Day 34: A Downer in Downer, but Otherwise a Fine Day

Cormorant, MN to Fargo, ND

Stats!
Miles biked today: 47.9
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1349.6
Max speed: 29 mph
# of psi in my front tire: 25
# of psi that should be in my front tire: 90
Total # of Dean's flat tires, broken spokes, and chain losses on trip so far: 16
# of new wheels purchased to fix at least some of these problems: 1

Last night in Cormorant marks both the most expensive place we've stayed so far, and the worst. The water smelled bad and felt slimy on my skin. There was no noise insulation from the other rooms, and worse, from the band that played at their outdoor bar from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Then the drunks who were watching the band hung out, hootin' and holelrin' outside our door until about 1:15 a.m. Zero noise insulation. They played "Keep on Rockin' in the Free World" at least three times. Awesome, Tin Willy. Also, their restaurant was highway robbery. I guess that's the kind of thing you can do when you're the only gig in town.

It was another beautiful, perfect day for a ride today. I didn't take a ton of pictures because I've already posted a ton of beautiful pictures of lakes and fields and farms. Basically all of Minnesota looks like a Bob Ross painting come to life, complete with reflective lakes and happy little trees.

A little ways into our ride, we noticed a farm that had fenced land for about a mile of our trip. On top of every single fence post was a different shoe. On all the telephone poles were 3 or 4 pair of shoes nailed on. It creeped me out, like some kind of serial killer's trophies. Dean thought it might be "hoo doo."

We stopped in Downer, MN for lunch at a biker bar. When it was time to get back on the road, we found that Dean had another flat tire. I checked the tube, and could only find a tiny pinprick in it. Later, when we got to the bike shop, we found a tiny sharp wire in the tire. Tire fail. This, added to the broken spokes, other flat tires, and chain problems, was pretty annoying. I think getting the new wheel was the right thing to do. The guys at the Fargo bike shop said they thought the wheel he had was not an ideal touring wheel.

Tomorrow we'll take a rest day here in Fargo. Given our 5 hours of sleep last night, that sounds good to me! Also, Happy Birthday (one day belated) to my dad, Roy! And Happy Birthday (right on time), to my nephew, Beck!

A Fargo Bison!

Day 33: The Good, The Bad, and The Unexpected

Fergus Falls, MN to Cormorant, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 35.3
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1301.7
Max speed: 24.5 mph
# of new species spotted: 1 (buffalo/bison!)
# of hours we could have been biking, but weren't b/c of bad weather forecasts: 4

Today was a short day. We had hoped to get to Fargo today, but it was an 80 mile ride, with bad thunderstorms predicted for the entire afternoon, and with no towns in which we could take refuge after Cormorant. If we passed Cormorant, we'd have to go the whole way to Fargo, and we sure do hate getting soaked.

The winds were terrible all day, and they were not with us. Very strong winds, mostly hitting us from the sides. The sidewinds, to me, are worse than the headwinds, because you get blown into busy roads, or off the road into gravel pits. Sometimes we nearly get blown over. There were scattered showers on the way to Cormorant, but we were grateful to have missed the massive thunderstorms that were predicted.

The thunderstorms never came. It's beautiful out. We probably could have made it to Fargo. Oh, well. We got some fun pictures today, anyway, as you can see. :)

Someone's front yard has it all!

But I thought I'd dedicate the majority of today's post to going over the good, the bad, and the unexpected things about our trip so far!

THE GOOD:
Scenery -- We've seen a good bit of the country now, and it's been really gorgeous for most of the trip. The scenery is the only redeeming part about hills! We've seen mountains, lakes, fields, forests, plains, and amber waves of grain! (well, greenish waves of grain)

Exercise - We are getting pretty ripped. Our quads and calves are pure muscle now, and my biceps and triceps are even getting defined, which they definitely weren't before. Not as big of an arms difference for Dean, since I think he had plenty of muscle before, and holding himself up on the bike all day wasn't a physical challenge. Plus, we can (and kind of need to) eat TONS of food, which is sometimes fun and sometimes a chore. We are not losing weight, I'm pretty sure.

Blogging - Blogging is fun! Whenever the road gets monotonous, I just think about what I'll post that day and it becomes fun again.

