I do not know when exactly my day began. A night full of restless tossing and turning, left me grouchy. However, at some point I opened my eyes and reluctantly rolled out of bed. My room is a total mess. But somewhere among the clutter I managed to find my day pack, along with my rain gear and a book that I would recommend to anyone. It is called: Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail By: Cheryl Strayed. I began walking at around 7 a.m. My first destination, the holiday. Despite my lack of sleep, I was not going to allow it to ruin my day. So, unfortunately I had to resort to coffee. From the holiday, I took roads I have not traveled before to get to Walmart. Although, I do not support Walmart. I am a broke college student trying to survive. Therefore, my journey to Walmart was only to determine what I was going to eat for lunch. Today it was barbecue chicken, my favorite.
Campus is dead. Everyone else is in far off realms celebrating their spring break. I am left alone, in Ashland. To many people this would be miserable. Yet to me, this is all I have ever wanted. I unlock my bike and hit the road for another day full of adventure. Since break has begun I have created this game. It's called "where can I eat lunch in a cooler place than where I ate yesterday." It may be a mouthful, but you get the point. Today's destination: unknown.
I began my trek going east bound on Ellis. I turned left on the old airport road. While on the old airport road, I encountered a man. A very peculiar old man. As I approached him, he stuck out his thumb as to alert me to pull over and allow him to hop on the back of my bike. Instead, I quickly turned my jets on and was out of there. Ain't nobody got time to be picking up freelancers while trying to complete a journey. Anyways, I then turned right on Holmes. While on Holmes, I stumbled across White River Boreal Forest State Natural Area. Here is where I enjoyed my lunch. Taking in every moment of sunshine because spring time in Northern Wisconsin is unpredictable and who knows when the next death storm 2014 will hit.
Once done, I back tracked to Pearce road. I traveled this road back to Ellis where I then turned left. I continued until Hegstrom where I then took a right. I luckily happened upon the roads that were paved despite the fact that I do have a beater mountain bike. This only aided in my travels. I have come to hate Hegstrom road. Not that it lacked beauty because it provided my with ample opportunities for miles and miles of scenery. No, it was the relentless wind. Whipping my one-hundred pound self in a million different directions. Yet I survived. I even crossed paths with Mr. Andy Goeke himself! I the turned left on Sanborn where I soared down the hill and stopped at the hydroelectric dam.
I sat admiring the dam for some time. The water came out with increasing speeds. It was so loud that I could barely hear myself think. But I did conclude that you could not pay me a million dollars to get in that water. Any brave soul who dared to conquer the water, most definitely had a death wish. I walked around the premise of the facility. Many-a-times, I have journeyed to the dam at night. But I had never seen its beauty during the day. This dam holds some significance to me. However, that is another story and shall be saved until a further date.
After leaving the dam, I returned to the top of the hill in which I encountered a sign that said: Benoit - 7 miles. It was noon by this time and a journey to Benoit was exactly what I needed. The road to Benoit reminded me of home. Cornfields hugged the road that winded around tiny farm houses. Far off in the distance were whitetail. However, fleeing quickly once I approached them. I traveled this road for four miles. Unfortunately, to get to Benoit one must be willing to climb a massive hill; something that I was no exactly prepared for. While venturing back to the Sanborn, I came across a familiar property. I took my chances and decided to trespass. Luckily, it was the Maxwell property. I have only been there once before and I am surprised my instincts in altering me that this place was in fact familiar.
The venture back was uneventful. Some idiot almost hit me. But once back at school, I ate a ridiculous amount of food and watched Harry Potter. I am hoping that tomorrow only brings rain. I am looking forward to more adventures to uncharted territories in near future.