Phelps County, Nebraska. I discovered this canal by accident after a night of camping out in Sandy Channel. It was definitely a hidden treasure.
4/17/13
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Lexington/Elwood, Nebraska. This is Adam (shown left) & Thomas (right), cousins and two excellent gentlemen who own and run their own local construction business.
While driving by they stopped me and asked me if I was hungry after spotting me twice. Starving with only tangerines and oatmeal in my pack I said "sure". The meal I had was great, Thomas not only covered my meal but paid for my hotel room in town. That meant I didn't have to wait until tomorrow to eat a proper meal and didn't have to camp out in the expected snow fall. Thanks a million guys, after a long, cold, and windy walk you really turned things around! *Thomas or Adam if you happen to see my sign please call me at (914) 255-2860, thanks! 4/17/13 SoilTrek.com 
Kearney, Nebraska. I want to thank everyone I've met in Kearney! You have a great town and I thank you for all of the support that I received in just one day.
I want to give a personal thank you for donations received from: Rosario, who I met at Subway, who was very nice individual. Thank you Rosario! Delbert & Keith (brothers) construction workers that spotted me walking through their construction zone and tracked me down at the library. I thank you guys! Helen, the mother of Delbert & Keith who spotted me while she driving later that day. Thank you mom! Shaun (I hope I spelled it correctly) who saw me on the main road. I wish your family member the best in her situation and a speedy recovery. Thanks again for the donation! Tim thanks so much for the trail mix and energy drinks. You don't know how much I appreciate it. I was on my way to Casey's to buy them and you showed up, thanks again! Josh who spotted me on a back road near nothing. Thanks for stopping bro, I needed some interaction to mentally wake up. The donation was actually a bonus. John, I met in Subway as well. He had some great questions and it was after speaking to him I realize my "NY to LA" sign was missing. Thanks for the donation! I printed up my new sign same design at Office Max: 
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Cedar Rapids, Iowa. During my stay in the town of Cedar Rapids I got the pleasure of meeting WM Alan Gauvin, the head of Mount Olive Lodge #17.
I admired Brother Alan's straight forward demeanor and his dedication to the organization as well as to his family. After corresponding with Brother Alan, we met for lunch with the following great brothers from his lodge: Brother SW Morgan Kimbrough, Brother Bev Taylor, Brother JW Justin Stowall, Brother Kenny Reid, and Brother James Robinson. I enjoyed great conversations with these brothers and ate really well! Following lunch we visited Alan's lodge (waiting for the local TV news to show) and then to meet his wonderful family. I really enjoyed the brief time I spent with Brother Alan's wife (Keli) and their children. They all had had tons of interesting questions for me and the overall vibe was great! That moment made me really miss my own family. I thank Brother Alan and all the brothers I met from his lodge for their warm welcome and donations! Your words of wisdom through the laughter gave me the emotional boost to keep going and your generosity put a stamp in reaching my original donation goal. 3/9/13 SoilTrek.com  York, Nebraska. Someone please remind me what season are we in? Winter refuses to give up, but on the flip side I kinda enjoyed breaking out the winter gear and honestly I find myself more comfortable walking in colder weather. Anyway, a large portion of the day was relearning how to maneuver quickly and safely across ice covered surfaces. Short Summery of Slippy Surfaces (SSoSS): Frozen grass - most consistent as long as you avoid heads of clumped grass. However, the resistance from the frozen blades eventually wear you out a little. Frozen gravel - Walked this the most, either in the middle of the road (no one's driving in this crazy weather) were the road is balanced or I walked the very edge were there is a slight incline but the roadside grass prevents my left foot from too much slippage. Frozen cornfields - Not very user friendly. The turned over soil made it even worse, they were like big slippery jagged rocks. So you move... very... slooowwww. Frozen rocks & pebbles - Slippery and dangerous and not worth it and crazy town. Frozen paved roads - Straight ice rink without the zamboni. But, if hail has previously fallen earlier or day before it provides okay traction. Frozen ditches - These weren't too bad as long as they weren't filled water or long strands of grass. Frozen mud - Not bad and sort fun to walk on. With a layer of dirty ice on top and melted ice water in between it almost like walking on rough plexiglass. It's also cool watching the air bubbles dance beneath the ice. I walked on white snow or ice whenever I saw it. It gives excellent traction to prevent you from falling. If it wasn't bright white, it is suspect in my book. Especially at night, you can't miss seeing it even with little light around. If you are unsure about a surface while walking in icy conditions take my advice and just walk like a elderly person, meaning take your time! It may not look cool, but it will prevent you from becoming a falling fool.   
