We have all had our share of wrong numbers. After one such number made several consecutive attempts about 8.30pm to call my cell phone, I finally answered it. I am so glad I did! I quickly learnt the caller was an Australian who was riding her bicycle across America.

Why would an Australian be calling me in Nevada, Mo? She was using the cyclists' social network, Warmshowers.org, which I used when crossing America on my bicycle in 2011. She needed a place to stay for the night. Members of Warm Showers open their homes to people touring on a bicycle. I became a member long ago to give a hand to my fellow cyclists and to learn about their adventures. Hearing all about her experience and her impression of America made me proud of our great country.

It was nearly dark when I answered the phone. I was the only Warm Showers opportunity she had in the immediate area. The next closet was in St Louis! I firmly believe, as most cyclists do, that there seems to be some kind of divine intervention when we are in a jam.

"Hello. Is this Frank Briscoe?" she asked. She was relieved to hear it was. "My name is Joanna Abernethy and I'm riding across America. I found you on the Warm Showers website and wondered if it would be possible to stay at your home this evening?" Without a moment's hesitation, I said yes.

Joanna was 30 miles away in Lamar. "Stay there and I'll come and get you." Nope! She wanted to cycle to Nevada and planned to take I-49. When I explained that cyclists could not take the interstate in America and the only possible route would take her all night, we devised a plan.

I immediately left to get Joanna and promised to return her to the intersection of Highways 160 and 43 – a turn she missed and why she was in Lamar – in the morning so she could fulfil her plan to ride every mile on her bicycle across America.

I have been cycling for nearly nine years and have made incredible friends on the road. Cyclists are an enthusiastic group but I must say that I have never met anyone with a story like Joanna's.

Who knew that fateful night that I was about to become friends with one of the most fascinating individuals I have ever met? We talked for hours that night, picked it up again the following morning and kept talking until I dropped her off, as promised, at the Highway 43-160 intersection.

Joanna's quest to cycle across America began as a toddler when her family lived in Mississippi. Dr Martin Luther King jnr was assassinated just before her family moved back to Australia. As a toddler Joanna did not understand the significance of that dreadful day. Years later in an Australian school, she not only learnt about it but Dr King became her inspiration for her ride across America.

To honour him she distributes business cards on her journey across America stating: "Dream . . . a tribute bike ride across America: Astoria, Oregon, to Washington, DC, May – August 2014. I'm honouring the life, love, hope, courage and sacrifice that made the world better for all of us and looking towards the future."

It's astonishing to me. Joanna bought her bicycle and gear a mere six months ago. She was smart about it and read everything she could about cycling. She did her homework and found a bicycle shop that specialised in touring bicycles and equipment. She bought her bike and all the equipment she needed and, with bicycle maps in hand, she developed her route for riding across America.

Joanna possesses heart, determination and dares to face the obstacles ahead of her. With 2500 miles under her belt from Astoria to Nevada, she has endured bicycle butt, climbing 40-plus-mile-long mountain roads, sub-freezing temperatures, thunderstorms, hail, wild animals and yet kept going. No doubt, she will make it to Washington, DC.

Once we had discussed the logistics of her adventure, we talked about her impression of America.

She observed a beautiful country as I did when I crossed America and commented how different the landscapes and temperatures were from state to state. I asked Joanna what surprised her most about America. "The people," she said. "You are so kind, generous and helpful."

Joanna said that in her country, and other countries she has visited, people were reluctant to extend a kind word and hand to a complete stranger in need. Americans bought her meals and provided shelter when she needed it. "This is an every-day occurrence in the two-and-a-half months I have been crossing America," she said.

I could tell she was profoundly touched but also oddly surprised. While camped at a state park in Montana, she met a cyclist from Holland who was also crossing America. It was a chance meeting since their routes were reversed. They talked about their experiences in the US and concluded that America was by far the most caring country they had visited.

After that discussion, I was compelled to ask what she expected. "Australians and other countries imagine Americans as loud, abrasive, selfish, war-mongering people," she explained. "That is contrary to what I have found."

Joanna genuinely appreciates our country and its beauty but, most importantly, the people. It was a privilege to meet her and now an honour to call Joanna my friend.

* This article by freelance writer Frank Briscoe was published by the Nevada Daily Mail on August 2. Briscoe's cycling adventures have taken him around the world. Read his blog at www.oldguyonabicycle.com.