Useful stuff - I am so glad that I brought some of the things that we seriously considered not bringing. For example, this netbook, my Camelbak, and my mom's handlebar bag. We almost didn't bring those things, and I use them all multiple times everyday. This blog would be super lame if we had to post it on Dean's phone, so many thanks to my dad and brother for making it happen!

My bike - My bike has performed BEAUTIFULLY through all of this. It was a wedding gift from Dean's friend Benny and his wife. So far (knock on wood), no flats, no broken spokes, no trouble at all. Fingers crossed that this good luck streak continues! Dean's bike has had a lot more problems (3 flats and 2 broken spokes, plus his wheel gets out of true a lot), but it's still a good bike. It won't be going on the "bad" list.

People we meet: Overall, the people we've met have been wonderful! Everyone seems very interested in the trip and most wish us well. We've only gotten a few jerks, mostly yelling stuff at us out of cars. I'd say 99.9% of people we've encountered have been friendly, helpful, and interested. It's great!

Wildlife - It's been *amazing* seeing all the beautiful birds and furry critters and reptiles along the route. We see new creatures all the time, and it's fun to see animals we'd never see at home normally.


THE BAD:
Steep Hills and Mountains of All Kinds - We're getting better at the climbs, but hills and mountains are still a pain and still really slow us down. It's hard to enjoy the good stuff about the trip when you're trying to push yourself up a steep hill. Little hills can be nice and fun, and a break in the monotony of plains.

My body - My body is just not cooperating on this trip. I have knee pain, numb fingers, saddle sores, heat rash, and I've been getting a lot of cuts, etc. Dean is definitely having more bike trouble, and I am having more body trouble. Nothing too serious, though. Just annoyances, and it can slow you down.

Road conditions - Road conditions have been rough throughout much of the trip. Bumpy, cracked roads are hard on the butt, hard on the bike, and can slow down the trip considerably (especially if it's so bumpy that you can't just fly down hills).


THE UNEXPECTED:
Weather concerns - I guess I just hadn't thought about what we'd do when it rained for 5 days straight or when tornado warnings were announced. I was just hoping for the best, and I think I figured we'd just hide out if it rained. It's actually really hard to do! The route includes 20-30 mile stretches of nothingness sometimes, and you just get rained on. I thought summer = nice weather. It has been really unpredictable, and we try to make do as best we can.

Aches and pains - While I knew I would have some soreness, I never expected the ulnar nerve issue, for example. I certainly was surprised that the muscles that hurt the worst were my triceps, on those first few days!

Free lodging - We've now stayed 7 nights for free on the trip -- a full week and we've just barely been on the road a month! Free nights are great for the wallet, but sometimes rough sleep-wise (Oxford Junction?). Sometimes it's a great night's sleep, too!

Conquering tough hills and mountains - We knew that we'd encounter hills and mountains, but we were totally unprepared for just how hard they'd be. As I've previously said on the blog, we thought we'd just downshift to our lowest gear and chug on up, but with a 50 lb load, plus your body weight, plus the bike weight, plus a steep incline, it's just too much sometimes. We do a lot more walking than I ever expected, and I never thought we'd skip a whole state, but we did what we had to do to keep the trip rolling on.

Use of the Android phone - We use Dean's phone practically every day to figure out where we are, where we're going, get through big cities, find places to eat, check the weather forecast etc. Dean got the phone specifically for use on this trip, but we never thought we'd use it as much as we do. I'm so glad he got it!

How little free time we have - Previously mentioned in the "day in the life" post, I thought we'd have about 5 free hours every evening. We have .... none. Finding lodging, going to eat, doing laundry, writing the blog, and doing basic bike maintenance take our entire evening most nights. We need rest days more than I'd thought, as a result.

Overall, I am still totally loving the trip, and Dean is, too. We have our frustrations and we're tired sometimes, but those things are minor and dwarfed by all the amazing, wonderful things. This is truly the trip of a lifetime, and I'm so glad we could do it!

Day 32: Oh, Fer Neat!

Sauk Centre, MN to Fergus Falls, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 78.2 (a new record!)
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1266.4
Max speed: 21 mph
# of numb fingers due to compressed ulnar nerves: 4 (2 each)
# of lakes passed today: 163
# of dragonflies we captured "en flagrante" on film: 2

We departed from Sauk Centre this morning on the Lake Wobegone trail. It was a BEAUTIFUL day for biking, so we took full advantage!

