July 9, 2025
No…Damn…No…Yes
Today marks the final ride day of this year’s adventure. In total it was 11 days and 767 miles from Minneapolis, MN to Traverse City, MI. The first part of the originally planned adventure was 4 days and 301 miles from West Yellowstone, MT entrance into the National Park to Buffalo, WY. In total, 15 days and 1,068 miles.
Now that it is over, I can answer a few of those taboo questions:
No, I was not chased by any dogs, cats, bears, skunks, coyotes, or any other wildlife unless you count the killer deer flies on the way into Clam Lake.
Damn, PSG has zero mechanical issues and zero flats…until 2 miles from the end of today’s route. I almost made it. So 1,066 miles this year on PSG with zero flats and if you add the TransAm trip it would be 5,573 miles with no flats…just 2 more miles and we would have made it…damn. But I guess I can’t complain too much.
No, I didn’t meet or encounter any bad people or any real jerks in motorized vehicles. I exclude from the assessment the parents rushing their kids to the 4th of July parade. You saw the serious bags of candy the kids collected. Only a bad parent would make their kids late for that.
Yes, emphatically yes I had a great time. I met some wonderful people, saw parts of the country I’d never seen before, and just totally enjoyed sharing my experiences with all of you. And yes but don’t tell Mrs G, I am already thinking about my next journey.
As for today, I got up early and started before 6:30 am. The ride was 61 miles through more beautiful terrain. You may be tired of hearing me say that, but I am not at all tired of seeing it. At the start I rode through the quaint town of Charlevoix again and then away from the water. I will share a picture of the fog hanging over the fields. I rode past corn fields, vineyards, cherry and apple orchards, and of course past more bays and lakes. Then there was a little bit of highway, bike paths (Michigan is an absolute model for having safe and well maintained bike paths), and then just a little bit of Traverse City. With literally two miles to go, PSG was acting funny. Turns out the rear tie was very low on air. I knew it was a flat, but tried to pump it up to see if I could make it to the finish and declare another flawless journey. About one tenth of a mile later I realized that was just a dream. I quickly found the culprit, pulled the small dagger from the tire, installed a new tube and completed the journey. At the end was Mrs G, Tom, and Melanie there to great us. Thanks to the three of you!
So now all that left is to enjoy some time sightseeing here in Michigan. Mrs G has rented us all some bikes 😳 as a way for us to tour around the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, the Dunes and that general area. It’s going to be a lot of fun and I’m sure PSG won’t mind the rest. After that we’ll be going back to Mackinaw Island and renting bikes to tour the island. Seems to be a theme here, huh?
We’ll be here until 5:30 am Monday morning when PSG and I board the train to Chicago and then to Denver. Mrs G is the smart one as she is flying home.
Thanks to all of you for taking the time to read my posts and for sharing in my journey. Most of all thanks to Mrs G for allowing me to do these types of trips and being so supportive.
Until PSG and I ride again. Stay safe and remember it’s a beautiful country out there just waiting for you to get out and explore.
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Today's ride: 61 miles (98 km)
Total: 1,068 miles (1,719 km)
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Sean
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