One of the remarkable features of cy ling transams, indeed long distance cycling in general, is the way a bad moment - of weariness, soakedness or dust streaked sweatiness - can turn into a delight of clean well fed comfort. Such happened today when from heavy rain in the morning and a lack of showers and potable water we ended up drinking a beer (Juengling Amber Lager - not bad at all and claims to be the oldest brewery in the USA), then drying off in warm sunshine and then having a shower and stretching out on indoor camp beds, while recharging our diverse electronic items, chiefly the battery backup for this phone. An ocean of tea has been drunk. Whereas yesterday evening I killed 11 mosquitoes during the evening while in the tent at Independence Dam State Park, they had a fair bit of my own dearest blood.... The key snag for yesterday's primitive camping, is that it is by a fairly busy road (other side of the canal) yet it is trying to be away from it all as a primitive camping.... From the barbecue sites, there is evidence that people drive all the way to this site with no potable water and primitive toilets in order to eat charred food. Puzzling. But then I still don't understand barbecues.... The cycling today was initially tough as Storm Beryl dumped rain on Western Ohio. Not so bad as the rain we had in the Appalachians, the heavy rain did not last long. There was then a gusty fresh to strong NW wind that was partly a headwind and tough when our route headed directly into it. But it did dry us off. We got a bit lost after Defiance, where the rain pelted down, and then battled the wind to get back on route but then enjoyed the 146 and 111 roads into Paulding. From there we did more flat roads through peas and maize fields, or stubble where wheat has been harvested, to Payne. This section was nice because the wind was now a cross wind and that's where the photo was taken. Dramatic clouds, no thunder (T-storms make us think of storms in a T cup), no twisters... note the wind turbines, quite a few, whirring today. Then Monroeville to the community park, which offers long distance cyclists shelter in their superb park buildings. This is a small town but it would be the envy of many similar towns. Hurray for the spirit of community, biking your long trip whyever you are travelling, and volunteers like Rich who met us and showed us the indoor area! There's a visitors book full of trips going not just along our transam route (Northern Tier) but every direction, visiting relatives by bike, cycling to a new home, cycling in boiling days in August (we may well have those), cycling down towards the south, to Canada, cycling home....