We had two new animal species firsts today -- a loon and a pelican. I saw some beautiful, bright blue dragonflies and wanted to take a photo. Only after the photo was taken did I realize what I had captured! Oops. ;)


Not too far along the trail, we met Choo Choo Charlie. At least, that's what he called himself. He carried a train whistle to announce himself when he met other people on the trail. Apparently he biked 6 - 9 miles of the trail every day, and until recently biked 30 miles per day, but he had some herniated discs in his back, so he had to cut down. He rode with us to Alexandria, chatting the whole way, and showed us the way to the bike shop downtown, and gave us instructions on how to get to the Depot for lunch, an old train depot converted into a restaurant.

We met another couple on the road and they asked about our trip. Every time I said something that the woman thought was cool, she said, "Oh, fer neat!" I guess that's a Minnesota thing? Anyone know?

It was just a great day to ride, and the trail was absolutely gorgeous. We saw a ton of wildlife and countless lakes.

Dean and I are both losing feeling in our ring fingers and pinkies a bit. Dean did some online research, and apparently it's some sort of ulnar nerve compression, and it's not uncommon in bike tourists. It should go away once we're home awhile. Anyone know anything about this?

Here's a quick video showing a bit of our ride!

Day 31: The Sun'll Come Out... Tomorrow

Bowlus, MN to Sauk Centre, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 38.1
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1188.2
Max speed: 21.0 mph
# of mosquito bites per minute: 12
# of raindrops that fell on us: 2.84 million

Bowlus definitely redeemed small town picnic shelters everywhere. We slept pretty well last night, with the exception of around 2 a.m., when the local bar (about 30 yards away) let out for the night. We briefly woke up to LOUD voices, but they were all friendly voices, not directed at us, so we still felt pretty safe and dropped back off to sleep. Also, it was pouring all night, and Dean said he figured violent criminals stayed in when it was raining, so we were safe.

Unfortunately, the rain went on past the night. We woke up to still more rain, and decided to try to wait it out a little. It was also about 55 degrees out and windy, so choosing to hang out and see if the rain let up was an easy choice. After awhile it seemed clear that the rain would not let up. We used Dean's phone to check the hourly forecast, after two helpfulish locals assured us that it would clear up soon. The hourly forecast predicted steady rain until the afternoon, followed by steady thunderstorms all night. Boo.

Once again faced with the choice of moving on in less than ideal conditions or staying another night in a tiny town under a picnic shelter (with no electricity), we decided to soldier on in the rain.

It was a tough slog. Thankfully, it was pretty flat, and the trail was beautiful. Unfortunately, we were pretty miserable with the pouring rain and freezing headwinds, so we couldn't enjoy it as much as we should have. The headwinds were pretty strong, and it slowed us down a lot, and we needed to push a lot harder. The rain poured hard enough to drench through our waterproof windbreakers. Our shoes and socks were soaked. Water was falling out of our helmets down our faces in non-stop rivulets.

About 20 miles into the trip, we ran into a downed tree on the trail. No problem, we thought, as we'd gone around several downed trees on the Katy Trail in Missouri. We started walking the bikes around it, and partially over it, disturbing some of the branches. BAD IDEA. A cloud of mosquitoes swarmed out of the thing and quickly enveloped us. It really was a full-on cloud. They were everywhere. Dean is now covered in mosquito bites on over 40% of his body. I escaped with only 3 or 4 bites. As soon as I saw the swarm, I hopped on the bike and sped away as fast as I could. I was shouting to Dean to do the same, but he had mosquitoes in his ears (seriously, not a joke). They were driving him so crazy he could only focus on getting the mosquitoes out of his ears, and not on escaping. While he was clearing his ears, the swarm attacked the rest of his exposed skin.

We stopped for lunch at the first opportunity (at Charlie's Cafe in Freeport), and got hot cocoa, lasagna and chili. Waaaaarrrrrmmmmm. The waiter, a couple in their 80s, a single customer, and a father and son all asked us about our trip at the restaurant. I felt famous!

When we left the restaurant, the sun had come out! We started off in the dry, warmer weather, and Dean said, "Hey, this is nice!" It was nice! We really enjoyed the trail and *almost* dried out. Then the rain came back, with a vengeance!

