Today just wasn't in the cards for us. We tried to run, tried to walk, tried everything that we could but it just wasn't happening. We called it a day early and got picked up by Carl after only 8 miles on the road. Durkin did his best to tough it out but we all decided it wasn't worth trying to go any further. We are all still confident that we will be finishing this journey on May 26th but now we have to reshuffle and reschedule a few things. Not a big deal. We'll do what we always do and make changes on the fly. Its the one thing we have come to love about this trip. We never know where we are going to be the next day or what town we might be in. We adapt and change just as the roads below us do. Some days we are up and others we are down but above all we know how to make the best of a tough situation and continue to have a good time exploring this country and the great people that make it up.
I woke up around 5:30am to get a drink. Durkin was also awake and said to me "today we run". He was feeling better and thought it would be possible to make it to Cameron so we gave it a shot. We woke up around 6:30 and began packing up our gear as Amanda cooked us breakfast. She made us a traditional Jewish dish usually prepared during passover. It was almost like a pancake as we ate it with syrup. We also had cereal and sandwiches for the road. Around 7:30 Pat picked us up and we headed back to where we stopped running yesterday.
We were literally on the top of a huge hill overlooking Tuba City about 6 miles below. In the distance we could see the horizon and giant peaks of the Grand Canyon. It has been extremely hazy the last week or so and we were told it was a result of the fires and dust storms that have been taking place around the world.
We walked for about 4-5 miles directly downhill and enjoyed the scenery. There was road construction taking place which made our travel even slower and we all struggled to make it to the top of the hill and reach the heart of Tuba City. We were traveling on the edge of a cliff that overlooked a valley below. Farm fields from the Hopi people are still being used after hundreds of years. It was kind of neat to see and experience first hand.
As we arrived in town we stopped at a gas station to get something to eat. Durkin was not feeling that well at this point and we were deciding what to do. On the way out of the gas station a man came up to us. He asked us about our journey and as we told him about ourselves we all could see his excitement. As we left, he slapped us five and gave us a strong hand pound. It got us all pumped for a few minutes before reality once again sunk in.
After another mile or two we decided to call Carl and get picked up. This sets us back another day but as I already stated we will be making it up one way or another. Back at the house Durkin slept for most of the day. He has just recently started moving around and eating chicken soup. We are going to see how well he feels tomorrow morning and attempt to run again. If not, we will take another day off.
Ken and I watched the hit TV show Planet Earth, specifically Ice World and Caves, this afternoon before walking over to the post office to mail home a few things. It has been a lazy afternoon of watching tv and taking naps. We are currently watching A Beautiful Mind and waiting for dinner. The family has been busy with softball, baseball and t-ball games as the three of us have been watching over the house.
We also played Wii with their four year old son Dana who kept calling Ken "Eric". He showed us how to play cow races and the fishing game. I think Ken was the best personally.
Tomorrow we will try again and hopefully have a better result. Either way we are truly thankful to the Perry family and everyone else who has helped us along the way. I can't imagine where we would be without everyones help.
Wish us luck. We'll see you tomorrow.
-Andy
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