The Cigar Run To The Border!

The last two days of the ride went from Itasca State Park to International Falls, and across the border to Fort Frances, Ontario, with an overnight in little Northhome, Minnesota. Thanks to Katie Hawes for the tip on traveling "beside the road". The first day was drop dead gorgeous, with pleasant weather and tailwinds. The second day looked dangerous, but the rains never came and the winds, a quartering head-wind, were just strong enough to make a challenge, but not too strong to be fun. Georgia drove the car the entire two days because of her earlier injury, and what a fantastic sag driver. One morning she met us on the road with a personalized tray of hot drinks: coffee for Janet, decaf tea for me, and hot chocolate for Edith. Now that's what I call support! Here a few pictures of the big finish, and no more lengthy reports! Thanks for sharing my ride with me!

There was an extra set of "Bo-Peep" signs, so WomanTours graciously loaned them to us for my red "Bo-Peep!"

I officially turned over the new Bo-Peep keys to Georgia!

This is the Mighty Mississippi, Big Muddy, somewhere between Itasca and Bemidji. Way up here, the powerful river is neither "Mighty" nor "Muddy", but it is certainly pretty!

Edith is allergic to peanuts, so she used some of the remaining WomanTours rations to make her daily "treat", a raisin sandwich.

Approaching a sag stop, somewhere up north.

Georgia borrowed a menu to "invite" us in for a break at the restaurant in Big Falls, where we indulged in caramel rolls with our morning "tea" break. While sitting at a booth I looked at a bench far across the road. I couldn't read the writing, but I announced to my friends, "I believe that bench says 'In Memory of Wayne". Those of you who ride the Klobuchar ride may remember Wayne's World in Baudette, and some of you might even remember sitting on a bench in Big Falls a couple of days later....I wasn't sure if this was the right town, but....

Indeed it was.....somewhere in my non-digital photos there is a picture of me and several other cyclists sitting on this same bench, a few years ago!

We rode the last couple of miles into International Falls with Mervyn, a fifteen-year-old who last year rode with his father from Pensacola, Florida to International Falls, self-contained, in 29 days! Kind of made us feel like we hadn't really worked too hard! Mervyn and his dad now ride recumbent, though he was on an upright this day. Mervyn, by the way, is a walking, talking testament to the value of home-schooling. Thanks for joining us Mervyn--you really made our arrival in the Falls a very special moment!

Georgia greeted us at the Holiday Inn with a red "carpet"...

We went to Canada for dinner at the Rendezvous, which is where I ate lunch when Klobuchar went through I-Falls years ago, the same year we enjoyed Wayne's World in Baudette and that bench in Big Falls! It is a lovely restaurant, with excellent food, but Janet decided to polish off her last WomanTours peanut butter sandwich. After eating those sandwiches for 40 days or so, I think we'll all lay off peanut butter for awhile!

Here I am at the Rendezvous, with my New Orleans bike jersey, my Vicksburg earrings, and my Most Determined award. Do I look happy?

Couldn't get a Cuban, but I did find a Havana Seed cigar. It wasn't very good, but we went through the ceremony anyhow. I think this may be the last cigar I smoke!

We were all a little sad looking at our bicycles on the rack...seemed weird to be pulling them instead of riding them!

In the morning, we rolled out the red carpet again, this time for Georgia, sag driver extraordinaire and a great new friend. Georgia, Janet, and Edith all inspire me--though the reasons they inspire are varied, the message I read into their experiences, courage, and wisdom, comes out the same--life is good, so go out and live it while you can!

Back in the townhouse in Maple Grove, I curled up on Annie's makeshift bed with her cuddly stuffed toys--exhausted and happy!

The End

Award Ceremony (June 17)

We had a "banquet" the last night, dinner at the trailer with a few extra treats. Don't ask me what they were, as I am back in the real world now and my brain isn't functioning too well. (What else is new?)

Linda R.'s husband met her at the finish line with a cool sign made by her son. Even though they live in Virginia, I believe they will be my company for clever magnetic signs! Linda's son is very creative! A cycling turtle! That's my kind of sign! He also made the Bo-Peep signs on the Subaru; where did he find cycling sheep?

