Owosso, MI to Midland, MI:

May 11, 2019

Outpacing the Spring bloom

There was a frost warning last night but our temperature only got down to 39 degrees. We waited until 10 to leave to give Rhona a fighting chance with the cold. Fortunately it was in the low 50’s for much of the day with only moderate winds from the east. There were more dirt roads and rougher asphalt roads today. Rhona has a “Thudbuster” suspension seat post which provides some insulation from shock but she groans when we hit a big one.

It’s almost like Michigan is allowing some paved roads to revert back to their natural state.

You can see on the tree in the picture that the leaves are not yet fully formed and many trees are still just budding. The trees here are at the stage our trees were at home three weeks ago. We’ve outpaced the Spring bloom so it’s no surprise Rhona’s cold. I hope it means we will get to enjoy the trees and shrubs flowering again.

I usually assume a “Road Closed” sign doesn’t necessarily mean bicycles which can be a problem when a major bridge is out.

We were fortunate this time. There was a two foot wide section of earth making a pathway so we could squeeze through.

At the barrier on the other side Rhona called out she thought the space was too tight. I went ahead and just fit the panniers through with no room to spare. I was quite pleased with myself until I realized later she was worried about me squeezing through, not the panniers.

Coming into Midland we were routed along a scenic bike path that came into a wetlands area.

There was a “Y” bridge on the path coming to downtown Midland. It was scenic enough that a bride and groom were having their pictures taken. I would have stopped to take a picture but my bride said “no”.

Today's ride: 53 miles (85 km)
Total: 532 miles (856 km)

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