We had originally planned on stopping at Sauk Centre just for a snack and a Powerade on our way to Osakis or Alexandria. But when the rain and strong winds came back, I asked Dean if we could just call it a day. He agreed, and here we are!

The motel where we're staying is in our budget and also has a hot tub -- a first for us! We hit the jacuzzi soon after checking in. It was really relaxing.

I'm hoping that cutting out early today and relaxing in the hot tub will result in feeling fresh as a daisy for a long ride tomorrow.

Is that some kind of threat?

Day 30: Go West, Young Couple

Dalbo, MN to Bowlus, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 63.6
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1150.1
Max speed: 29.0 mph
# of bicycle tourists too exhausted to come up with other stats: 2

First things first, I meant to post a happy birthday wish yesterday to Dean's mom, Anita, but with all the crazy bunkhouse stuff to report, it slipped my mind. Happy (belated) birthday, Anita!

Today was a beautiful day, ideal for biking. Mostly sunny, in the 70s, slight breeze ... perfect!

I had the most wonderful sleep at the bunkhouse last night and woke up early, ready for the day. It was a bit chilly in the bunkhouse in the morning, but Donn had shown us how to use the heater, which looked more like a missile launcher, and so I (literally) fired it up and we got warm in no time.

In the fridge was a jar of the best strawberry preserves I've ever had. We had them on toast, along with oatmeal and coffee. Yum!

We got on the road and biked about 15 miles to Milaca before we needed our second breakfast. While enjoying our second breakfast, a guy came up to us and said, "Looks like ya dropped your motor out there!" We chatted with him for awhile. He and his friend were super nice, and invited us back to Milaca for a beer sometime. He said to be sure to tell everyone about the crazy guy in Minnesota who bothered us at breakfast. Done and done. :)

We got back on the road and saw the second llama of our trip (we didn't take a pic of the first), along with the standard goats, cows, horses, etc. We did notice a lot of lambs, foals, and calves, etc. 'Tis the season, I suppose! Donn said there were black bears around here, but we thankfully haven't seen any.



We stopped for lunch at the Grub 'n' Pub. From the road, the sign read "rub 'n' Pub," as the awning covered the G, from a certain angle. I thought it fit right in with Philanders and Hoochies, but then we saw the G. Bummer.

Donn told us to go to Jordie's in Bowland and that they would set us up in the park across the street, which they did. They are also doing our laundry for us. Minnesotans are just crazy nice.

Rain is predicted for tonight, so we are once again staying in a tent under a picnic shelter in the public park of a tiny town. Let's hope this isn't Oxford Junction 2: The Revenge. Rather, I'm hoping that Bowlus will redeem small town park picnic shelters everywhere.

We'll let you know tomorrow how it turned out!

Do these saddle bags make my shadow look fat?

Day 29: A Bountiful Bunkhouse!

North St. Paul, MN to Dalbo, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 68.7
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1086.5
Max speed: 26 mph
# of frozen pizzas consumed: 2
# of miles saved by going off-route: 55
# of near-death experiences: 3

Today we decided to once again go off the ACA route to save some miles. The standard route would have us backtrack to Stillwater, and then go back into Wisconsin and around in a half-moon shape to get us to Dalbo, which is directly north of Minneapolis. So, we got a Minnesota road map and planned out our own way to Dalbo.

Most of the trip was to take place on county highway 47. The plan started out well enough, until 47 merged with an interstate! We were riding on an interstate shoulder that turned into exits off and ramps onto the road, with cars zooming on and off at 60 mph. It was terrifying! We exited and planned an alternate route.

Dean was having some tire trouble today, so when we chanced by a bike shop, he stopped in and bought a new tire. It didn't seem to fix the problem, but his old tire was bald anyway.

Most of the ride was flat today, and I think we passed all 10,000 lakes.

The ACA maps indicated that there was "bicyclist only lodging" in Dalbo, at an Adventure Bicycling Bunkhouse. We called and left a voicemail while Dean was changing his tire, but I worried that maybe they weren't around anymore, and we'd have to bike another 15 miles to the next town.

When we got near Dalbo, Dean's phone rang, and it was the bunkhouse owner calling back. Hooray! We were only a few miles away, and when we got there, he greeted us in the driveway. His name is Donn, and the bunkhouse is by far the coolest place we've stayed.

