ride and Camp Heartland. 

The ride to Glacier was absolutely wonderful.  At one point the road became dirt but did not present a problem.  After surviving yesterday we were feeling pretty much bullet proof. We crossed many creeks swollen from the recent rains.  Where the North Fork and Middle Fork of the Flathead Rivers converged it was really impressive.  Whole tree's were floating down through the ragging water.

We found a lovely place to rest our heads at the Glacier Campground.  Wonderful HOT showers and laundry facility.  So with our tents set up and our clothes once again dry we walked down to a nearby restaurant for dinner.  While at dinner we wondered how we were going to make it back to camp since once again it started to pour rain.  Luckily by the time we were done eating the rain had stopped and we enjoyed a nice walk back to camp.  Fixed our hot cocoa and said good night.  We got into our respective "little homes" just in time for.......yes you guessed it.  THE RAIN.  Which it did ALL night. 

West Glacier is so beautiful even with the rain.  We had a lovely breakfast at The Belton Chalet.  Four enterprising young women, Cassie, Kelly, Alison & Teresa run a weekend breakfast spot at the Chalet.  They call it Many Friends Cafe and we give a 5 star rating.  If you ever come to West Glacier this is a must stop for breakfast.

With our much needed day off we are planning to explore as much of West Galcier as we can.  It is nice to tool around on the bikes without the BOB's.

Unfortunately mother nature has decided that Going to the Sun Road will not be a part of this trip.  Due to the heavy rains the road is closed and they don't expect to have it open until the end of the week.  So we will enjoy today exploring the park and tomorrow we will set our sites for East Galcier via the Marias Alternate Route which the local's have told us is also very beautiful.  We will just have to come back another time to ride Going to the Sun.

Goodbye for now from "The Going To The Sun Shop" and thank you to Troy who has been kind enough to give us a discount on the use of the internet at his little shop.

And one more really big THANK YOU to the crew at Glacier Cyclery.  This bike shop is one of the friendliest and most accomodating shops we have experienced.  Without the help of this shop we would not be writting to you from West Glacier.  THANK YOU  Glacier Cyclery.

Sherry & Devra

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Friday, June 16th, 2006

I just got off the phone with Devra, and if the girls ever needed your good vibes, intentions for sun and smooth riding, it is now.  So please think of them and keep them in your hearts. 

I had the honor of being with Devra and Sherry up in Washington, and I want to tell you about the days leading up to their departure, so here is the story.  I will also be sending out photos that parallel this story.

