North Branch, MI - Sunday, July 30

Interlochen, MI - Tuesday, July 25

There was a nice Bike/Ped trail through Traverse City, and there was a very nice library right on the trail.

I got stung by a bee. I was on a fast descent on a back road with a rather poor surface, so I had to watch to avoid bumps. I was going perhaps 30 mph when I felt this sting on my arm. I looked down and saw a bee inserting his stinger (or what ever it is they do) and had a dilemma trying to decide whether to concentrate on the road or the bee. I smashed the bee and brushed him off, but his stinger and part of his body was still attached. At this point, I decided to return my concentration to the road. Soon I was at the bottom of the hill and looked in my rear view mirror only to find a car tailgating me: obviously he had slowed down as he saw me weaving all over the road. So I quickly pulled over off the road, let the car go by, and pulled the stinger out of my arm. I think this is the first time I have ever been stung while riding, and hope it is my last.

Andy bought a wok today at a second hand shop. It has replaced the skillet we had, and I think it will make cooking on our small stoves easier. Ann and Andy are both buying fresh produce at local farm stands, as a lot of veggies and cherries are locally grown and are in season.

We camped at the Interlochen State Park. This is part of the Interlochen Music complex, and there was a jazz concert that night. The campground was on Duck Lake and was a nice place to stay.

Luther, MI - Wednesday, July 26

Rain. It started about 1:00 am and stopped about 2:00 pm. We camped at a State Forrest I have used before on one of my solo tours through Michigan. Linda & I cooked, and we had bought a pound of butter for the pasta. As is frequently the case, we gave the left-over butter (2 sticks) to a friendly neighbor, since we can't carry it with us.


Clare, MI - Thursday, July 27

There is an excellent rail-trail from Clare to Midland. We rode through Clare and took the trail to a county park just off the trail. All of us except Ann and Hans got lost trying to find the park. Andy will update the 'leader notes' so that next year's group will be able to find it. It's a nice campground, but was very expensive.

When we awoke this morning (at Clare) there was heavy fog. Really heavy, and it didn't burn off until about 11:00 am. I notice we are seeing fewer White Birch trees; I guess we are pretty much out of what I call 'the northwoods'.

Bay City, MI - Friday & Saturday, July 28 & 29

These were two wonderful days. Saturday was a lay-over day. Karen drove up from South Bend - about a 5 hour drive, and we spent two days together. Andy's wife, Linda, also drove up from Kentucky, and they were happy to get together again too. Karen brought a new Schwalbe tire for me, which I mounted on the rear. The old rear one had about 4,000 miles on it; although I had never had a flat on it, it was worn bald. Andy also replaced his rear tire. I am surprised at how quickly my rear tire wore, compared with the front, which shows very little wear.

Karen and I stayed at the Residence Inn in nearby Saginaw. We just kind of hung out. Karen brought our laptop and I was able to download the remainder of my trip to my GPS, and upload my pictures to the laptop. Karen will be posting them in a few days.

We did some shopping, and I bought a new pair of shoes. There was a thunderstorm Saturday, but we were in the mall when it hit. The campground group was able to stay dry when it hit too. The temperature hit 94 degrees. We joined the group at the campground that evening, where we had KFC chicken and wine. They were staying at the state park on Saginaw Bay.

The land has gotten really flat. On of the major crops is sugar beets. Another is navy beans; they look like soy beans, but the plants are not as big. Of course, there is still lots of corn, soy beans, and wheat. Farmers are now starting to harvest their wheat.

North Branch, MI - Sunday, July 30

We are in the midst of a heat wave. Hot, with a thunderstorm in the afternoon, and high humidity at all times. The land continues to be flat, which I expect will continue until we get to Niagara Falls.

We camped at a pleasant private campground.

Alden, MI - Monday, July 24

Petoskey, MI - Sunday, July 23

Today's ride brings back a lot of memories of earlier rides I have done with Karen in the Mackinac area.

Today, we started as a group because of the complexities of crossing the Mackinaw bridge. We had to take a back route to the bridge toll entrance because bikes are not allowed on the regular roadway. I suspect we did not take the best back route, because we had to ride our bikes across a big lawn for about 100 yards; we should have been able to find the route the toll bridge employees take to work, but we just winged it. For those of you not familiar with the bridge, it is the worlds longest (maybe 2nd longest) suspension bridge. It is 4 lane toll bridge built in the 1950's, which connects Michigan's upper and lower peninsulas.

