Yesterday was the day of memorable breaks. Our first stop yesterday was at a coffee shop in Prescott, Wisconsin. Mike had two doughnuts (observe the correct spelling, Americans) and I had a giant cinnamon roll. Then we pedaled another 10 miles or so before stopping for a Belgian waffle at a bike shop in Afton, Minnesota. I think all bike shops should serve waffles. I was in need of a new tyre (this spelling is for you, Sheila!) but the shop didn't have any good options so we moved on to the next town, Stillwater, and visited their bike shop cum restaurant. They also didn't have any suitable 26 inch tyres, nor could they offer lunch since they were just wrapping up their breakfast service at 1 pm. A mile or two took us into downtown Stillwater, which was a bustling place. Some locals later referred to it as "the Minnesota Riviera". There seemed to be several hen parties (bachelorette parties) going on and many tourists gamely trying to continue their vacations despite the rain. We stopped in a pizza place to eat and warm up a little, then visited an outdoorsy type of shop. Our tent has been leaking from above due to some of the seams coming unglued so we bought a product that will allegedly render our tent waterproof again. Tune in next week to see how that works out.
Originally we had planned to camp on the Wisconsin side of the river, about 10 miles from Stillwater. When researching the various available campgrounds, however, we discovered that they are really marketing to people who like to party. I do not want a hopping DJ or funky karaoke. I just want to shower, eat, sleep, eat again, then leave. I would also like a socially-acceptable place to poop. That's really about it. We altered our plans and decided to head for a state campground on the Minnesota side of the river. As we were leaving Stillwater a lady pulled alongside us and said "bike trail!". She was referring to the fact that there was a bike trail separate from the road that we were neglecting to use. Never mind the fact that the bike trail was about to take a sharp left turn and we wanted to go straight. She just didn't want to share the road. We just waved.
As we were checking directions in a residential area a guy in a pickup truck pulled up to offer assistance. It turned out Mark is a host on Warm Showers and he wished us luck on our trip. About 6 or 7 miles later he saw us again and pulled over to say that he was helping a friend with some construction work on a house nearby and that we could stay the night, if we liked. Given the lightning storm of the previous night we were in no rush to camp outdoors. We followed his directions a couple of miles down the road and arrived to a warm welcome from Mark, Kevin, and Theresa. Mark and Kevin had just participated in RAGBRAI, the large group ride we ran into in Iowa. Luckily the house was only under renovation and still had all 4 walls and the roof in tact. We had hot showers and even did a load of laundry. We shared an incredible dinner with our hosts and slept soundly. This morning they sent us off with a cooked breakfast and good wishes for the miles ahead. Thank you for having us!
Today's ride included some mild hills, which is just a little bigger than I like them to be. We had a morning ice cream at a shop in Sunrise. Double scoops all around. As we cycled on we came across a tractor parade. It was quite the spectacle. Dozens of tractors, of varying sizes and vintages, some pulling trailers full of people, some with porta-potties on the back (must have been a long parade!). Some people threw candy to us, one gentleman threw a couple of ice pops. I missed mine and had to cycle back to pick it up. It turns out trying to catch a thrown treat while riding a bicycle is difficult. In the small town of Harris we were glad to come across a farmers' market since we've seen no grocery stores today and we picked up some vegetables for dinner. Tonight we're staying at the Bicycle Bunkhouse, which is a barn that the owner has converted into an incredible shelter for passing bike tourists. More about that in the next blog post.
To answer some recent questions about our progress: We crossed 5000 miles a day or two ago. We are estimating that the trip will be approximately 9500 miles in length so that means we're more than halfway. Hooray! Or not hooray. I don't know.
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| Tractor sculpture garden |
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| Church's little free library. Note the "stained glass." |
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| Mike got a new job at Arby's |
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| Thank you very much to our hosts! |
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| Tractor parade - Minnesota |
Thanks Rach!
ReplyDeleteIncredible reading as always, that storm sounds terrifying. Glad you had something more substantial to sleep in and hope the glue works.
Looking forward to Pete & Debbie visiting for a few days.
Take care, love to both
PS, incredible stats! X
ReplyDeleteI needs me a tractor. See if you can get a cheap one along the way. I will pay you back.
ReplyDeleteGreat reporting and photos, as usual.
I am in the hunt for bike shoes, pedals, handlebar pack, etc. The riding isn't progressing as well as I had hoped. Did 20 hard and hilly miles two days ago but I must ride very early. Weather has been unseasonably warm. Ninety two yesterday (that's Fahrenheit for the Brits) and over 100 predicted for today.
Went to sister Corinne's yesterday and: chopped down bushes; edged lawn that had not been properly edged for years; fixed aluminum door return mechanism, cleaned and sharpened tools; adjusted sprinkler heads and hung a shelf and towel rack. Cheri drove to L.A. to do final inspection of condo, then to Katie's to pick up bed frame and then return to Corinne's house to pick me up and head home. Left the house at 7:35 a.m. and got home about 5:46 p.m. Ate a quick dinner (first meal of the day) and then went outside to fix a leaking valve in the front that was flooding the West side of the garage. Finally got done with that at 7:07 p.m. That's one of the reasons I have not been riding as much as I should be. Oh well.
Remember, your worst day on a bike tour may well be better than an average day of fixing, cleaning and all the rest of the stuff we boring people do on a regular basis.
If you pick up a tractor I can drive behind you as your support vehicle. Try to get one with a porta-pottie. Also, your Dad is forgetting the bacon, eggs, and toast we had for breakfast, and the ever-so-nutritious barbecue potato chips I had for him in the car.
ReplyDeleteRide safely.
Cheri
Only 102 degrees Fahrenheit today [8-7-18] . (That's 38.889 C for the Brits.) Washed rugs b/c they would dry fast and we may have purchased the condo and god forbid that dirty rugs are placed in it! Got shoes, cleats and pedals today. Also, arm warmers. Already have leg warmers. What sort of headlight should I be thinking about? How many lumens? Batteries or rechargeable? What about eating utensils? Sterling silver flatware set or a spork? Mess kit or just an old plastic bowl? Pots, pans etc. ? None of the above?
ReplyDeleteShoes and cleats sound great. I prefer the rechargeable ones for headlights. My rear one is disposable batteries. Rach has rechargeable for both. For the front: I would get one 150 lumens or brighter. Lower than that doesn't illuminate the road much. For what it's worth: we've never ridden at night yet so we haven't used our headlights even though we both have them. We've used our tail lights a few times during rain when we were trying to be more visible to car traffic.
DeleteI would get a spork. A plastic one will do but I prefer metal versions. Bring a cup of some sort for teas, hot chocolates, etc. You can drink water from your bike water bottle. And bring a bowl. We eat most of our cooked meals from bowls, usually breakfast and dinner. Rach has a Transformers-type camping bowl that turns into a plate. It's good but not strictly necessary. Rach and I will chat about pots and pans but I think all three of us can make things work with what we have now. Might just cook in two phases if need be.