Devra, accompanied by Sherry's parents, Tom and Marcia Osloond, left Reno, early on the morning of Sunday, May 28th and flew to Seattle.  While they enjoyed a big breakfast Sherry was boarding her plane in San Diego to head north, stopping in San Jose where I got on board.  Sherry had primo seats for us and we flew up to Seattle, just the two of us in all three seats.  I had brought along a snack and the gentleman across the isle kept looking over at us and smiling.  He eventually tapped Sherry on the shoulder and said, "Boy, I thought I was doing well to bring cheese and crackers, until I saw what a gourmet snack you girls brought on board!".  Upon our arrival in Seattle, Devra had one vehicle and Sherry's folks had another.  We all headed to the Edgewater Hotel, but Sherry and her folks took a wrong turn and ended up following the scenic route to the hotel.  Our room was right on the water, and a NCL cruise ship was outside our window getting ready to set sail.  Our beautiful room was complete with a fireplace and a stuffed wombat!  The five of us had ######### in the bar, and then set out for a celebretory dinner at Elliott's Oyster Bar.  We toasted the girls with champagne, ate oysters, salads, delicious chowders and the best ever Copper River King Salmon for dinner.  On Monday, we all walked down to the Pike Street Market for breakfast which overlooked the Seattle harbor.  We then walked through the market enjoying the booths, the fish, flowers and artwork.  We bought some souviners and gifts and had a relaxing morning.  Sherry and her folks then headed off to Bainbridge Island to visit family for a day while Devra and I met up with Dan to eat more oysters for lunch.  The three of us then headed down to the marina to meet Dan's friend Lani who took us sailing on Puget Sound.  While the day started off drizzely, by the time we set sail, the skies had cleared, the sun was out and we were treated to a wonderful late afternoon and evening of sailing on "Balance".  We had wonderful views of Seattle glittering in the sun, snow capped Mount Rainer and an incredible sunset.  Lani hoisted both Devra and I up to the top of the mast in the Bosin's chair, and Devra and I learned how to sail and "come about".  After awhile we set anchor in a beautiful cove to have a Memorial Day BBQ and watch the sunset.  It was awesome!!  We sailed back to the marina by starlight and the cresent moon, using the radar and GPS to guide us.  Thank you Lani for an incredible day.  On Tuesday Devra and I headed to Dan's business where the BOB's had been shipped and Devra set about putting the BOB's together.  We picked up Sherry and then headed to the bikeshop to get the bikes.  Sherry and Devra then enjoyed a 15 mile training ride from the bikeshop back to Dan's office, where they hooked up the BOB's and then rode another 10 miles back to Dan's house.  While the girls were off on their training ride, I headed back home to prep for the dinner we planned to make for Dan that evening.  On Wednesday, the girls packed, repacked and then revised the packing of their BOB's. Meanwhile the crew down at Para Phrenalia set out to create new flags for the BOB's, in day-glo orange, that read, "2 Hearts 4 Wheels".  Thank you Para Phrenalia, you guys are the best!  We did some last minute shopping and the girls made phone calls to friends and family.  We spent a lot of time working on the website, creating the email distribution lists and also took a walk down to the river for some quiet relaxation so they could set their intentions for a safe, enjoyable and incredible journey the next day.  That evening Dan and the friends at Para Phrenalia hosted a wonderful party for the girls.  Sherry's folks and other family members from Washington came, as well as friends of Dan, Para Phrenalia and Lani.  It was a wonderful way to be sent off on the ride.  The next morning Dan and I made a hearty breakfast for the girls.  Camp Heartland called to wish them well and pretty soon friends and family were gathering for the send off.  By 8:45 AM they were pedaling toward the Jordan Bridge which was the departure site.  Lots of photos and videos were taken in the "Kiss & Cry" area of the bridge and they were off across the bridge by 9:00 AM.  We all watched with tears in our eyes and smiles on our faces as they pedaled down the road laughing and waving goodbye. 

Enjoy the photos.

E Star

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Thursday, June 15, 2006

Miles traveled = 700

Hello to everyone and let us say we are VERY happy to be saying "hello"  We have had a rough couple of days.   Oh my where should we begin.........The last contact we had with anyone was on Wednesday afternoon when we reported to both DeeDee & Esther from the grocery store in Libby MT.  The sun was shinning and we were feeling good.......maybe even a little #####.  "Another 20 miles"  "no problem".......76 miles total for the day.  At about mile 65 we turned the corner and oh my goodness the BIGGEST HILL was in front of us.  So what did we do......we went to the smallest chain ring and started pedaling.  Very Very Slowly up up up to Libby Dam.  Very pretty and Lake Koocanusa is very full.  The dam is about 1 foot from capacity. 

After leaving the dam we still had what we thought was about 5 miles more to get to the campgound. But oh no.....it was 9 miles of more up than down.  Once we FINALLY got to the campground we had a much needed cold libation and set up camp just in time for the THUNDER & LIGHTENING show.  Thank goodness we were camping next to our new friends Shane & Missy.  They have all the toys! The had this REALLY cool portable awning which they offered to share.  So we put all of our food fixins together and had an old fashioned family style dinner with mother nature providing the fireworks.

It rained all night but by morning the skies seemed to have exhausted themselves of moisture.  We set out for our ride to Eureka, MT +/- 49 miles.  But alas mother nature was not quite finished.  No sooner had we started pedaling and it started to pour, AGAIN.  We donned our rain atire and like brave little soldiers we pedaled on.  We had to succumb to the rain about 12 miles down the road where we found refuge under the awning of somebodies motorhome.  They were smart enough to leave for the day but we figured they wouldn't mind if we took shelter for a little while.  We wrung ourselves out, changed into dry clothes fixed some hot cocoa, met "Larry" the Forest Ranger.  Larry informed us that it was common to get rain this time of year but NEVER like this.

