Wonderful Thunder storm and first rain in 18 days

Day 21 – June 30, 2009
This morning was the first time we had dew on the bike seats since leaving the east 21 days ago. Today was the first time we saw a lake since leaving California; I was surprised to see so much water in one place when we came upon it and the creeks actually have water in them. In most of the western states I would see a ‘creek’ and it was a dry river bed waiting for the infrequent flash flood. As we move east closer to Arkansas I begin to see mountains in the distance and the forest is dense with tall trees and underbrush; something apparently only found in the east. I really don’t like traveling an Interstate HWY but it does serve the purpose of getting you where you want to be quickly and we are getting close to the ‘return to work day’. I don’t mind riding around big cities but I’m really a small town America type person and much prefer the path less traveled. I see signs for museums or historical markers in almost every little town along the way and wish I had time to stop but the plan for this trip was stop on the way out at several places and then boggy back on 40. I did notice we traveled through Cherokee Territory where the tribe ended their Trail of Tears walk years ago when driven from their homeland in North Carolina. One ‘small town’ we found was Mulberry, Arkansas. We needed gas and the exit sign said gas so I pulled off even though I didn’t see a gas station – first mistake. After riding 2 miles on a country road we came to a cross roads with a gas station on two corners but when we pulled into the first one the pumps had bags over the hoses. Pulled to the second station – same situation. Don went into the store and they told him a station was about a half mile further and when we got there it was straight out of history! The pumps stated the price of 695 and I stopped dead in my tracks but the owner said he didn’t have a place to put the $2 because they were old pumps. They had a little building about 25 X 40 across the street with a sign stating it was the “Mulberry Mall”. We have met some very nice people also traveling by motorcycle and today we met a couple ‘newlyweds’ traveling to Wing Ding on a nice Gold Wing trike; he is 78 and she is probably close to that age. There are lots of bikes on the highway; some traveling alone and others in small groups. We have traveled 335 miles today and landed in Little Rock Arkansas. Just in time too because the sky has opened and we are having a wonderful thunder storm; first real rain we have seen since our second day on the road.