June 27, 2021
Day 21: Grinnell, IA to Cedar Rapids, IA
The day started with light fog and the sun peeking through low thin clouds. Little chance of rain, so hopefully today would be a bit more dry.
Here is the hotel that used to be a jr. high school in Grinnell – very cool place and I wished I could stay longer. My room had thick walls and huge windows and had clearly been part of a classroom in earlier days.
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I got on the road about 8:30. The temperature was 68, and it was a couple hours before it warmed up enough that I wasn’t a bit chilly.
I met two touring cyclists going the other way near Marengo. First ones I’ve seen during my trip. They were on a tour from Chicago to Des Moines. Like me they had had issues with mapping software trying to put them on dirt roads instead of highways. It was nice to see someone else out there doing the same thing I am. I wished them well and continued.
A few minutes later I entered the Amana Colonies. You can read about what those are on Wikipedia here: Amana Colonies
Once in the colonies and off Hwy 6, the traffic almost disappeared, and the riding was very pleasant and quiet. I passed by tiny communities of only a few dozen homes. I remember visiting here when I was growing up in Iowa City, and thought about stopping at some of the stores, but on a bicycle where would I put/carry whatever I had bought?
I passed by a wetland restoration area that (even with cloud cover) was such an intense green I had to stop and take a picture:
So if you read the Wikipedia article, you may have seen that Amana appliances started here. There is still a large factory (now called Whirlpool) in the midst of these quiet farms and homes. If you read the date on the smokestack in the picture, it’s been here a very long time!
After the quiet of Amana, I had to turn onto Hwy 151, and the resulting increase in traffic. At least there was a good shoulder, and I made pretty good time. The foliage by the side of the road has changed as well. No more chicory, but these blooms are pretty abundant and (again) I have no idea what they are:
The day ended with working my way through Cedar Rapids – good segregated (!) bike lanes in many areas – bad streets overall. Just before 3pm I reached my hotel in the suburb of Marion.
Standout track was an easy one: “Ramble On” by Led Zeppelin. Great song for riding, and somewhat descriptive of what I’m doing.
Tomorrow I head for Dubuque – completing my crossing of Iowa (JAGBRAI for those who know what RAGBRAI is). My sister lives there, so I’ll take a rest day before tackling Wisconsin on Wednesday.
Today's ride: 74 miles (119 km)
Total: 1,091 miles (1,756 km)
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https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/coneflower-purple-echinacea-purpurea
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