After supper I went to the beach and watched the sun set. Not spectacular, but pretty. Then to bed.
One of the objectives of this trip was to determine how well I can handle sleeping on the ground following last year’s spine surgery. Last year’s ride tested that too, but since it was cut short, it didn’t tell me as much as I hoped.
The answer is that I can do it… but. There are fewer positions I can sleep in than there were before. If I lie like this or like that, the nerves in my neck get irritated and I get tingly fingers. Options which would have worked on a soft mattress… don’t. Being confined to a sleeping bag in a small tent narrows things further. Of course flat on my back is always a safe option, but on hard ground it’s a bit rough on the base of the back. So I think I’m going to explore the possibility of getting a softer pad to sleep on. The one I have is geared more for insulation than softness. And let’s just admit that I’m 10 years older than I was when I bought it.
All of which is a roundabout way of saying that I slept OK last night, but not great. No rain, just the wind in the trees above me, and pleasantly cool. Be nice weather for the ride home today.
The new tent is just a little bit taller than the old one, making it easier to get dressed in it. It’s still rather awkward, but not as much as the old one.
