Mixed bag

September 16, 2023

Day 10: Walker to Grand Rapids

IT'S CLOUDY AND COOL this morning: about 52 degrees, with a NW wind of 6-7 mph predicted, but no rain. We've got 61 or so miles to cover so we're setting off around 8:30 rather than the 9-ish target we've been setting.

Our route for the day relies on long stretches of Minnesota state highways and county roads, with just the first couple miles on bike trails. The highway options are adequate, with good surfaces and (mostly) ample shoulders so we're not riding shoulder-to-shoulder with traffic, but it's definitely a more utilitarian get-there sort of ride than we've been doing.

Thanks for the hospitality. I'm glad to have been here.

I've got "Moondance" by Van Morrison in my head for miles, after seeing this. :-/

That's how bike tours go, of course: if you're trying to get somewhere in particular, at some point you'll likely have to use the same roads the rest of the world uses for the same purpose. In our case we're fairly fortunate: there's not a huge traffic load on a Saturday, and what there is gives us a politely wide clearance as it passes.

The downside is obvious: there's not a lot of scenic beauty that cries out to be photographed, although the countryside's far from barren and ugly. At least it's a good surface to ride on, with very gentle undulations but nothing that really classifies as a "hill", at least by my standards.

These were in every guest room in yesterday's hotel. Guests are encouraged to take them, place them in interesting and amusing places as they travel, then post the photos to the hotel's Facebook page.

The breeze works in our favor for the first many miles. Coupled with the easy terrain, miles fly by faster than they do ordinarily, getting me to the lunch stop in Remer- at 33 miles, just past the halfway point on the day- barely more than two hours after we set off.

The cafe is lovely, decorated with all sorts of "attitude" as well as various bits of memorabilia and Americana.

Not the cafe. It's the gas station and Bigfoot souvenir stand across the street.

He's *everywhere*. I mean the duck, obviously.

Finally, definitive photographic and physical evidence. HE EXISTS.

Much as I might want to linger in other circumstances, I'm "in the zone" and, after yesterday's experience with a too-long break, I'm reluctant to stop for very long. So, it's a simple bowl of chili paired with a cappuccino and I'm off like a dirty shirt and back on the road.

Uh oh. Trouble ahead? Best get a move on.

Another few miles along, the clouds begin to disgorge a steady drizzle, giving the lie to the weather radar images that swear it's not raining for 50 miles in any direction. It's with me for probably an hour and a half, with a few brief "sucker hole" pauses here and there. I don't fall for them, though, and keep my rain jacket on once I've decided I need it to begin with.

Not ready to lose the jacket just yet, thanks.

Arriving in Grand Rapids, with fewer than four miles to go, the rain stops for good and I'm warm enough to shuck off my rain jacket and finish the day's ride as the temperature begins to warm.

All that remains of Paul Bunyan, perhaps?

1953 Plymouth for sale. I didn't note the model, but it needs a good wax job at a minimum.

Arriving at the hotel, there's a gentleman on the bench out front strumming a guitar for his own amusement. We chat for a moment then I set about getting checked in, showered, and the usual business of life. Later in the afternoon he's still out there, so I sit and listen to a few tunes. It's a pleasant way to pass a bit of time.

"My Daddy was a preacher, and my momma owned a bar" he told me. Sounds like a country and western song title, doesn't it?

Walking to dinner, we notice a spectacularly vivid rainbow. It's an impressive sight.

Dinner's very good, and we all troop back to the hotel to settle in for the evening. I'm rooming tonight with A D, for the first time this trip. We're each occupied with getting our daily writing done, after which it'll be about bedtime for me.

Don't be fooled by this terrain profile: we were NOT climbing huge steep grades at any point today.

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Today's ride: 62 miles (100 km)
Total: 461 miles (742 km)

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Gretchen CarlsonIt sounds like Serenity (your bike) is treating you well. I'm glad this tour has not been uphill all the way or filled with flat tires like your insane journey from Oregon to Wyoming.
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8 months ago

Keith AdamsTo Gretchen CarlsonSo far, so GREAT!!! Every mile I ride validates further the choices and decisions I made when having it built. It's *exactly* what I had imagined and hoped it would be.
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8 months ago