Taking a Rest

David: Life on the road is not all work. Life in the woods is not all work.

Yesterday, Chris and I biked through a Nature Preserve. Partly asphalt paths, and partly elevated wooden walkways through swampy ground. There were groups of “snowbirds” who have been there for a couple weeks who gave us directions to where the baby alligators hang out. So of course we drove by. And there he or she (I neither asked nor attempted to perform an examination) was. Sleeping in the later afternoon sun.

Alligators sleep 17 hours a day. There is a great deal of uniformity on this in a Google search. Not “up to 17 hours a day,” and not “between 16 to 18 hours a day.” Just “17 hours.” Which is a lot. I’m happy for them.

Chris and I do not sleep 17 hours a day ever - and especially not on this trip. How many hours we get in the tent varies. Did we wake up to hear rain on the tent?  Raccoons going through our food?  Sore backs?

But it’s not all tenting. Chris also builds an “off day” into the schedule once a week. Or tries to. Last night after she biked we drove away from the beach to Foley, Alabama where we slept last night. Today, we slept some more! And rearranged the car. Got two “cooling towels” in preparation for driving through Texas. Wrote postcards. Tonight we’ll have supper at the Shrimp House next door. As we were driving back to the Hotel from our shopping trip Chris said, “I’m anxious to get onto the next section.”  That’s the purpose and result of a day off.