This is Laurie, who sported the Sheriff's badge on more than one occasion during the trip...once to scold Georgia for a rather daring challenge to Homeland Security. Laurie gave out several awards through the evening.

Linda received two awards. One, the Diet Coke, is from Barbara A who rode with Linda through most of the trip. Some of us are powered by Power Bars, some by caffeine, some by Pie, and some, apparentlyk, by Diet Coke! Laurie awarded Linda the Rookie of the Year Award for her amazing growth from a 20-miler to an 87-miler in just five weeks! Linda is also wearing the necklace that the group gave her when we gave the sag riders their gifts. Linda's says "Everything is Possible." We all thought that was fitting.

Laurie gave me the "Most Determined" award, prompted by two days in particular, the day she swept me in at end of the 109-miler, a 13-hour day on the bike for me, chased by the sunset, and the day into Hannibal with those horrible hills. The award has matches around it, for my use in lighting that cigar I intend to smoke in Canada. Laurie said I made those rides without whining once, which may be true, but I sure made up for it on the way to the Headwaters the day before!

Jenna, our youngest rider, got the "What If" award, for all the "What If" games she played, mostly during map meetings. "What if I want a ride after 30 miles?" "What if there is a tornado?" "What if...." I don't remember them all, but they were very funny. Jenna was always the last one on the road in the morning, and she steadily and seemingly without effort glided by us. She is a strong rider and could have been the first in every day if she wished, but she enjoyed her stops and she enjoyed her ride, even if she was with a bunch of old ladies!

Judy M. got the "Best Dressed?!" award for her fashion sense. Judy and Holly had a lot of fun showing off their "fashionable" attire during the ride. The morning after the banquet, Judy put the little pom pons in her hair, but my flash wasn't working, so the photos are no good! Too bad, because it was very cute!

Stephanie got her award for the most bike troubles, which included several broken spokes. The "Roll it in the River" award reflected her desire to do just that with her bicycle!

Judy N.'s award is for the "Most Flats in One Day!" (five!) Not the most total, but certainly the most upsetting. I don't think she got any more flats after that day, but she had seven total, and its a wonder she didn't roll her bike in the river!

AT THE HEADWATERS! (Still June 16, and also June 17)

On arrival at Douglas Lodge we learned that there is a lovely six mile trail from the lodge to the headwaters, so we decided to finish our Mississippi portion as originally designed, on the 16th. Linda R and Judy N joined us, as did Jenna. Jenna had already been there, but she had never ridden a century, so the extra 12 mile round trip would achieve that goal!
The trail was beautiful, and it seemed to be running downhill the majority of the way. I just couldn't imagine climbing back six miles, and insisted that I was NOT biking back to the lodge. "I said I'd bike TO the Headwaters," I insisted. "I never said I'd bike back! I'll ask someone to drive my bike and me back."
Once we got there, we were thrilled to see the big map outside the visitor center--it is a huge three-dimensional topo map of the river, from the Gulf to the Headwaters! I saw it before the trip, but it was a lot more fun afterwards. We headed for the water and were surprised to learn that we were not allowed to bring the bikes down to the lake. We had planned to dip our tires in the water, and Jan decided she was not going to be stopped--she popped her front tire off the bike and carried it down to the lake!
Edith walked across the rocks with no trouble at all, but I found my legs were too shaky, so I walked across without the path. The water felt so good, I just jumped all the way in! I felt great afterwards, but I still didn't want to climb a lot of hills. Janet swore I had misread the hills, but Judy and I were adamant that it was going to be six miles of mostly climbing. In the end, Edith told us we simply had to bike back, so Judy, Linda and I sighed and got on our bikes.
And what a surprise--Janet was absolutely correct. We had a great ride back, more down than up in fact! The scenerey was great and it was a fabolous end to a lovely day.

