Day 101 - Bluffton, OH to Ottawa, OH loop - Two Far 2020 - NTF (Not Two Far)

September 8, 2020

Day 101 - Bluffton, OH to Ottawa, OH loop

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While waiting out the rain yesterday, Kerry designed a northern circle route from Bluffton. It was wonderful to ride unloaded and not have to pack and unpack the panniers today.

The route was excellent. Ohio continues to impress us with the quality of their roads. I don't think we've encountered a poor road surface at all since we entered Ohio. There were three small towns to visit along the 40 mile route, so we didn't have any long stretches without a good place for a rest stop.

We were soon out in the country. Of all the barns I've photographed, I haven't seen very many with quilt paintings. This is a pretty one.

In the last few days, we've been seeing many of these man made ponds. The larger ones even have a sandy beach included. We saw one the other day that had a fully decorated tiki bar on it's "beach". I was sorry that I didn't get a picture of that.

Our route followed this small waterway for a few miles. According to the map, it is called Riley's Creek.

The first town we came to was Pandora. This classic one room schoolhouse is just outside town. It was open from 1889-1927. The family who originally donated the land on which it sits has restored it.

We took a short break in Pandora, but I didn't get any pictures.

Here is today's first barn old barn.

Beans and corn are by far, the most prevalent crops.

But we did see a lot of tomatoes today. The Hirzel Canning Company produces numerous processed tomato products under the Dei Fratelli brand. Most of their tomatoes are grown within 10 miles of their three canneries in Northwest Ohio.

The tomatoes smelled good. When we rode by the cannery a few miles later, it smelled even better.

The town of Ottawa was half way along the route. It is an attractive small town.

From Ottawa, we turned back south toward Bluffton and lost our tailwind. We had a headwind for about eight miles, then turned mostly out of the wind.

The third town we passed through was Columbus Grove, another pretty place.

The last few miles took us past more rural beauty.

A beautiful specimen of my favorite tree

When we got back to Bluffton, we rode through downtown. This part of Ohio is full of lovely small towns.

I tried to capture the flowers and flags lining Main Street.

There are two large murals downtown.

Riding down Main Street, we saw a bike shop, so we had to stop. The owners were very friendly and came out to see the bike and chat.

Raymond and Liz, owners of Bike Crazy - and RANS dealers, too.

Before we went back to our room, we stopped at the convenience store next door to the hotel. We immediately wondered if Team Abbate had made a recent quick trip to Ohio!

Our tandem touring companions, Team Abbate, leave no cat unfed as we travel.

Today's ride: 41 miles (66 km)
Total: 3,332 miles (5,362 km)

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