PARKERSBURG - Cecilia Anderson and Debbie Attias, who are mountain biking across the United States, were happy to enjoy Lebanese cuisine Thursday when they stopped in Parkersburg.
Anderson, 27, and Attias, 28, are mountain biking across America for the sake of adventure and to raise funds for the World Wildlife Fund. Karin Chao, 28, also is biking across the country with her two friends, but didn't make it into Parkersburg until after her companions.
Attias and Chao started the journey together in June, leaving from Los Angeles. Anderson also started in June, but left from San Diego. Her trip was unrelated. She said she didn't know Attias and Chao until she happened to meet them in Utah. It was a strange coincidence that resulted in the three becoming fast friends.
Anderson said she quickly got behind the wildlife cause that was driving Attias and Chao.
"I didn't know them when we started," Anderson said. "I had gotten laid off from a teaching job in San Diego because of cutbacks. I figured it would be a good time to do something fun before I settled down again."
Attias plans to ride her bike to New York. Anderson plans to head to Washington, D.C. The travelers said they have biked about 3,400 miles and plan to finish out at around 4,000 miles. They've been traveling on U.S. 50 since Nevada.
Anderson and Attias said they were excited when they crossed into West Virginia and discovered Cham's Lebanese Restaurant on Market Street.
"We've eaten at a lot of chains and everything seems to come with gravy," Attias said. "We were excited when we found this place. We were just happy to have something different."
The travelers said they have done a lot of camping on their journey. They planned to stay Thursday night at the beach house at Mountwood Park and start fresh Friday morning. Their next stop is likely Clarksburg or Bridgeport, they said.
Attias and Anderson said they've met a lot of supportive people on their journey.
"We've prevailed on the kindness of strangers. We've been really lucky to meet people who have been supportive and helpful," Attias said.
The toughest portion of the trip was traveling through the desert in Nevada and surrounding areas. The dry, arid conditions made for tough traveling. Anderson noted that U.S. 50 is known as America's loneliest highway in Nevada because of the barren terrain.
After finishing their trip, Attias and Anderson said they plan to settle down once again. Attias said she plans to head to Miami, where she is originally from, and would like to work in photography, which is what she studied in college. Anderson is hoping for a teaching job in Washington.
Chao and Attias have a Web site documenting their journey at www.girlsgonewildlife.org. Anderson has a travel blog at http://ceciliaanderson.blogspot.com.