The next day was a rest day, and we woke to a major downpour. Everyone lay in their cozy cabins and lodge rooms listening to the rain and thinking, "I'm sure glad I don't have to get up and bike!" My biking buddy from Minnesota, Karen V., drove over from Grand Rapids and went on a boat ride with the while group. Karen had just finished the Klobuchar ride, so it was fun to share stories. That night we had our final banquet. It was very sad to say goodbye to everyone. There were lots of awards--the group gave Georgia, Ann, Jan, and Stephanie (our Sag drivers), and Vicky (the cook's assistant) necklaces in thanks for their great support. The cook, Linda, got a WomanTours tee shirt from WT in honor of her satisfactory completion of her "probation" with the company. Our waistlines can all support their decision to keep her. She sure can cook! There were several individual rewards--I'll put them in a separate blog.

Good food, lots of laughs and a few tears, and then off to bed. Most of the ladies will get on the bus at 7:00 tomorrow morning, and Edith, Janet, Georgia and I will head for the border!

Happy trails,

Dusty

Pine River to Itasca State Park! Yippee!!! (JUNE 16)

We did it!!! All the way up the Mississippi to the Headwaters. We finished the official WomanTours portion of the ride with beautiful weather and, wonder of wonders, two days of accurate cue sheets! What a beautiful ride we had. Of course, four of us still have two days to go, but this was a huge milestone and we relished it. Edith and Janet rode with me today. I think they wanted us to end this portion of the ride together before we set off on our big ride, and it was sure fun to have them, though I know they slowed down considerably to stay with me.

We biked the Paul Bunyan trail again to Akely, where we stopped for morning tea (Edith got that routine started and I sure have enjoyed it) and found an okay little cafe. Barbara A. was meeting her husband, Gary, in Akely. While we were biking up the river, Gary was biking self-contained from their home near Tahoe with a friend. The friend left in Mankato to fly home, and Gary continued to Park Rapids where he waited for Barbara. On the last morning, Gary met Barbara in Akeley and they biked back to Park Rapids on the Heartland Trail, planning to ride to the park together in the morning.




Janet, Edith and I planned to ride the rest of the day with Linda R., who has been Barbara's biking partner the entire trip. Did I tell you before about Linda? She had not ridden more than 20 miles a day before this trip! I'm sure she didn't know what she was getting in for, but what an amazing trooper she has been. Several of us talked to her on day one and suggested she consider the first couple of weeks as her training weeks, and that's what she did, riding part days until she could build up her strength for full days. Linda spent the trip setting personal mileage highs day after day. I think her longest day was probably 87 miles. What an accomplishment!

We thought it would be fun to join Linda on the last afternoon so she wouldn't ride into the park alone after Barbara left, and so we could share her excitement. She didn't stop in Akely, but we thought, no problem, we'll catch up with her. By the lunch stop in Hackensack, we finally found her, riding with the sisters and several other fairly fast riders--but they were leaving as we biked in! Linda had been keeping up with all those ladies all afternoon!!! She really became a great rider in these few weeks!

We weren't willing to abandon lunch in order to join the group, so we stopped and ate and had a great time at the cafe. I know Edith and Janet could have caught up with the other group before the park, but they continued to ride with me, so we missed Linda's big entrance.

We rolled into Itasca at the East Entrance and headed straight to the lodge, thinking that perhaps we would ride to the Headwaters in the morning. We found Linda there with her husband, Rick, and the cool sign he had brought to welcome her in. His son had made the sign and it is really cute. He also made the Bo-Peep sign which our Subaru sag sported throughout most of the trip. I was particularly excited by Linda's Congratulations sign, because it sported that cute turtle!

More about the grand finale in the next post. For now,

Happy trails,

Dusty

Little Falls to Pine River and a Surprise! (JUNE 15)

We rested in Little Falls for a day and I took advantage at last of the opportunity to update the blog. In other words, I spent most of the day on the couch in the lobby with my laptop and a Perkins muffin! In the evening we took a cab down to Little Falls for dinner. Someone had told us that Little Falls had nothing for offer except the Lindbergh museum. A lot of people did check out the museum and said it was well worth the visit. Little Falls turned out to be interesting--I hadn't been through the actual town in decades, as the highway bypasses Main Street, so I was pleasantly surprised. The Black and White restaurant was the only alternative to fast food chains and Perkins, and turned out to be a real special treat. They had elegant meals as well as reasonably priced specials and it was very casual. Most of us had walleye encrusted with something (can't recall now) and garnished with a strawberry salsa, and it was great. (Yes, it is all about the food.) The young couple that own the place look like teenagers, but they know how to treat customers, and the husband is great chef. I had been surprised several days earlier to realize that almost no one on the trip had ever heard of walleye. It is such a staple in Minnesota and surrounding states that I wasn't aware how local it is. Most of them had to see it on the menu (and on my plate) several times before they were willing to try it, but they were all pleased with the results. I guess the name is a turn-off--another of those things we take for granted!

