Williamsburg

We woke to a thunder storm and rain - not very enjoyable ingredients for a long-haul motorbike ride! In New Zealand, the weather forecasts predict 'scattered showers'. In Nebraska the TV weather this morning was predicting 'scattered thunderstorms'! The wet, cooler conditions were a stark contrast to the heat of yesterday. When we arrived in Grand Island it was 101 Fahrenheit (about 38 Celsius).

We put on our wet weather riding gear, loaded up the bike, topped up with fuel and headed out towards the Interstate (I 80 East). Basically, my theory is, if it looks certain it will be a 'crap' day with weather then take the quickest route between points 'A' and 'B' (usually the nearest Interstate). As we rode, there were big black clouds and lightening in the distance coming at us from the south. Fortunately, we turned east after about 7km's and managed to outrun the storm as we put distance between us and Grand Island.

We stopped for coffee and fuel at Lincoln (the state capital) and then after passing through Omaha we crossed the state line into Iowa. The winds started picking up at this point and really buffeted the bike. The winds were so strong that the visor on my helmet kept popping up - which was really annoying! I don't think the wind was an isolated incident as we started passing miles of 'wind farms' - the area is obviously renowned for a good breeze or two!

We stopped for lunch and more fuel after Des Moines and then pushed on for our stop for the day at Williamsburg. It wasn't the best of rides - we were both pleased to be off the road for the day!