When we arrived at the entrance, we had to put our bikes in the back of two pick-up trucks, where they were hauled across. We rode as passengers in a car or in one of the trucks. There were only 5 of us, since Ann had crossed yesterday to meet her husband John, in Petosky. We met up with Ann that night in camp. Going through Mackinaw City, we found a Church, where Andy and I attended Mass.

One of the highlights of the bike ride was the "tunnel of trees": this is a section where we ride a narrow road through an old forrest, with trees that cover the road densely. Very pretty. We got lots of glimpses of Lake Michigan as we biked along expensive real estate.

We camped at the city park, which was right on the shore of Lake Michigan.

Alden, MI - Monday, July 24

We broke camp in the rain, had breakfast in the rain, and started riding in the rain. But the sky cleared about mid-morning and it was a nice day. The temperature got up into the 80's after we had enjoyed several days in the 70's.

Cherries are in season, and we are in the middle of Michigan's cherry growing region. I stopped and feasted on a hugh cherry tort at a road-side stand. Yum!

The ride was short, but we had a strong headwind, so it was an average day. We camped at a campground on Torch Lake. Ann and Hans cooked, and made corn on the cob. Yum. This was not local corn, but the first corn of the season always tastes great.

St. Ignace, MI - July 21

I have completed the post I started entering in Hayward. I notice Karen and Allie have uploaded my second batch of photos to the web, and completed a link to them.

Glidden, WI - Saturday, July 15

We got up 1/2 hour before sunrise today, wanting to get an early start. We were on the road 1/2 hour after sunrise. The temperature has been in the 90's, with some people saying the 100's. We had a light tail wind, which is a double edge sword. If you pedal at the same speed as the tailwind, you got no cooling breeze.

We stayed at Marion Park. This is a town park with no showers. There is a really neat and large pavilion where a wedding reception is taking place. I took some interesting photos of the pavilion. We had music entertainment until 1:00 am.

Karen and my niece Peg have been trying to arrange a way for me to visit Peg and Mark as we ride through northern Wisconsin. The have a cabin close to our route. I got Peg's phone numbers from Karen, and will call her.

Bolder Junction, WI - Sunday, July 16

There is some uncertainty on whether I will stay at Bolder Junction tonight, or Star Lake. If we all stay at Bolder Junction, it will be at one of Cal's future relatives, Donna: (Cal's son is marrying Donna's daughter this fall). If we stay at Star Lake, it will be per our itinerary.

I called both of Peg's phone numbers, leaving messages to that effect, but by the time Peg got my messages, she was back home. I later learned that Peg and Mark's place is just a couple of miles northwest of Bolder Junction.

We made ourselves at home at Donna's, had great showers, and all the comforts of home. Four of us slept inside, while Andy and I slept outside. The temperature was in the high 90's again.

Crystal Falls, MI - Monday, July 17

This was a long day: 89 miles. There was a sprinkle of rain in the morning, but not enough to settle the dust. It seems though, that it ushered in a cool front, and the temperature dropped down into the low 90's.

Linda and I met at the IGA west of town to buy groceries: we only had to get breakfast and lunch for the next day, since we planned to order in pizza for supper.

The campground was fine, but our pizza plans didn't pan out. Turns out the pizza place did not deliver, so we got on our bikes and rode back into town for dine-in service; worked fine, since we could have cold drinks with our dinner.

Escanaba, MI - Tuesday, July 18

Lake Michigan kicked in: the temperature is in the 70's! I stopped at a Walgreen and did some shopping. We camped at a county park and had take-out pasties for supper - only Andy and I had ever had them before. For those who haven't been to the Michigan U.P., they can be described as pocket sandwiches, with a meat and vegetable filling, baked in a pie crust. They are a traditional meal that men-folk used to take to the mines for their lunches.

