End of a long hot ride to Centralia, WA

The riding this morning was relatively flat. We are now inland because the route loops around the Olympic Peninsula and hits the Pacific Coast shortly after we enter Oregon. We have mostly been riding in river valleys which contain a lot of farms. Saw a lot of blueberries growing and a lot of cattle. Even passed a Llama farm and a casino on an Indian reservation. Many of the farms do not look very prosperous. The plan was to ride about 40 miles to Centralia, WA and then decide how much further we wanted to travel. The weather is brutally hot. I believe it reached about 97 degrees today. We have been told by locals that it normally doesn't get this hot for more than a few days each summer but most of this summer has been hot this year in Washington (global climate change??). We took a break in Centralia so Hal could practice his bowling and we could sit in the air conditioned bowling alley for awhile to cool off. After that we decided to ride another 18 miles or so to a state park campground. However, about 2 miles out of town I started having trouble with my gears again when we started up a hill. It turns the broken chain and gearing problems were the result of a much more serious problem. The rachet mechanism inside my rear wheel's hub failed. That means I can't ride because the chain just spins freely in both directions without engaging the wheel. Unfortunately, this is not something I can fix on the road. I will have send the entire rear wheel back to the manufacturer for repairs. Needless to we had to go back to Centralia to find a motel and a bike shop that is open on Monday. So Hal rode 48 miles today. I rode 44 miles and walked about 4 miles pushing the bike! If I can get to a bike shop I should be able to buy a new wheel since it is a standard size wheel and most bike shops today stock fully built wheels (in lieu of actually building the wheels to order). We think we found a bike shop about 20 miles away so my plan will be to take a cab to the bike shop and pick up a new wheel. I imagine tomorrow will be a lost day. On the bright side the motel is air conditioned and I get to use my problem solving skills.