Donn owns a farm in Dalbo, and he converted his barn into a bunkhouse for adventure cyclists. It has everything we need -- beds, shelter, food, electricity, showers, and even wireless internet! Apparently, several years back some guys were caught along this road during some kind of road work and they had to walk their bikes, and they asked Donn if they could camp in his yard. He said yes, and was surprised to learn that he was right on the ACA Northern Tier route! He was interested in the tours and tourists. He called up ACA, had his house added to the maps, and gradually added all the things bicyclists want! He and his wife (who is away, traveling with their daughter right now) enjoy the company and he really liked doing all the woodworking required to convert the barn into a bunkhouse and build the showers, etc. He also gave us some great tips on where to bike for the upcoming 120 miles or so, putting us on a beautiful bike path, rather than crazy county highways. I am looking forward!

Actually, he's an ex-Army member (helicopter pilot who also flew chinooks in Alaska) who used to work at the Pentagon, so he knows our area really well. This farm is the farm he grew up on.

Dean and Donn

There are also several very sweet farm cats -- Speedy, Little Guy (who is fat), Sandy and Fluffy. We haven't met Fluffy yet, but the others are cute and friendly.

That's the main news of the day. Other than that, I can just recommend against eating tacos at an Irish pub (especially one called "Beefy O'Brady's").

Here are some pics we took today, that don't really fit into the story...

And I thought the Governor's School Diplomats weren't intimidating....

We see a lot of random displays of patriotism like this.

I found a real beaut of a fixer-upper for Dad.

A pretty field of flowers

I guess if you adopt the highway, they have to print what you tell them to...

Asparagus from Donn's garden that we had with dinner. It was delicious!

See you tomorrow! Tomorrow's goal town is Bowlus, MN.

Day 28: An Administrative Rest Day

St. Paul, MN

Not much to report today. We wanted to go and see Minneapolis, but it was a 2 hour bus ride, involving multiple transfers, and we had a lot that we needed to do. Laundry, post office, bike maintenance, etc. It all has to be done, and there's no better day than a rest day to do it. So that's what we did.

We also had the best Thai dinner ever, and we figure it'll be a long time before we see another Thai restaurant. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

Otherwise, nothing to report. We hope to make it to Dalbo tomorrow, but we are, as ever, slaves to terrain and weather.

Day 27: And I Would Bike 500 Miles, and I Would Bike 500 More

Prescott, WI to North St. Paul, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 42.6
Total miles biked on trip so far: 1017.8
Max speed: 31.0
# of 31st birthdays: 1 (Dean!)
# of bikers that got Deutsche Tagged - 2


Today's blog will be hosted by an owl wearing a tie.

Dean started out this morning in a terrible fix. Well, today is his birthday, and that is great, but he still had a broken spoke, which resulted in an out-of-true wheel, which meant that the brake was rubbing the wheel for the entire 30 miles it took us to get to the nearest bike shop. BOO.

Not to mention that the first 15 miles were extremely hilly, which was even harder on him for biking, and it was another really cold day. Brrrrr!

We stopped in Afton, MN (there's just something about towns named Afton and difficult bike climbs) for our second breakfast, and decided to once again go off-route to try to get to the bike shop sooner, and with fewer hills. I think it worked!

When we were almost to Stillwater, MN, we hit our 1,000 mile mark. We celebrated with a ridiculous photo and a loud, slightly altered rendition of the song by that Scottish band, "500 miles," or something like that.

1,000 miles! We did it!

We finally made it to Stillwater, and it was a really cool town. I am definitely adding it to my "places I'd consider living," list, and bump it right up to the top. It was really cute and had a nice vibe. Kind of like a mini Portland on the Mississippi.

The bike shop (called "The Bikery") was up the biggest hill of the day. We walked it. It was huge. But it was also a bakery and coffee house. We had a slice of strawberry pie while the guy worked on Dean's bike, but the whole thing took a very long time, and we worried that we wouldn't make it to Minneapolis. Add to that the fact that every affordable motel in the Twin Cities area was booked, and things were looking grim.

We finally found a hotel with availability that wasn't insanely expensive, and was only a few miles off our route, in the twin cities suburb of North St. Paul. We had a REALLY enjoyable ride after Stillwater along the Gateway Trail. It felt like we were just out for a fun bike ride.