The ride to Pine River was a lot of fun. Edith and I rode with the sisters and one of Jan E's friends, Mary, into Brainerd and several of us stopped by the Coco Moon coffee shop a bit off route. Brainerd is 13 miles from my home town, so I really enjoyed riding through as we approached the end of our journey! From Brainerd, we hit the Paul Bunyan Trail, a smooth, straight paved trail through the woods; I've biked it in the fast, including a day with John and several friends when it rained the entire day. In fact, it is so straight that some of the WomanTour riders found it a little boring. Sue and Frankie told us that they had just expressed that sentiment out loud to each other when the sky opened up. They decided to keep such thoughts to themselves in the future.

The rain was a real downpour, complete with lightning. At least, the other riders all reported lightning; I didn't see it, but then the rain was so heavy that I could barely see the trail in front of me. We pulled into Nisswa, a small tourist town, soaking wet and getting wetter, and ducked into a bicycle shop for shelter. Luckily, they didn't have any jerseys with their store name on it, so I didn't spend any money! When the rain stopped, we hurried over to the Adirondack Coffee Shop for lunch and enjoyed a relaxing warm up and a tasty lunch. After lingering awhile, we started out biking again, but after a few minutes the sky opened up again, and this time I believe the rain was even worse. Edith and I kept riding in and out of downpours for the rest of the day, but Sue and Frankie, who left town a half hour or so after us, only experienced an occasional light drizzle! Weird! I put my camera away when the first rain started and never took it out again that day, so there are hardly any pictures of this day.

The Trailside Motel in Pine River was very hospitable. I had visitors that evening for dinner and they let us drag chairs into their tiny lobby and take over the place. A friend I have known since the third grade, Sue Georges, lives very close--I haven't seen her since our 20th high school reunion! My mother came from Crosby, 25 miles or so from Pine River, with my nephew Lee, who was visiting from California, and his mom, Wendy, from Des Moines. I knew they were all coming, so I wasn't surprised when Linda, the cook, mentioned that they had stopped by already, but I was surprised when she said other relatives had called, and she had invited them to dinner. Turned out to be my aunt, Carolyn, and her husband, Bruce, who drove over from Grand Rapids. Whew! It was quite a crowd! It was great to see them all.

By this time, I am really feeling odd--did we really bike this far? Is it really almost over? Mixed feelings: I won't be sorry to stop spending every evening checking tires and getting ready for the next day, or to stop waking up early and packing to rush off every morning--but I also don't want the biking to end, and I don't want to say goodbye.

Happy trails,

Dusty

Cambridge to Little Falls, miles, anyone's guess!

PHOTOS: TOP TO BOTTOM:

The classic red barn and a nostalgic look at farms of the past.

This pretty puppy barked at us, but at least he didn't chase us!

Linda, in front of the Ramey Grub and Pub. We like to go where we are welcome!

Jenna (the young pup in the group) rests after a long day.







Patty was better today, and said she wanted to bike slowly and lollygag with Edith and me, but she was off like a rocket and we didn't see her again until Little Falls. We had a good day, but there were not many "lollygagging" opportunities. The area we rode through astonished me. I have watched all the roads between Minneapolis and Brainerd "bloom" with homes and businesses over the years, but this place was just plain rural!

