Day 24: (25 km) Joetsu - Shinano
(08/22/06)

After a light couple hours of riding, Mary and I pulled into the Shinano michi no eki. Grabbing a bottle of local Shinano Ale and some oyaki (a veggie filled bread dumpling--one of Nagano's many specialties) we waited for the rest of the team to arrive and discover Shinano's many tasty treats for themselves.

As we were finishing our beer the sky opened up and down came the rain. A real downpour, the kind that would have soaked us through in minutes if we had not been happily sitting under the awning of the rest stop. The timing could not have been better. Safely out of the rain, we polished off another ale, some fresh baked rolls, more oyaki, and chocolate filled with dried blueberries. The rain lasted into the afternoon and we were happy to be just where we were.

Emily called and told me about law school orientation, while Chay made friends and talked religion and middle east politics with a Christian Jew we met at the stop. Unfortunately he left his trailer-suitcase out in the rain. It was a bit less waterproof than he thought, but we managed to dry out most of the map books eventually.

That evening, we found shelter at a shoddy old cabin camp ground near a lake. The cabins left something to be desired, but sitting down by the lake watching the light recede on the water made for a good night.