We left the hotel at 8:15am and took I-74 South into Indiana. The roads were in considerably worse condition than in Illinois, which we knew from previous trips. Rutted and bumpy.
Lunch was in Pittsboro, Indiana at Love's gas station with a Subway and a dog park. We put out our chairs and table and ate in the grass next to the fenced dog park. A lady brought over her huge dog to run around while she filled her car with gas. He was not happy to be left in there! He tried to get out and whined. She was talking to him from way over at the gas pumps. Michele thought that dog could easily jump the fence if he got a running start. We joked that it wasn’t the most glamorous or romantic lunch location, but we made do!
After lunch we saw an onion truck. They look like oranges here but we got a close up view while on the highway and they were definitely big onions.
As we approached Indianapolis, we circled a bit north to I-65 South and then headed east on I-70. Traffic through Indy was fairly light compared to past experiences going through the city. Somewhere along the way we got a glimpse of this dam.
And we crossed into Ohio we learned that whatever you need you'll find it in Ohio!
We stopped 140 miles outside of Columbus for fuel and a final rest break. Traffic was pretty heavy from Dayton to Columbus, this being a Friday and a holiday weekend. It's always busy on this stretch though.
A mile short of 270 there was an accident and traffic stopped a few times, but we mostly rolled slowly through. Rob was watching traffic all around him - front, back and to the sides to be sure people could see us and the trailer. We took I270 North to Dublin, OH to stay at the Fairfield Marriott for the night.
We walked the mile from our hotel to 101 Beer Kitchen in Dublin to meet Mechele for dinner at 7pm. Rob wasn't comfortable driving the trailer in the dark after dinner given its faulty lighting. It was good to get off the bike after all the highway driving and walk a bit. Michele last saw her friend in May at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, so a second visit this year was awesome!
It was a nice restaurant and our reserved table was ready. Rob and Mechele each ordered a mule cocktail and Michele got a tropical paloma. Everyone was happy with their drink choices. We ordered soft pretzels for apps and they were among the best we've had. Mechele ordered a fish dish for dinner, and Rob and Michele shared the crusted lemon chicken. We all got the watermelon and feta salad and Rob ordered the lava cake for dessert. There was so much chatting and catching up to do that we ended up staying until closing. We also completely forgot to take photos! Mechele drove us back to our hotel and
we chatted there awhile on every topic - former coworkers, Covid, knitting, travel, etc. It was a fun night. Michele and Mechele met each other at Time Warner Cable in 2006 and stayed friends ever since. Mechele lives in the north Columbus area not far from our hotel.
While our travel day was not too exciting for scenery or fun roads, it ended with a great meal with a lovely friend. Tomorrow we have a more scenic day riding in Ohio state parks and forests.
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