Nebraska. To all the people that have recently donated, I would like to say thank you to the following:
* Eric of Beaver Crossing, NE * Patty (Early Riser Restaurant) of Aurora, NE * Jose of Friend, NE * Rick of Friend, NE * Random Shell gas station customer of Friend, NE * Janey of Dorchester, NE 4/13/13 
Sheffield, IL. For the first time on my journey the snowy trail I was on turned left and disappeared amongst several small hills and trees. The only thing I had to navigate by we're the snowmobile tracks however they seemed to branch out and go in different directions so that was of no help. I spotted a house and made my way to it where I met Tish.
That house was actually the Hennepin Canal Trail visitor's center. After atepping inside I also met Ken. They gave me a slew of maps and some rare Clif bars I've never tasted before. They were both very helpful and so before I left I signed their guestbook. For more information: Friends of Hennepin Canal 
York, Nebraska. Today's wintry mix should be fun to walk through. My gear and my mind are ready, starting in York and heading to Aurora (25mi). I will attempt to camp-out tonight, if it doesn't work out I'll check into a motel.
After Aurora I'll be heading through the following Nebraskan towns: Grand Island, Alda, Wood River, Shelton, Gibbon, Kearney, Elm Creek, Smithfield, Elwood, Stockville, Palisade, Hamlet, Wauneta, Enders, Imperial, and then Lamar. 4/10/13 SoilTrek.com 
Chicago, IL. As I was leaving the city limits on my way to Lemont, I was met with this sign. It made me smile, I liked the idea of taking this Maggie Kuhn quote and turning into a road sign. Not too sure if its legal, but very creative!
2/13/13
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Denton & Crete, Nebraska. As of writing this, charity efforts are at $16,000. If you're reading this have been affected by diabetes in some way you should donate. It could be as little as $1 and your donation is secure & tax-deductible.
After waiting in Lincoln a couple days for my boots to arrive, starting my 25 miler to Crete was a little tough and I eventually got into my rhythm as the hours progressed.
Halfway through my walk (10-15 miles) I was a little hungry so I stopped by the Denton Daily Double to grab a bite.
I stuck out from the rest of the crowd, its something I've come to like. Denton is a restaurant that doubles as a kenu lottery hall. Quite a few people were playing, I'm not the gambling type so I just watched. Once I was done eating my delicious meal I asked for the check. The waitress informed me that someone paid for my meal anonymously. I was very enthused and also curious to know who covered my bill. Looking around and getting no clues it was now time to hit the road. While packing up to little girls came up to me and said they saw me on TV -- Wow, I didn't know Omaha TV reached that far. Before leaving the kind woman behind the kenu counter gave me a donation. Awesome experience! 
While doing the last leg of the day's walk I stopped into a Casey's to pick up trail mix and beef jerky. While checking out I was approached by Jenn who was very kind and happened to work for the local newspaper.
She drove by me, saw my sign, and wanted to do a story on me. I was surprised (due to it being the end of the day and I didn't think many people were paying that much attention) and was very happy to do the interview. She asked me if I needed anything, I informed her I had everything. I have to say Jenn was very pleasant to speak to and she took some photographs of me before departing. 
My final decesion of the day was to decide if I was going to stay at the Super 8 or the Creek Inn motel. Not wanting to spend a lot I chose the Creek Inn and good thing I did. The gentleman checking me was originally from Queens NY, like the charity I was walking for, and decided to let me stay at no cost.
Today was very tough on the road. However, all three places I had stopped into, people opened up their hearts. |
STERLING CLEVELAND
Departure Date:
Friday, November 28, 2012 AuthorRunner, Writer, Thinker, & Positive Energy. 
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