Ann had an adventurous day. She has been having trouble with her rear wheel for a few days, and has been having to true it almost daily. She had the bike shop in Hayward look at it, and they found nothing wrong. Today it got really bad, but she was able to limp into a bike shop in Escanaba. She was having to true it every few miles. The bike shop pulled off the tire and found cracks inside the rim. Fortunately, they had a replacement in stock, and were able to do the needed replacement.

Manistique, MI - Wednesday, July 19

We entered the Eastern Time Zone today. It was a nice short day of only 47 miles, and I enjoyed a Pastie for lunch. We stayed at a great campground and pitched our tents on a bluff overlooking Indian Lake. It had perfect lake swimming with clear water and a sandy bottom.

Andy and Cal made too much Italian Spaghetti for supper, and gave the left overs to four RV'ers. Later they came over to visit and learn about our bikes. Turns out two of them had just bought $500 mountain bikes and wanted to compare our bikes with theirs.

Naubinway, MI - Thursday, July 20

A pleasant ride today. Stayed at a Michigan Forest Service campground, which was primitive. We didn't really need a shower since the campground is on Lake Michigan and there was a nice beach about 200 yards from our campsite.

While I was waiting for Linda at the general store, I was able to spend some time in the hardware section. I cobbled together some hooks so that I can now attach my 'fanny pack' to my handlebar bag. I have been trying to think of some clever way of doing that for a few days, and today it all came together for me.

Hans bought some smoked fish - it is widely available in the area. Linda poached whitefish for supper. Something different for us. After supper, Andy, Cal and I rode about a mile to a bar and had a few drinks while we watched a baseball game. Cal is a baseball nut, rooting for the Yankees. It was dark when we returned to camp, so I'm glad I had a headlamp.

St. Ignace, MI - Friday & Saturday, July 21 & 22

I'm writing this at the library on Friday. It was a nice short ride of some 45 miles, and we are at a nice campground. I'm showered, shaved, and feel great. The temperature is in the 70's.

Hayward, WI - July 13 & 14

Hitterdale, MN - Tuesday, July 4th

We were scheduled to camp at Richwood, but that campground was closed, so we had an option of Callaway, but they apparently have no water at the campground, so we took our 3rd choice: Hitterdale. It is a small Lions Club municipal park in the center of town. The town consisted of one service station with a few snacks and groceries, and a bar. The bar was closed since this was a holiday. There was also a post office and some storefronts of closed shops and businesses. The park was nice: it even had running water, so we could take a sponge bath in the restroom.

The closest fireworks were about 7 miles away, so we were not able to enjoy fireworks - just fire crackers by the local kids.

With great foresight, Cal and Andy had bought groceries at a town about 20 miles before Hitterdale, so we had a good meal.

The land is getting hillier. There are a lot of small ponds (they call them lakes) ringed with cat-tails among the farm lands. The only crop we are now seeing are beans and corn.

Itaska, MN - Wednesday, July 5

We did some backtracking today. After about a mile on the road, we had to turn around due to construction...we ended up riding about 10 miles on gravel, which was the best alternate route. The day was 78 miles, but I still feel good.

We are now seeing White Birch trees, and I feel like I am in 'the northwoods'. We camped at Bear Paw campground in Itaska State Park. That park has the source of the Mississippi River, and we crossed it a lot as we and the river meandered south-east.

The nearest grocery store was about 20 miles before the campground, and Linda & I were cooks; so Andy and Cal I think, pitched in and bought and hauled about half the food...a great help. The park was pretty noisy, but still pleasant.

Pennington, MN - Thursday, July 6

We rode by the Paul Bunyan and Babe statute and took lots of photos. We had a good day due to a light quartering tail wind. We camped at the Camp Pennington Campground. This is a true 'northwoods' fishing resort...just like I remember visiting with Karen's family and friends when we were newlyweds. The camp also had a fire pit, with comfortable chairs abound a roaring fire, and lots of wood to burn.

After supper, Hans rode 1.5 miles down a gravel road for desert: ice cream!

Grand Rapids, MN - Friday, July 7

We are camping at the county fairgrounds - the best fairgrounds yet. Quiet, clean, good showers, lots of big oak trees for shade. Andy & I sneaked into the auto race track and watched the cars for a couple of minutes. Andy left just before I was discovered and asked to leave. There was a thunderstorm at daybreak - the rain ended just as we were finishing breakfast.