I noticed on the cue sheets that we were supposed to turn on something called 5S/SE. Hmmm. SE is a funny name for a road in Minnesota. Everyone told me I was nuts, county roads are often named with letters, but I sure never heard of such a thing in Minnesota. Sure enough, when we reached Milaca, we turned on 23. There was no sign of a 5S or an SE. We were looking for a cup of tea, but I threw Edith and Barbara M. for a loop when I turned into the floral shop. I had spotted the "COFFEE" sign outside, so we took a break there. I'm glad we did, because Georgia soon showed up to tell us that the bridge at our next turn was washed out! She had already found the alternate directions. Guess what, extra miles, how unique! We added a few more through the day, as the cue sheets continued to be misleading. 87 miles when all was said and done, instead of the planned 77. There were at least three casualties: Vicky was knocked off her bike by a dog; that was bad enough, but she fell in the grass, and she is allergic to grass. She soon had a reaction and her face and tongue swelled up, but she kept riding! Georgia's possible broken rib was hurting terribly and the road was really rough, so she was finally persuaded to get in the sag wagon. And Patty was six miles from Little Falls when she just plain collapsed on the side of the road, apparently dehydrated from having been sick for two days. Whew, Stephanie, the sag driver, had her work cut out for her, fetching wounded bikers and trying to help us all find our way through the bad directions.

Anyway, all's well that ends well. The ride was pretty. I stopped a local woman and asked for directions. She obliged, and then told Edith and I to go to the creamery and have an ice cream cone and put it on her bill! We had just finished lunch, so we had to decline, but wasn't that a sweet offer?



I pushed hard to keep up with Edith, and the last ten miles were really tough for me, but I knew I had a rest day, so no worries! Only two more riding days for the group, four more for the "Cigar Runners"!

Happy trails,

Dusty

Stillwater to Cambridge, Minnesota, 50 miles

Edith usually rides with Patty G., but Patty was sick yesterday and today, so she caught up with me mid-morning, and announced that she would "lollygag" with me once again. We had several miles of lovely, flat trail--actually, more miles than the cue sheet seemed to think we would have. Another happy surprise, although it was confusing. At the end of the trail, in Harris, we were rewarded with Scoops, a very cute little ice cream shop. Check out the picture--don't they look serious about their treats?

Before reaching the ice cream stand, I spotted this yellow truck in the parking lot. Of course, I had to take some pictures for Janet BEE!!!





There were probably many other highlights of the day, but I'm afraid my brain has gone blank, so that will be all for now!

Happy trails,

Dusty

Red Wing to Stillwater, Surprises all around

The morning started out on a bright note. I was walking out to the breakfast trailer just as a car pulled up and a little boy jumped out and ran towards the trailer. "Gramma!!!", he shouted, and leaped into Barbara's arms. It was a movie moment! Barbara's daughter, son-in-law and grandsons were attending a wedding in Minneapolis, and when they realized how close they were to Barbara, they changed their plane reservations and drove down to spend the day with her. Pretty cool!

We headed out for what I thought was a 58 mile day. Another drop-dead gorgeous day, with moderate hills, tailwinds, and sunshine. Edith got a late start so she caught up with me and instead of zooming off, stayed and rode with me for the rest of the day. Of course, she did a lot of waiting, too. We had a great time, stopping off for treats and chats with the locals. We met a golden retriever named Lady and three llamas. Here's a picture of Edith trying to get a smooch from Viton (I have no idea how that should be spelled). The llamas had just been shorn, and their owner called them "big French poodles." He was trying to mow the lawn, but apparently WomanTours cyclists had been stopping by for photo ops all day long.



Half way through the day, step-son Scott called and asked if he and his two-year-old daughter Marissa could stop by and say hello in Stillwater. (Oh, gee, what do you think I said?)

Just as we were turning coming up to Bayport, about mile 48, I told Edith that I needed to find a restroom before we headed into the last ten miles. Laurie pulled up just then, and as we talked about the turn we were making, I suddenly realized that we were only a mile from the end. I'd been thinking all day that we had a 58 mile route, but in fact, it was only 48! Way to read the cue sheet, Dusty! I was most happy.

Edith and I got to town in plenty of time for me to clean up before Scott arrived, and since we were on our own for dinner, Janet and Edith joined us for dinner downtown. I've been to Stillwater many times, but it is new to Janet and Edith, and it is always fun for me. Little Marissa has an independent streak--she does not want to be carried--she wants to walk on her own. But when you put her down, she refuses to take your hand, and since Stillwater is busy, we simply had to carry her!

