Erin and Bess get baptized

Breaks Interstate Park
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Departed Damascus on my bike on the 29th.  My new bike is a 'heavy commuter' made by Specialized.  I named her like the state I bought her in:  I call her Bess. It rained on and off all day. There's a line from a song- 'I stepped out of my shower, feeling more wet than baptized.' When I showered last I was merely wet, today Bess and I were baptized.  I rode past the hostel I was intending to stay in because I thought it was in town.  Soaked to the bone, I arrived in Rosedale and stayed in a motel instead.

What?
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On the 30th I made it to Breaks Interstate Park.  The place is like a huge resort with hotel, cabins, restaurant and horse stables. Even in the camping area there was a big playground and basketball court. As I was settling down, I could swear I heard a banjo beginning to play. After a while I heard low notes begin. When I walked down to the bathroom, I saw the group - a banjo, a mandolin, a few guitars and an entire upright bass. They played so wonderfully that I had to stop and listen for a while. It was that good bluegrass that you’d expect to be played somewhere on a mountain near the border of Virginia and Kentucky, but I never thought it would be two tent sites away from me. I cried a little as I watched them, it was so lovely. I could still hear them playing as I went to sleep.

First two days I made 42 miles each day! Lost my miror in Haysi.

On to Kentucky tomorrow.