Day 6: 6/24/24: Hardy to Bull Shoals - White River State Park

I can't recall for sure, but a train woke me up 4-5 times last night.  I woke up without a train at about 3:15 a.m.  I contemplated going back to sleep, but decided to go ahead and get up.  

Taking down my tent this morning was much better than yesterday.  There were no mosquitoes bothering me.  One of the men at the "Liar's Table" at McDonald's yesterday told me that once I cross the Black River, which I did yesterday, I will be out of mosquito country, but will enter tick and chigger country.  I guess he was right about the mosquitos, and so far I've had no problem with ticks and/or chiggers.

I was on the road by a little after 4 a.m. this morning.  Sacrificing a little sleep sure goes a long way in enjoyable riding. There was little to no traffic for a couple of hours.  Also, I passed banks in a couple of small towns several miles apart and their outdoor signs indicated temperatures of 72 degrees and 66 degrees.  The temperature felt really nice.  It was short lived and got hot again today, but I was able to enjoy those few hours of comfort.

The Hwy 412 ride today was much better than the one yesterday.  There was traffic, but it wasn't near the volume of yesterday's traffic.  The shoulder was also more consistent today.  I was able to look around and actually enjoy the scenery.

Below is a pic of a portion of Norfolk Lake.

I'm camping tonight at the Bull Shoals - White River State Park (pic below).

Total miles today: 79.5