After leaving the shelter of the awning the rain let up and within an hour we were taking the rain gear off and pedaled in to Eureka under partially sunny skies.  Those sunny skies lasted just long enough for us to set up the tents and let them dry out.  But then of course it started to rain AGAIN!  And this time it never stopped.

So here we are today, Thursday June 15th.  Eureka to Whitefish MT.  It was supposed to be an "easy day" only 55 miles.  And it would have been, had it not been POURING CATS & DOGS ALL DAY LONG!  We have never been so WET or so COLD!  This day was completely about building character.....and after today we have sooooooo much character. For those inquiring minds that want to know just how does one dress for riding 55 miles in a torrential down pour.

• Wool socks
• plastic shopping bags over wool socks
• riding shoes
• neoprene shoes covers
• chemical hand warmers between top of shoe and neoprene shoe cover
• riding shorts (yes Tamara they were clean)
• Capalene long johns over riding shorts
• rain pants
• Capalene undershirt
• wool riding sweater
• gortex rain jacket
• fleece gloves
• playtex gloves over fleece gloves (that was Devra's idea, and a very good one)
• head band to keep ears warm
• helmet
• and last but not least, plastic shower cap over helmet

We were quite the pair.  But we made it and we feel stronger because of it and tomorrow is another day.  The bikes are at Glacier Cyclery in Whitefish MT getting a tune up.  We will pick them up tomorrow and hopefully make it to West Glacier.  Going to the Sun highway is not open yet but hopefully will be in the next day or so.  We are hoping to ride it on Monday.  If it isn't open we will be forced to take an alternate route since we do have some time restraints.  So wish us happy thoughts, clear SUNNY skies, and safe riding.

Thank you everyone for all of your support.  We are trying to send some more pictures to Esther.  If we are successful you should have them in the next day or so.

See Ya

Sherry & Devra

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Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Got home from working late tonight and had a message on my voicemail from Devra.  They are in Eureka, Montana, calling from an AM/PM Mini Market since they have no cell phone coverage.  They started outside the Libby Dam area with an overcast sky, but then it rained like crazy on them today.  They have just gotten some laundry done and have finished a big dinner and it sounded like they were ready for bed.  The should be in Whitefish, Montana tomorrow.  Let's send them lots of positive vibes and lots of SUNSHINE tomorrow!!!! 

DeeDee :-)

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Tuesday June 13th, 2006

Greetings from Devra and Sherry who are now in Majestic Montana.  I just spoke with them on the phone and they were finishing up lunch in Libby, Montana near the banks of the Kootanai River.  Devra says, "Montana is immense, lush, green and breathtaking!  It is gorgeous country".  Their goal for today is to ride another 20 miles or so and head toward the Libby Dam before they camp for the night.  They have the makings for a delicious dinner and on the menu this evening will be clam chowder, oysters, salmon, a green salad and French bread.  Yummy!  Last evening they camped at the Cabinet Gorge RV Park, which was run by Diane, who was the sweetest person, and who runs a very nice, immaculate campground.  Sherry especially loved the showers!  The RV Park was located on the banks of the Clark Fork River, which was also breathtaking.  The skies were sunny, so they just enjoyed hanging out at the campground, having dinner, journaling and taking in all the beauty this area is affording them.  Being out on the back roads of the country also affords peace and quiet among that beauty.  So quiet in fact they have infrequent cell phone coverage and very few places to find internet service.  They continue to meet other kindred spirits who are biking their way across the US, and recently hooked up with Missy and Shane who are doing an all around USA bike tour, taking about one year to cover the entire country.  Go Missy and Shane!!  Devra and Sherry continue to take lots of photos and as soon as they can find an internet cafe more photos will be coming.  That's about all the news for today.  The girls send their grateful thanks to everyone who is supporting them, checking in daily for updates and sending them love and energy to keep on pedaling.  They feel your spirit and say "Thanks, we love you!".

E Star

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Monday, June 12, 2006

Yippee - skippy!!!  Miracles do happen! 

Hello everyone- this is DeeDee, Sherry & Devra's friend, and at long last, after many, many attempts and lots of frustration, I am finally able to log-in on their web site and do some updating.  I know computers are wonderful and fabulous - but only when they are working! 

