Day Six

Crossed almost all of Nebraska today via Highway 6. Flat and corn fields to rolling corn fields to prairie. Camped at Enders recreation area in Enders, NE. Beautiful state park with a beach, went for a swim and cleaned up.

Dinner while watching the sunset, what an amazing finish to an amazing day, or so I thought.

Got woken up about 1am by 40-50mph wind gusts. Crossed all fingers and toes that the crappy tent stakes I had would hold in the sand - wrong. As I lay in the tent that had now turned into a ground hammock, watching the tent poles bend, yes bend, due to the wind I had a decision to make. Be the anchor and just not sleep or go out and try to re-stake the tent in 50mph winds.

There I am holding onto the tent with one hand as it is up over my head in the air, with all of my needed possessions inside of it, wallet, cell phone, motorcycle keys trying to push a stake into the soft sand that would hold long enough to make it to another corner. I managed to get it staked down long enough to grab some nearby rocks and place them over the stakes.

Back inside the tent and continue watching the poles bend until 4am when I finally dozed off for a couple hours.