We met Tom, a coast to coast rider from Fairbanks, Alaska. We have met a lot of riders, but I have not mentioned them until because there were so many. Tom is the first rider we have seen since Hitterdal. Like most riders, he is young, male, and rides about 100 miles per day.

Palisade, MN - Saturday, July 8

We are at a county park on the banks of the un-mighty Mississippi. The park has about 15 camping spaces, a nice covered picnic pavilion, two out-houses, and one cold water spigot. Not even a private place for a sponge bath. There were, however nice places to pitch a tent in the shade, and a good grocery store was nearby.

I have been carrying an American flag, and the 'pole' broke. At the grocery store, they gave me a metal clothes hanger so I could make repairs: works fine now. Also at the grocery store, they told Andy where to find a seamstress to make some modifications to his tent. Andy now has a bug-free tent.

We met a local woman whose family was fishing at the park. She liked to talk and ask questions, and we had a hard time finishing our nightly 'map meeting' because of her comments and questions.

For supper we had soft shell tacos with lots of refried beans. Yum. The left over beans and taco wraps made a great lunch the next day.

Isle, MN - Sunday, July 9

Camped in the picnic grounds at the Father Hennepin State Park. Very nice! We arrived with the aid of a nice tailwind, and there is a nice cool breeze blowing in off the lake - the largest lake in Minnesota. I had a great shower, and had a nice nap, which I always enjoy.

Andy arrived with a new coffee percolator so he can enjoy 'real' coffee.

As a group, we agreed to a layover day at Bay City, Michigan on July 29 (we will spend July 28 and 29 evenings there). So Andy's wife will drive up from Kentucky, and my wife will drive up from South Bend so Andy and I can can spend a couple of days with our wives. I can hardly wait!

Cambridge, MN - Monday, July 10

Some problems with getting a campground again. Andy tried to set us up at church, but couldn't get a confirmation. The fairgrounds was 'plan B'. We met at Wal-Mart in Cambridge to see where we would be for the night. Turned out that we were forced to plan B, but it worked out ok. The Wal-Mart was only 1/2 mile from the fairgrounds so we had easy grocery shopping. Andy and Cal cooked: we had cream cheese sandwitches for a box lunch the next day. We seem to be judging campgrounds by the quality of their showers. These were ok.

I also made a 'beer run' at the Wal-Mart. In Minnesota, grocery stores can only sell 3.2% beer. The Miller High-Life packaging looked like all Miller High-Life, except 3.2% was stamped (in hard to read printing) on the outside of the carton. I also bought batteries for my camera and GPS.

We had a light side-wind most of the day.

Osceola, MN - Tuesday, July 11

We stayed at the Interstate State Park in Wisconsin. We knew ahead of time that we were staying at the Interstate Campground, but we had no idea it was a state park. It is located between Dresser and St. Croix Falls. Some teen-age boys told us about a shortcut from the campground to the highway. That shortcut saves us about 5 miles and a big climb out of the park. So we used the shortcut and walked back into Taylor Falls, Minnesota for supper. We ate at a 1950's root beer drive-in.

Haugen, WI - Wednesday, July 12

Today it was in the 90's with a light variable wind, and we had a warm muggy night. I took a 15 mile shortcut.

We stayed at the Shady Rest Campground and Bar, which was a decent campground with a nice little sand and gravel swimming beach on a lake. We had a good time at the bar, where we had Pizza for supper and struck up a conversation with Rod, who camps there frequently. The next morning he gave us some venison summer sausage which was excellent. Cal whipped me bad in a game of pool.

Hayward, WI - Thursday & Friday, July 13 & 14

We had a nice 5 - 10 mph tailwind, but the temperature hit 97. We stayed at a nice KOA north of town, where I took advantage of their nice swimming pool and even shot some basketball. I find myself using sunscreen daily.

I made great use of the day off. I was unable to get enough computer time at the library, so I could only complete part of this post. (I am finishing up in St. Ignace, MI) At the Blue Moon Bike Shop, I bought a new helmet because my old one was cracked. I noticed the crack a few days ago, and it is gradually getting larger. I also bought a suspension seat post, hoping that it will ease my saddle sores, and a new Phillips screwdriver. I looked carefully at kickstands, like Hans has, but their stands will not fit my bike because my aluminum tubes are too large. Kickstands are really convenient though. I also made a post-office run, and sent some more stuff home. The biggest thing I sent home were my fleece pants. I haven't used them since we got out of the mountains.