Stillwater is a river town, with the traditional steps leading straight up the hill! Allie, remember climbing in to the top of the town up the big steps in Hot Springs? I asked Marissa if she wanted to walk up the stairs, and of course she did, but after about 20 steps she wanted to be carried. Jan, Edith, and Scott had followed us, so of course we had to finish. I carried Marissa up the steps and it was a challenge! Here's a picture of Marissa and I, standing on the rocks overlooking the Mighty--St. Croix River!

Heading for the Headwaters!

As we pedal through Minnesota, I realize that the headwaters are getting very close. Only three more pedaling days before the ride officially ends, only five more days for those of us who are continuing on to the Canadian border. I thought you might like to see what the river looks like at its birthplace, our destination, Itasca State Park. This picture is of Annie, as she walked across the Mississippi river just a few days before I left for New Orleans.

Wabasha to Red Wing, 32 miles

There were lots of good things about today. It was only a 32 mile ride. The cue sheet really couldn't be wrong, as we were on one road all the way to Stillwater. The terrain was beautiful. And, since I was in a big hurry, I was glad that I have biked this ride in the past on the Klobuchar ride and didn't feel a need to stop. I left at 6:15, the first one one the road, probably for the first time, and I stopped only twice, to use the roadside "facilities", aka bushes. I whisked through Wabasha and waved at Lake City, recalling a long ago sailing trip with Earl and Carol Hall, then past Frontenac, where John and I attended a wedding several years ago, and into Red Wing. I missed the hotel on the first pass, and arrived almost at the same time as Vicky and Marilyn. Vicky, Marilyn, and Lois are the "hard core" riders on the trip. They are fit, fast, and never stop to lollygag along the way. Even though they probably left an hour after I did and still caught up with me without breaking a sweat, it was still fun to be in town a moment or two ahead of them! I'm sure its the last time I'll be first in town, so I have to relish the moment!

We had coffee at Caribou while the hotel was getting rooms ready. Lois skipped coffee and hit the beautiful Red Wing/Cannon Falls trail. She did the whole thing, making hers a 72 mile day. I was eager to shower as soon as possible, for the best reason this was a good day. I was anticipating several visitors: Stepson Tony, his wife Cara, and two of their four children, Collin and Jack. We hit the bike shop (Two year old Collin was very excited by the bikes--he loves anything with wheels, though he loves them more if they have motors--tractors, trucks, bobcats, motorcycles, boats--Tony and Cara are going to have to keep a tight leash on this little guy!) Jack is only three months old and right now he is mostly interested in his bottle! We headed up to town for lunch, and soon my sister Mary and her daughter Annie joined us--this is Annie of "Annie's Blog". Then a few minutes later my brother John walked in! All in all, a very fine day for me.





I was really happy to see Mary, as she has had a very tough time while I have been gone. I hesitated to bring it up earlier, but while I was in Memphis, Mary went in for a stress test due to pain in her arm, and had a heart attack during the test. Three stints later she was sent home with clear arteries, but it has been a very scary time for her (and us), and it was great to see her and know she is okay.

When I first heard that Mary was in the hospital, and before I knew I wasn't going to be flying home, I was fortunate to be sitting in the laundry room with Ann, who is a physician from Fargo. Ann is retired, but I'll bet she was a great doctor, because she sure knew how to explain things to me and calm me down at the same time. She spent a lot of time with Mary in Red Wing, too, and I know Mary appreciated her input.

I didn't take any pictures on the run to Red Wing, but you won't be surprised to know I got a shot or two of the family! Here are just two--I'm running out of time for blogging, as usual. The first is of Tony and Collin at the bike shop--you can't start 'em too young. The second is me with my brother and sister, John and Mary.

All for the moment!

