Day twenty-three

I don't think my clothes dried out all the way last night, so I kinda smell now... Need to do laundry next chance I get I s'pose. Ah well. Not much longer to go actually.

Typical cycling breakfast again. Huge and lovely. I hope I don't keep up like this after the trip is done tho', 'cause without all the cycling I'd gain 20 lbs a day on this diet prolly. Bought some bananas and blueberries at a roadside stand before setting off. Why are bananas so super cheap--aren't they imported? Makes no sense.

It takes me the first 10 min to get warmed up on the bike really, even up to 20 min, and the first 5 km today was uphill. Blah. Main N road all the way to Killybegs: busy, hilly, and boring. When there was a hard shoulder, and there usually wasn't, it was full of gravel or potholes. A few people tried to pass me into oncoming traffic, either squeezing me or making the oncoming cars slow down/slam on brakes. No one who waited for a safe time to pass was stuck behind me more than 60 seconds... Damn, what's some people's problem? And when is it ever okay to pass anything on a blind curve?? (Most people are okay tho', like I've said before. Just needed another vent.)

Killybegs is a fishing town, and ugly for it. Smells of fishy offal and petrol. Boat-filled harbour, drab and utilitarian architecture. Reminds me of Yokosuka naval base in Japan kinda. Not worth a stop so I just passed right on thru.

Coastal road around to Kilcar from just past Largy was nice, altho' it started pissing rain when I was on it. Secluded sandy beaches, rocky grass-tusseled cliffs. It was quite hilly, but the steep uphills were short and rewarded in turn with decent downhills. There wasn't much traffic until a knot of it randomly appeared, cars all getting in each others' way whilst I hung back, and then no traffic again till back on the main road in Kilcar.

I'd've stopped there for tea or something but I was wet and cold and decided not to stop anywhere till the hostel in Malin Beg. I had sat down for a small snack before the rain started. So, onward thru the grey, saturated air.

Downhill at 45 kph into Carrick and the fat raindrops pelted my bare arms like little stones. Got really cold. Couldn't see anything. Threw on my waterproof (for warmth; was already soaked), ate a boiled egg, and refused to stop. About 5 km after Carrick I took a left for Malin More, leaving the huge loud trucks behind for a smaller road, thru peat bogs and mottled brown and green mountains breathing deeply of the heavy clouds. Sheep chomped on their cud and regarded me with curiosity. I cursed the weather and endured the hills. Then, I finally reached the sea. Grey and formless it was. Fused together with likewise grey sky into a single canopy upon which this ragged coast hung, suspended, dripping froth and foam. Only 4 undulating kilometres to go thru a wind-rippled fissure of a valley until this hostel, this heat and dry and rest.

The hostel is very clean and nice. When I first arrived no one was here, so I went across the street to buy rashers and eggs for the morning. Older mustachioed gentleman in the shop was very quiet and shy. When I left the shop for the hostel again he followed me out and turns out he runs the hostel too.

There is a roaring fire and I don't want to move away from it ever again. There's no wifi tho', and no phone network, either. Which means, no internet. I had to call Aisling on a pay phone to tell her I was safe for the night. Threw in 50 cents and got like one minute of talking time; it cut her off in the middle of saying something... Sorry, Aisling. I didn't want to waste tons of money in the machine for only five minutes so I didn't call back. But when I have network again I'll go back to texting regularly.

It's good for me not to have internet, anyway. While I've been youtube-free this whole time (I had a terrible youtube addiction that was severely hampering my productivity), I have been checking facebook on my phone two or three times a day, and my blogs I follow via google reader, too. I'm more likely to write, read, or do something creative when the internet is off and gone. Altho', tired as I am, all I'll do tonight is prolly write this (to post once I get back somewhere with a network).

I'm utterly exhausted so off to bed with me.

Pax.