In town, Andy, Cal & I were at a bar where Cal offered to play a game of pool with a local. To make a long story short, the local guy declined and indicated he did not like tourists.

Moorhead, MN - Monday, July 3

Minnewaukan, ND - Thursday, June 29
This will be one of the more memorable days of the trip I think. We had a pleasant 59 mile day with a mild quartering tail wind, 92 degrees, and lots of sun. We arrived at the town park. Like most small towns, the municipal park either had no fee, suggested a donation, or had a small fee. The amenities vary from no water, to a covered shelter and swimming pool. Minnewaukan's park had a covered shelter and a shower. If you look on a map, you will see that the town borders a large lake. The lake is popular with fishermen.

There were three RV trailers set up when we arrived, and the 3 couples were cleaning fish. They offered us some fish, which we quickly accepted. Linda & I were cooking that night. They also gave us some breading for the fish, and allowed us to use one of their propane burners when they saw that we were having trouble frying fish on just our two gas stoves. We had a lot of pleasant conversation, and then one of them gave us some home-made venison jerky. Yummy. A very memorable evening with 3 pleasant couples from Fargo, ND. We got their names and addresses and Ann will send them Adventure Cycling thank-you notes.

Then we went to the bar across the highway and enjoyed the company of another group of fishermen. We will long remember how the big guy wanted Cal's new Tillie hat, and how he bought us all a drink of Peppermint Shnapps and Brandy. We had a light rain during the night, but it was not a problem.

Tolna, ND - Friday, June 30
We had a choice between the Tolna town park and a resort 19 miles further on. Tolna had no showers, and we had a mild tailwind, so we opted for the Red Willow Lake Campground & resort. So we had an 80 mile day with an 87 degree high. During the ride, I saw my first fields of Soy Beans and Corn. Until now, we have seen only grains - mostly wheat I suspect. We had also seen a few fields of blue; we learned that these were Flax.

Cal had 3 flats, and Ann, Hans, and Andy worked on his tubes that evening. The resort was built in 1926, and is a popular place in the region. It has a pavilion with a large roller-rink & dance floor. There is a list of the musicians who have played there, and it reads like a who's-who of music.

Hope, ND - Saturday, July 1
This was a perfect riding day. It was short because we had pushed on beyond the schedule the prior day, had a mild tailwind, and the temperature was only 82 degrees. On the way, I came upon a farmer working on his tractor in a field next to the road. I stopped to ask about some earlier fields of a beautiful yellow crop: what was it? He confirmed my suspicion that it was Canola. Then he asked me if I could help him. Turns out he was having trouble hitching a mower to his tractor because he had forgotten to bring along chocks. That made the hitching process a two man job. I was adequate to the task, and we exchanged high fives before I left.

We stayed at the town park: it had a pool (which we enjoyed), and cold showers (which are better than no showers). I made a 'beer run'; I bought beer and ice to keep it cold. The beer and ice fit in my front pannier perfectly, and the ice lasted long enough to keep the beer cold til the very end.

Moorhead, MN - Sunday and Monday July 2 and 3.
The terrain is beginning to look more like Northern Indiana, Ohio or Illinois. Nearly all the fields are corn, beans, wheat or hay. Hills are few and far between. Fargo, ND and Moorhead, MN are sister cities, separated by the Red River. We are staying at a nice KOA campground just south of Moorhead. This is the biggest city we have been in since we left the Seattle airport over a month ago.

Nearly all the cities and towns in the flatlands number their streets and give them a 'St' or 'Ave' designation. Thus you have a 28th St. and a 28th Ave. One runs north-south and one runs east-west. I used my GPS to go to 4396 28th St. SE. I should have gone to the campground at 4396 28th Ave. S. Luckily, I only went about a mile out of my way.

Linda & I were cooks, but the nearest grocery store was about 4 miles away, down a gravel road, so we ordered 3 pizzas delivered. Mmmmmmm good.