Something I wanted to post at the beginning of their journey, but could not get on the site:  Both Devra and Sherry wanted to give a special thanks to the wonderful people at Arlington, especially Dan and his crew at Paraphernalia for all their wonderful help and the party they had the evening before the journey began, as well as the great send off in the morning.  Dan went above and beyond all expectations and we just want to give him lots and lots of kudos for all that he and the entire crew did to help!

Keep checking back as I think I won't have any more problems with posting updates!

DeeDee :-)

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Still Sunday June 11th, 2006

Well Devra and Sherry worked on the photos today and will be unable to load them into this daily diary.  So, they will be sending the photos to a Costco website and sending them on to me.  I will then send out a broadcast email to you that the photos are ready for viewing with a link.  They have provided me with a VERY long list of email addresses.  I sent out the first link this evening.  So if you did not receive an email from me and you would like to receive the photo links please send me an email.  My email address is Mindmed@pacbell.net .  I will be happy to add you to the list so you can enjoy the beautiful photos they have been taking. 

E Star

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Sunday June 11th 2006

E Star here learning how to update the website.  Sherry is at the other end of the phone tutoring me.  They are enjoying their day off, drinking coffee and eating donuts.  Their wonderful friends Kharin and Bobby, drove 12 hours to spend the day with them.  Today they will try and enter the photos into the website.  Good luck girls!

E Star

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Saturday June 10, 2006

Miles traveled as of June 10th = 450

We left Washington behind us this morning as we rode out of Newport and into Idaho under cloudy but dry skies.  It rained throughout most of the night but by morning the clouds had finally exhausted themselves of all moisture. 

The ride from Newport to Sandpoint was very nice.  Our maps kept us off of the main highway as we rode along the banks of the Priest River on a beautiful country road.  The area we rode through was scattered with big red barns sitting in the middle of luscious green meadows. We heard Cow Bells ringing, an Eagle calling,herds of very expensive looking horses grazing in the fields, and an Osprey feeding her young.

Sandpoint is a lovely town and has the most amazing library for a town of only 5,000.  Sherry's friends Kharin & Bobby are driving up from Sun Valley to meet us tonight and spend the day tomorrow.  We are really looking forward to letting our hair down.  I guess that means we will have to wash it.

We have met so many nice people  last night we stayed at the Old American Kampground.  It is a camp community of mainly retired people who travel around in their motorhomes.  They welcomed us with open arms!  Invited us to the "Ice Cream Social" and even the "Saturday Morning Pancake Breakfast".

We would like to send a special thank you to a few of the new friends we have met on this journey and to thank them for their support and words of encouragement

Marty Aaenson - Mehtow Valley Shooting Foundation, Jim Humes & Jim Ledgering  - Old American Kampground, Sue & Dick Roberts - North Cascade Basecamp, Alan & Lori Goerdt - Marblemount diner,Ed & Cheryl Ethrington - Riverbend RV Park, the riders from Yesride.org Ride for Humanitarian Aid,  and last but not least the Libraries in Ione, Newport, and Sandpoint.

Tomorrow is our first rest day.  We are sleepin in................

Sherry & Devra

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Friday June 9, 2006

Hello from beautiful downtown Newport Washington. We are only steps away from Idaho, and will probably stay on the Priest River tonight. Last night was a night to forget. We got to the "Clean Rooms, RV, Motel, Campground" got a spot, but didnt look at the bathrooms before we payed, ugh. Then little did we know that the "lounge" across the river was going to play music, LOUD music until 2 AM. We were not impressed. We got out of there as soon as we had our bags packed this morning.

We rode along the Pend Orielle River (pronounced Pon Oray) for over 50 miles to Newport. As we have experienced so far, it was gorgeous. Green, birds chirping, Sherry thought she saw an eagle and we saw another blue heron. The rode parralel to highway 20 on the other side of the river, and it was rather bumpy most the way. We didnt have to climb much, but we are feeling the miles today. We have decided to go to the libraey first, do our update, and then ask around for nice campgrounds to stay in. Wish us luck tonight.

Only 15 minutes on the computer at this libraey, so I will sign off soon. Another call to the web site people, we are about done with them, its never ending the problems they create for us, then back to them. We are working on pictures, and do we ever have some great photos to share soon....