La Crosse to Wabasha, 60 miles, oops, 72 miles

I don't know how we can be so lucky, but the weather continues to be fantastic. I've only gotten soaked twice, and only for a few miles each time. Now the weather is sunny, warm, and dry. And we've been experiencing tailwinds! This day was tailwinds all the way, rolling hills, and just plain lovely. Also, it was our first jaunt into Minnesota, and that was kind of strange! Suddenly I'm in familiar territory, visiting places I've visited before. From here on, I will be in places I've biked before, if not on the exact roads, at least in the general area.

We started the day on the Three Rivers Trail, or the Trempeleau Trail. (I'm not sure of the name.) It is crushed, packed limestone, but it was a little soft still after the big rain two days before. Flat as a pancake and pretty as the picture you see here! That's Janet Bee and Georgia, riding up the trail.

At Trempeleau, we all headed for a recommended cafe, but found it wasn't open yet, so most of the group took off. Georgia and I decided to go back to the little coffee shop we'd spotted earlier. We dawdled there until Laurie, the sweep rider, caught up with us. Oops, last ones on the road! A few minutes later the sag driver for the day, Stephanie, stopped and gave us directions, as the cue sheet was confusing. Off we went, armed with the knowledge that we had just added ten miles or so to our day! It turned out to be pleasant miles though.





We stopped in Winona, a very cute little town, but the route in was chilling! We've crossed a lot of bridges on this trip, and in spite of my fear of heights, I haven't been bothered by any, but this was a bad one! Note the chain link railing along the pedestrian/bike path. The rail slants out, toward the water, and the trail is rounded, which gave me the feeling that if I slipped I would slide into that chain link fence, and, frankly, it didn't look all that sturdy! Georgia just got off and walked it. I wanted to, but I figured that just gave me more time to worry, so I gingerly rode across. Yikes, I don't ever want to do that again!

Ann went in to town to see the Eagle Center, but I think everyone else decided to wait until morning. Tony, Cara and the boys are coming to Stillwater tomorrow, so I'll head out early to try to get to town before they do. Mary and Annie are coming in the afternoon and staying for dinner. It will be fun to see the family!

Happy trails,

Dusty

Play Day in LaCrosse!

We had a great time in LaCrosse. We wandered over to "Grounded", the coffee shop that Vicky recommended. She spent a lot of time there on a previous ride through LaCrosse. Todd, the owner, was delighted to meet Janet Bee, __ and me. He told us we couldn't sit by ourselves, and introduced us to some locals. We had so much fun talking with them, and I was delighted to learn that the women were members of a Turtle Club. This rose from them deciding that they didn't want to wear purple when they got old. They want to be turtles instead. They have a whole list of great turtle attributes. Turtles aren't afraid to stick their neck out when necessary, they have a hard exterior, but a soft interior....and so on. Anyway, I am now an honorary member of the LaCrosse Turtle Club. Pretty cool, huh?

Todd got really excited when I told him I live in the Black Hills. Turns out Todd thinks Wall, South Dakota, is one of the greatest places in the world. His family goes way back with the Husteds, the family that founded Wall Drug. He has been trying to convince his wife, Deb, that it is a worthy vacation destination. I promised Deb that if she agrees to go to Wall with Todd I will pick her up and take her on a tour of the Hills.

LaCrosse is very close to the Trempeleau Trail, a packed limestone trail, and it is a very biker-friendly town. It is also a very attractive town. Most of the old buildings are in great shape and the downtown is "bustling". I especially liked that big fish! Of course, LaCrosse is a college town, which helps support the little cafes and shops.

I may have already told you about Stephanie, who manages to find some of the best places, primarily because she makes sure to meet the locals. Well, she wasn't in LaCrosse more than a few minutes before she managed to get all 30 of us invited to a party at the Wine Guyz. Naturally, a few of us showed up. We were also celebrating Jan from Washington's birthday, and since Jan and her sister Pat (from Minnesota) like a glass of wine in the evening, I got her a Wine Guyz ball cap for her birthday.

In the morning, Janet and I went right back to Grounded for coffee, and we were greeted like old friends. And later on, after visiting the clock shop and wandering the streets, I was hungry, so back I went to Grounded. In town less than 24 hours and already a regular. I had a massage and a pedicure, so I felt very good at the end of this day!

Happy trails,

Dusty