1/18/2015
As the people in the northern part of the United States battled freezing cold, warm beams of light tickled my face. On the 139th day of my journey, I was greeted with spinach quiche, biscuits, pinapple, and juice. The start of the day signaled good fortune. Katelyn interviewed me and Crystal over breakfast. We recounted the ups and downs of the journey in between delicious bites of food. When all was finished, we set out to snap a few photos for the publication. In between photos, I met a sweet couple that was very familiar with Cross City and its history. Bill and Sybil had witnessed the changes of the town over the years and they mentioned the place had swanky parties back in the day. They were so glad Beverly and Ed purchased the property to restore its glory.
The stretch towards Tampa allowed us the luxury of low mileage days. The reason being was my arrival was originally on a weekend but the Shriner’s hospital thought it would be better to see the kids on a weekday. My feet began their steps on the Nature Coast State Trail. The flat evenly paved trail kept my feet comfortable. It was the perfect running terrain for keeping the muscles from feeling aches. The trees on both sides of the trail provided shade and shielded runners and bicyclists from the roaring cars on the 19. Every so often outlets allowed the people on the trail to depart for a home or business.
The path allowed for speed so I made it to Old Town in short time and, even though the trail ended, the road provided an ample and equally even side lane. The road ran alongside the Suwannee River for a couple miles before a bridge appeared. Ranches and little towns kept the run from being visually monotonous. While I raced along the road, cranes would fly away as I approached. It dawned on me that the color of the cranes had shifted from white to brown and grey. I wondered if this was a kind of defense mechanism that helped them blend into the forest.
The sounds of croaking frogs and rapping birds provided me with tunes until I reached Chiefland. I would rest my head and camp at a parking lot of a retail store. The place must have been a hotspot for the local teenagers because they were there with lifted trucks having quite the party.
The kids weren’t very loud and I slept fine. I woke up and found a donut shop to post my blog then headed out for another quick day. I couldn’t believe how strong my legs felt. After passing some local farm stands and shops, I hit a long stretch of road with nothing but trees. It was Zen running time. I’d just be one with nature and hit my stride. No photos were taken for fifteen miles. I had just decided at that point to cross over the highway and run with traffic. About a minute after that decision, Crystal pulled up behind me and honked the horn. I didn’t want to let myself relax for too long so we agreed to meet up somewhere on the road.
I switched to back to running against traffic. A few miles into this patch, a car pulled off the main road and looked to be headed towards me. I didn’t know if the motorists needed help or if I needed to prepare myself for hooligans. A lady jumped out of the passenger side of the car to speak with me. Rosaline, her husband Tim and their daughter Isabella had just finished watching game for the Shriners and they were heading back to their home in Santa Rosa. I just happened that Isabella was a Shriner’s ambassador. She was a very intelligent and articulate kid and you could tell her parents were very proud of her. Rosaline had seen me on the Panama City news a couple weeks ago and they wanted to tell me I was doing a good thing. Tim handed me a water and we snapped a few photos. That brief moment gave me a boost of inspiration. It fueled the notion that I should keep going and it helped me believe that I would realize my destination. Of course the destination for day 140 was another abandoned roadside gas station. Hello Gulf Hammock. 
Leave a reply