Sherry and Devra

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Thursday June 8, 2006

Kettle Falls to Ione.  Up and over  "Waconda Jr" We thought the climbing was behind us but OH NO there was one last HILL to climb.  But again it was well worth the climb.  Beautiful green colors, multiple lakes, Crystal Falls and the best part, "Sherry Lake".  Who would have thought that the state of Washington would have named a lake after little-o-me.  Now we are on the look out for Devra Lake. We'll keep you posted.

We left Kettle Falls @0700, immediately it started to sprinkle, then it started to rain, but oh wait then it REALLY started to pour.  We were a couple of very drowned rats when we arrived at Mahoney's Cafe in Colville.  After wringing ourselves out in the parking lot we dripped our way inside where we were greated by the owners, who looked at us like the crazy people we are without a lick of sense.  They took pity on us and fixed Devra some very fabulous chicken soup and Sherry the best pancake she has ever had! 

We attribute the rain to the fact that we had gotten so sunburned yesterday that today we were determined to be prepared.  We lathered up with SPF 50. And no it was not the waterproof kind.

We are camped on the banks of the Pend Oreille Lake in Ione.  It is quite lovely!  And kudos to the Ione Library for letting us use their internet access.

Now it is off to the the store to purchase supplies for dinner.  Then it's showers, laundry, and la la land for these two very happy but tired ladies.

Tomorrow Newport Washington.  This will be our last night in the state of Washington.  The next day we will ride into Sandpoint Idaho where we will meet up with Sherry's friends Bobby & Karin who are driving up from Sun Valley, ID.  And we will take our first rest day.  Yahoo!

Sorry no pictures we are having technical difficulties but we have a plan............we'll let you know when the details are worked out.

Devra & Sherry

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Wednesday June 7, 2006

Hello everyone!  Devra & I have made it over the Cascades.  Yahoo!  Our climbing days started on June 3rd.  Over the last 4 days we have climbed Rainy, Washington, Loup Loup, Waconda, and last but not least Sherman passes.  Over 20,000 ft of climbing in all.  And let me tell you it felt pretty darn good to see the Cascades behind us today!  We did great and our legs did not fail us. 

On all of the passes we have been riding with another cross country group.  Ride For Humanity, there are 15 of them.  They have a support van to carry all their gear so they make it to the top much faster than we do but they have been awsome.  The van always checked with us to make sure we were ok and to see if we needed any food or water.  And they even waited for us to make it to the top of the pass and cheered for us.  Great group of people.  They were riding on ahead of us today so we probably won't see them agian.  But it was fun to have the extra company and encouragement for these past few days.  Thanks, Ride for Humanity.

We are in Kettle Falls, Washington.  Kettle Falls is on the banks of Rosevelt Lake and the Colombia River.  It is just breath taking!  And might I mention that after the previous week of cool weather and plenty of rain it has suddenly gotten VERY warm. 

Tomorrow we are headed to Ione, Washington.  Our original plan  was then to ride into Sandpoint, ID on the 9th.  We are going to try to stick to that plan but it will really depend on which way the wind is blowing.  Our legs are very tired.............but our spirits are good. 

We have met some wonderful people and look forward to meeting even more as we continue east across the states.  We are having more trouble than we thought trying to get internet access.  Right now I am in the Kettle Falls library and my internet time is limited to 30min.  So this is all for now. 

Sherry & Devra

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Saturday May 27, 2006 at 5:00 p.m.

Devra is here showing me how to get onto the web site and add some text. I sure hope I don't mess this whole thing up while Devra and Sherry are gone! All the best to the two of you on your most incredible journey! I'm so proud of both of you! All my love - DeeDee :-)

Saturday May 27, 2006

O.K., I love Mother Nature, but this is a joke isn't it. I'M NOT STRESSED!!!!!!!!!

My house Reno, May 7, 2006

My house Reno, May 27, 2006 (yes, snowing)

Devra

Friday May 26, 2006

The Ladybugs

Tom and Marcia Osloond, Sherry's Folks

I had the most hectic last day of work on Thursday, but had such a nice time after at the good-bye get together. I am so blessed to have the most incredible circle of friends and co-workers. Everyone has b