Day Twenty-six

I made it through Iowa and part of Minnesota today, and there were some mountains! It was good to go up a mountain; I’m definitely out of practice after going through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. I didn’t realize how flat those states are. Wisconsin is slightly hilly, but I didn’t hit any steep hills there. Iowa was fun to ride in; I can see why Dave Crane likes it. Although when I started from Marquette, I saw a sign that said “No Shoulder.” Then I saw one that said “Falling Rocks”. And there was a train running right next to me along the road, just a few feet away! I was a little bit nervous.

As for the people I met…it was Sunday and I was at a meat market that was closed. They had vending machines out front and I was dying for a cold water since it was about 80 degrees, but I only had a ten, a one and some pennies, and a drink was $1.50. A local couple pulled up in their car and I told them the place was closed. They thanked me and started to leave, but I said, “Would you happen to have any change? I really need some cold water but I don’t have the right change.” I gave them my ten and they started hunting around for ones. I said, “Actually all I need is 50 cents if you want to donate that to my bike ride; I’m biking across the country for MS.” They said, “No, we’ll just find the change for your ten.”

I made it to the Minnesota border and managed to get a picture of the “Welcome to Minnesota” sign, but it was difficult. There was no place to set my camera, so I had to rest it on my bike against a pole that was pretty far away from the sign, set the timer and sprint back to the sign.

I continued my ride and it was absolutely beautiful with a wider shoulder at this point. The scenery was just incredible, and I was riding along the Mississippi River. I never realized how beautiful it is. At one point the sky turned almost completely black, and I got out my rain jacket and made sure my camera and cell phone were safely stowed away. I crossed into the area where the storm began, and a huge gust of wind hit me, stopped my bike and almost knocked it over! Then the rain began, slowly at first but then it turned into a downpour. I looked up and there was Chuck! He had driven back to get me when he saw the storm approaching. My hero!!! He drove me out of the storm and then I continued on my way.

I road to La Crescent and almost got hit twice my motorists who weren’t paying attention. My directions were a little off, but I managed to make my way to Route 29, which turns into Route 1. It’s an amazing, scenic ride. Probably the most beautiful ride I’ve ever been on so far. It climbs up and up, straight up a mountain and then there are the most spectacular views of the Mississippi and Wisconsin on the other side. I took some good pictures. I was pretty tired by that point, so I rode for about 10 more miles, and when Chuck called me I said I was ready to go to the campground. He had driven ahead and set everything up.

We stopped at a place called the Pickwick Inn, a great find! We were practically the only ones there, and the owner was very nice and chatted with us. They thought it was odd that we wanted to eat our dinner at the bar instead of at a table, but that’s what we do! We had some shrimp and a baked potato and the waitress showed us the waterfall and mill behind the inn. I wish I’d taken a picture of that. It was pretty.

We headed to the campground, which is right on the river and just gorgeous. Unfortunately, neither of us slept very well. Now that we have a comfortable mattress, we need a blanket! The sleeping bags won’t unzip all the way so it’s tough to have ourselves completely covered. Time to find a thrift shop!