#ecg4equality

Artwork along the way

The Sunrise Trail continued and became even thicker sand. I kept running into women who insisted it was very brave to undertake this journey alone and they kept wishing me luck. I didn’t cover the mileage I wanted to and decided to divert down to Rt 1 instead of dipping deeper into the woods with creaky gears and a whining chain. After overhearing folks commiserate over the hell of bureaucracy,  the town office woman directed me to the library where I had a magical encounter with a woman named Jimmie. She offered to take me home and feed me dinner - and happened to be going to Ellsworth, where I had intended to make it that night. She gave me a tour of her land - several acres of which she helped save from development a number of years ago. We talked about my trip - about the state of women’s affairs and how it seems like we are in a reverse time warp.  We talked about the never-ending labels of identity politics and how the pigeonholing never seems to end. I slept through the night and had wonderful dreams in the comfort of her self-made cabin. 

Sunset in Machias ME

First day begin at the US-Canadian Border, lacking cellular service but abundant in sunshine and beautiful scenery. The Sunrise Trail is an ATV trail that stretches its sandy path through the woods of north-eastern Maine past wetlands and over rivers. Couples and crews were out enjoying rides on the holiday - relaxing and picking berries. Used wi-fi to checkin with friends and family because my data reception was still pretty spotty. Met a group of folks talking about Florida and a gentleman named Dale who hopes to sail the Great Loop Route next year - The Atlantic Ocean, Great Lakes, then the Mississippi to the Gulf. How incredible! I explained my trip to them and they offered prayers. 

Looking forward to time and access to peruse the Internet. And riding my bicycle. Mostly my bicycle.