Once we made it to the motel, we immediately grabbed the bus into downtown St. Paul to hit Deutsche Tage (German Days), a German festival with beer, brats, and music. We figured Dean's birthday merited a little extra celebration. It was a really fun time.

Despite some early snags, this was a really great day. Happy birthday to my love, Dean!

Day 26: Too Bad, Better Bite the Bullet Hard, Son

Wabasha, MN to Prescott, WI

Stats!
Miles biked today: 57.2
Total miles biked on trip so far: 975.2
Max speed: 31.0
# of near death experiences: 1
# of meals eaten despite total lack of hunger: 1 (just to get warm!)
# of total Mississippi crossings so far: 5

Today we faced a sampler platter of .... I don't know... worse than inconveniences but not as bad as full-fledged troubles. Obstacles?

When we started out this morning, Dean was singing "On the road again / I am reluctantly on the road again." It sums up how we were both feeling. Yesterday was a 68-mile day and it drained us both a bit.

Nevertheless, we got started. It was COLD today. The high today was 61 degrees, and it was in the high 40s when we set out. Add to that the wind off the river, and the natural breeze that comes from biking, and we were frozen! At about 15 miles in, we hit Lake City, MN.

It was just about the cutest town I've ever seen, and it was on the Mississippi by the gorgeous bluffs and water. I really loved this town. I pulled off at a viewpoint for a photo, and Dean was not happy with me. He was chilled to the bone, and ready to stop for coffee! We soon found a place to get coffee and a second, HOT breakfast to prepare us for the next leg of the trip.

So, Obstacle #1: freezing cold weather that chilled us to the bone.

Our next stop was Red Wing, MN, 15 more miles down the road. On our way there, we hit another batch of road work, and had to do another muddy makeshift bridge crossing in a work zone.

Obstacle #2: Road work / mud pit

From the moment we left the motel, my bike pants had been bothering me. I have some sensitive spots from chafing, and the saddle sores, and the pants (which had previously been my favorites) were driving me crazy. I tried to adjust them, but just ended up ripping a hole in the leg. The hole in the leg meant that with every push of the pedal, the back of my leg rubbed against ... some part of the bike. It was maddening, and starting to really hurt.

It turned out that we had accidentally ripped the pants last night while wringing them out after washing them in the sink, which was why they bothered me in the first place, but trying to fix it just made it worse.

We pulled into a rest area (called a "wayside rest") and I changed my bike pants and threw the old ones out. It made an immediate difference, and all was well. On the plus side, we went 3 mph over the speed limit on our way into the rest area. Yesss! We've been trying to exceed a speed limit for weeks!

Obstacle #3: pants

Red Wing was also a really cute town, and I think I am going to add it to my "places I would consider living" list. It's right on the Mississippi, less than 60 miles from Minneapolis, adorable, and big enough to have all services. To continue on from Red Wing, we had to get on a different highway and cross back into Wisconsin. Why are we going back into Wisconsin for 25 miles when we need to be going west? Beats me, but we mostly just go with what the maps tell us to do. In this case, I'd say ACA really puts the adventure in adventure cycling.

They put us on a highway with NO shoulder, one lane in either direction. To their credit, they kept us off it as much as possible, but we did have to cross the Mississippi on this highway. We were unwilling to ride on the highway itself, because riding on a one-lane, no-shoulder highway will just infuriate all the car drivers and put everyone's lives at risk. A car will zoom into oncoming traffic at 60 mph to get around a bike just to sit at a red light. I didn't want to risk the danger.

There was a very slim raised platform that was just wide enough for us to walk our bikes on, so we did that. The cars zoomed by us. It was a little precarious, and it was a LONG walk. At one point, an 18-wheeler rushed by us, just a couple of feet away from our narrow pathway. The gust of wind produced by the speeding semi literally knocked me off my feet and into the railing of the bridge. I was almost knocked into the Mississippi! But I regained my balance and we made it across the bridge.

Obstacle #4: Dangerous route + speeding semi

Less QQ, more "pew pew." (Apparently that makes sense if you play WoW.)

