Windy City will be changed from Chicago to Ft. Davis,TX

I woke up after my fourth night in Ft. Davis and was ready to roll onward to Alpine. I had breakfast with the gang of fellow cabin dwellers, made my way back to my cabin and hear a giant WHOOSH! That sound didn't stop until after 10 PM. When I first heard the WHOOSH, I immediately checked out weather.com to get the scoop. "Wind Advisory - Sustained winds of 35 to 40 mph with gusts up to 65 mph." My cabin got Karma and me for another day. I didn't feel the need to be brave and fight crosswinds and headwinds as I headed to Alpine. I'm not that brave. I was blessed to see the sunrise below.

View from my cabin porch at sunrise, 12/30/2010

I spent most of the day streaming Netflix documentaries.Karma did join me for a walk. I'm officially a documentary junkie. I went to bed quite early but couldn't sleep. I had the weirdest headache I've ever encountered and am convinced it was because the high pressure system, with it's very high winds were driving their way across the desert plains to a very low pressure system. In the AM I was fine.

Finally, on New Year's Eve, I rolled out of Ft. Davis, but not before I received a very nice gift from my hosts. They only charged me for two of the three nights I stayed. I didn't feel right about it, so I told them I would make a donation to ASTT and name the Davis Mountains Education Center as the donor for the amount of the rental for the extra night. Jenny and Scott were delighted with that as was I.

Rolling down Rt. 118, also known as Musquiz Road, I took a few photos of some historical markers and some gorgeous scenery.

Landmark

Directly across street from the landmark

Four Elk. Just Hanging out.

Same sign as above, just a closeup

The great standoff. Karma and the moderately Longhorn

Always liked Punky

Just wondering if they will change the sign soon because of the 2010 census.

Just as I entered town, I met a young man from Kingston, NY who was cycling the same route as I only in reverse. This young man, 18, decided to take the southern tier route alone as well and was really making some good time. He and I exchanged information and suggestions about where to stay, what to see and what towns to avoid. 

He obtained a free bicycle, a Raleigh that must have been 20 years old or more. But, that bike had hauled him approximately 1,900 miles already in 4 weeks. I had a lot of respect for Aaron who had the fortitude to make the journey alone at 18. I don't know that I would have done that if I was really into bicycling at the time..

Hanging with my undead dog In Alpine outside a grocery store.

After a chat with a man and a woman outside the store, I made my way to the Pecan Grove RV Park, set up my tent and got Karma fed and settled. After that, I made my gourmet dinner of spinach salad, blue cheese dressing and shrimp. So I climbed into the tent and shared some of my dinner with the furry one, even though she was kind of a lazy runner today - it is a holiday!

To my friends I miss you all! To my children, I love you and forever will.