21:32 Trekkers put on their tent rain cover in the complete darkness. The pots from dinner, still unwashed, lie on the table–cluttered.
06:45 Boss Emmett’s watch goes off in the pale blue morning, approximately 65 minutes before roll time.
19:23 Dinner miraculously gets done in time before sundown. We had to boil rice twice, not because we got hungry, but because we somehow lost all three essential parts to the stove in the rush of the morning.
20:03 The boys move a picnic table close to the fire so we can keep warm. Owen reaches for dessert, but we mustn’t start til everyone is back at camp.
06:55 Water meant to be boiled is tossed. We realize waiting for oatmeal is not an option. Cereal and bagels will have to do today.
16:53 At the camp store we replenish firewood supplies. Then bike down the block to the arcade and spend some time struggling with arcade games from the early 2000s.
07:03 Julia asks where the bug spray is, Lillian the sunscreen. The two picnic tables we adopted on Wednesday are sprawling with food, wrappers, and clothing all damp from the rain two hours prior.
14:28 The trail we’re walking reaches a slight peak. Our heavy loaded bikes almost made it through without stopping, but sand covered rocks and roots stop us in our tracks. At least we don’t puncture a tube.
07:32 One of the few benefits of the rain soaking our gear is that the dishes are slightly cleaner. We wipe them up with even wetter paper towels before packing the mess kit into the Canadian reusable bag. Tents are mostly empty, yet fully assembled still. In 43 minutes the ferry will leave.
13:09 After crossing Route 1, we roll into a local grocery parking lot. Next door an old empty barn shades a spot we put our bikes in. In the backyard a picnic table–much like the one we rushed breakfast over–sits in shade and we immediately plop our lunch bags on it. Before cooks Tristan and Emmett buy lunch the trekkers eat up most of the leftovers.
07:44 Wet tents are shoved into their bags. As we grab our panniers and lift them onto our racks Will finds that his front tire has deflated. It won’t hold any air and we’re one mile from the port.
Nicholas takes Will to walk there right away, leaving his plate and rain clothes splayed on the table. Zach tells the crew that we’re rolling in 10. The garbage bag is overflowing, everyones bike is packed, yet our equipment is still littered about the campsite.
10:41 At an early stop a few of us run inside into the a store for the restroom. While we break three different shoppers stop and ask Nicholas about our group. It’s an understatement to say we’re fishing out of water in South Kingstown, RI.
07:55 We should have left five minutes ago. We won’t leave til ten minutes from now.
09:32 The first aid kit is taken out of Nicholas’s pannier.
08:02 Things at the camp aren’t looking great. Metal burners and army green propane tanks aren’t packed and they’re the hardest items to fit.
In Old Bay Nicholas and Will get to the ferry 35 minutes after recommended passenger arrival time. They don’t buy tickets.
8:17 The ferry pulls away from the dock. It’s full of scrap metal, commuters, and exhausted vacationers returning home.
08:09 Finally the last of us roll out of the campsite. Lillian’s bike (overpacked) promptly falls on its side. Most of the pack rushes on nevertheless. Zach scrambles to get the fallen items, but misses a dangling strap coiling around the axle. We fall a few more times on the brutal way down the hill, carrying heaviest items in one hand and steering with the other. At 8:13 we round the corner to Water St and Zach yells to Nicholas to buy tickets. A minute later we all rush up to the dock and start to load on, one 60 pound bike after another. Nicholas passes tickets to crew a few minutes after that and the ferry is off seconds later.