Once we were in Wisconsin, we finally had to do what I just knew would be unavoidable -- ride over the river bluffs. We had already ridden over the river bluffs in Missouri, south of Hannibal, and it was GRUELING. This was, thankfully, not quite as bad as that, but still pretty tough. In La Crosse, we had the bike shop re-gear our bikes to make our lowest gears lower, so that we will have an easier time in the Rockies. I'm glad we did. We had two 1,000 foot climbs over just a few miles. We were able to do the first one without walking, but it took all my energy. We walked half of the second, but still made it to Prescott, our goal town!

Obstacle #5: Long, steep hills

We arrived into Prescott, MN at about 4 p.m., and made our way to the motel. The motel restaurant here is called Philander's. Add that to Hoochies, and we may have a theme going. But apparently Philander Prescott was the founder of the town. A likely story.

Dean wanted to do a bit of work on his bike, after repeated difficulty shifting on hills, and we discovered that he had broken a spoke somewhere along the way, and we now need to get to a bike shop ASAP to get a replacement spoke. We'll probably get a few extras to carry with us, in case this happens again.

Obstacle #6: Broken spoke

Tomorrow, for Dean's BIRTHDAY (!!!) we will hit 1,000 miles and hopefully make it to Minneapolis disaster-free. Wish us luck and/or send birthday greetings to my awesome husband!

Day 25: Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs

La Crosse, WI to Wabasha, MN

Stats!
Miles biked today: 68.4
Total miles biked on trip so far: 918.0
Max speed: 25.5 mph
# of names of blog readers seen on on the road today: 2
# of Mississippi river crossings on trip so far: 4

We started out this morning, fresh as daisies in La Crosse. We crossed the Mississippi for the fourth time so far, bringing us into Minnesota for the first time!

The road we were on would soon merge with an interstate, and we really wanted to avoid that, so armed with some vague advice from the Smith's Cycling and Fitness guy and an android phone, we endeavored to find a way to Wabasha that would allow us to avoid cycling on the interstate.

We tried to find the "Dresbach Rd." that the bike shop guy told us about. I'm .... not sure if we found it. What we did end up finding was a poorly maintained bike path that led us to a county road that got us back on track pretty quickly. We've been on lots of badly maintained roads recently -- you'd be surprised how much it affects the ride, and the butt.

But the bike path went *right* beside the Mississippi, so it was a beautiful ride.

When we got back on the highway (shoulder), we biked awhile, all along the beautiful river. When we came to a scenic overlook, I wanted to pull over and get a picture. There was a couple there birdwatching, so we asked if they'd take our picture. See? We are on this trip together. The couple was super nice and from Massachusetts, on an Elder Hostel birdwatching course.

As we biked along, a train snuck up on us and blew its whistle so loud I nearly had a heart attack. As it sped past us, Dean and I noticed that one of the cars had a graffiti shoutout to some of our family members. We raced the train, got ahead (it was going pretty slow), and managed to stop and take a quick pic. Cool!

That seemed pretty neat, and then, not but a few more miles down the road, we noticed another tribute to one of our readers (see the top of the "boat").

Click to enlarge

We were getting pretty bored on the shoulder of the highway, so we were grateful when the path took us into a Nature Conservancy reserve. It was really beautiful, with fields full of yellow grasses and purple flowers.

Curious about just how boring the highway was? We noticed that there was a ton of loose corn on the road shoulder -- for MILES, just corn kernels all over the road. So we decided to try to roll over as many corn kernels as possible (only when the road was pretty empty and it was safe, of course). Odd things entertain us these days.

We are glad to have made it to Wabasha. It was a long ride. Despite the highway monotony, we've passed the most beautiful scenery of the whole trip over these past few days. We are trying to do three consecutive 60+ mile days, to make it to Minneapolis on Saturday. Fingers crossed!

Also, a couple of things I forgot to mention in previous posts:

- On the ride to Lynxville, we saw our first fish roadkill. We see a lot of roadkill each day, but only one fish so far. How'd he get up there?

- Yesterday, in La Crosse, while we were just walking around town to entertain ourselves, a local news crew asked us for our opinion on the new local "chicken ordinance." We didn't have an opinion, so we were robbed of our Wisconsin fame. Apparently people are now allowed to keep live chickens in their yards. Something like that....

More tomorrow! But to keep you interested, a few more pics from today!

A Whooping Crane

I like these birds. Don't know what they are, but they're EVERYWHERE.

They forgot the -ing. Shi-mo!

The mighty Mississip, and bluffs!