West Glacier NP and then Homeward Bound

Monday, July 13^th – West Glacier

Interesting sign as we ride up the west side of Glacier NP

Today was a transition day as we moved camps from the East Glacier to the West Glacier area.  Because of the height and length of the RV we were unable to drive across the Going to the Sun road and instead had to drive around the park on Highway 2.   Once we found our RV park, we stocked up on groceries and did laundry before heading into Whitefish for some sightseeing and dinner.

Tuesday, July 14^th

Our ride this morning was in a “less-traveled” section of West Glacier.  Leaving from the Apgar Visitor Center, we took gravel roads through the southwest side of Glacier on “The North Fork in the park road”.  The sign posted at the beginning of the ride says it all.  This area suffered from a massive fire about 13 years ago and it was interesting to see how the forest is rejuvenating.   We saw only one car driving on the road and three parked at Camus Creek.   At that point the road was closed to motorized traffic.   At 12 miles we turned around and headed back.  We passed two other bikers on our way back... a really quiet and peaceful ride in the wilderness.

A buck that was hanging out along our ride

After returning to the Visitor Center we rode the free shuttle to Logan Pass.  After riding up the other side of the mountain we wanted to see how this side compared.  The last 10 miles up to the pass is an engineering marvel of carving a road into rock for the 3000' ascent to Logan Pass. Most of the organized bike groups ride up to Logan pass from the West Side and then down to St. Mary’s.  Both sides are impressive and beautiful.  But compared to our morning ride, the “Road to the Sun” is like being in Disneyland…cars and shuttle buses everywhere.

Weds., July 15^th – Time to Head Home

It’s been a great time traveling around the northern plains states and seeing some areas we haven’t visited yet but it is now time to head home.  We are both looking forward to a little more space!  So it was time to pack up once again and this time head south.  We drove to Missoula, found a city park, had lunch and fooled around on the river trails before driving into Idaho.  We are camped just outside of the Salmon, ID along the Salmon river.

Total Bike Miles – 9.5

Thurs., July 16^th  - Idaho Falls and on to Ogden, UT

The falls in Idaho Falls

After the night in the fishing campground, we headed on to Idaho Falls.  We dropped the road tandem and took a quick tour of the “greenbelt” in downtown Idaho Falls.  After the ride we had a really nice lunch at the Snow Eagle Brew and Grill.  The food here was really good even though it was rated below several chain restaurants in the area.

We moved on to the Ogden, UT area to the Willard Bay State Park Campground.  This is a nice state park very close to I-15 with full RV hookups which is really good since it was 90 degrees when we pulled in at 5:30 PM.

This will be the last post as we slog our way back to ABQ and real life for a while.

Total Bike Miles - 12 miles

Glacier National Park... We finally made it!

Thursday, July 9^th

Rattle snake along the highway that wanted to bite Beth

Our morning ride took us from Valier to Cut Bank for a total of 61 miles round-trip.  The Montana drivers on this stretch of road, what few there were, were not only courteous but friendly.   Traffic was not an issue but who knew we would have to watch out for rattlesnakes.   Because last night was very cool, they must have been crawling onto the roads to warm up.   As we passed one climbing a big hill (going slow), we scared it and it curled up and started rattling!  Needless to say the stoker added a little extra energy to the pedals.   Ted had not seen it so he went back to take a picture.  All the others we saw were road kill including this one on our return trip.

Cut Bank is the location where Lewis and Clark and some Blackfeet were involved in an argument over guns and horses.  The story varies as to whom was at fault based on which side tells the story.   Both sides agree that it resulted in the death of two young Blackfeet. 

We continued our visit of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives with a stop at Big Sky Café  (the #1 restaurant for Cut Bank per Trip Advisor) for a mid-morning brunch before returning to Valier.  The staff were friendly and asked about our ride.  They made us feel like real slackers when they said a group of 6 cyclists pulling canoes with their bikes had been in the day before.  They are pedaling and paddling all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.

July 10^th – Glacier National Park

Today we drove to the East Entrance of Glacier National Park. This park has been on our "Must Visit" list for quite a while and we have finally made here. We stopped at Two Medicine Lake for a 4 mile hike.   We originally planned to hike further, but the flies were really bad and Beth was unwilling to cross the swinging bridge over the river. The sign indicating weight load was one person only and the missing slats did not do anything to alay the anxiety.  If we were on “Amazing Race”, she claims she could have done it.  We did hike up to Astoria Falls.  Then it was time to head to our campsite at St Mary’s.

July 11^th – Going to the Sun

We were off to an early start to ride to Logan Pass on the Going to the Sun Road.  Scenery was spectacular despite the clouds and cool weather.   Unfortunately the road on the east side of the pass is under construction and we had to wait both ways for access to the two mile stretch of one-lane road while dodging cars and semi's with asphalt.  This seriously impacted our “wheee” coming down the 2000’ descent.

July 12^th – Many Glaciers

Many Glaciers Hotel on Swiftcurrent Lake

We had serious winds all night and into this morning with cloudy skies and threats of rain.   We started off with breakfast at a real “Dive” Johnson’s café.  We would not recommend anyone eating here – the food was awful and expensive.  However, the rest of the day was absolutely fabulous.   We started with a visit to the Many Glaciers Hotel which is celebrating it’s 100^th birthday.  The deck overlooks Swiftcurrent Lake and the views were great.  Then we set of on a 7 mile round trip hike up the southern side of Lake Josephine.  The trail took us  past small waterfalls and on to Grinnell lake.  We also visited Hidden Falls which feeds Grinnell lake.   The weather improved throughout the hike but stayed cool enough for us to enjoy being outdoors and with enough wind to keep the flies and mosquitoes at bay. 

 Grinnell Lake being fed by glacier melt

On the way back we were fortunate enough to see a mother moose and her calf.  They actually appeared to be posing for our pictures.  We finished up with a late lunch at Many Glaciers Hotel before heading back to Saint Mary’s Campground for our final night on the east side of Glacier National Park.

Moose with her calf in Lake Josephine

Finally found Lewis and Clark...

Sunday, July 5^th  - Fort Peck Reservoir

Camping spot at Fort Peck Lake

Today was a rest day from riding.  We drove to Fort Peck Reservoir.  The lake was formed by the largest hydraulic earth filled dam in the world.  The dam was built in the 1930’s under the supervision of the Army Corps of Engineers as part of work projects developed to help provide jobs during the depression.  The area is still managed by the Army Corps of Engineers.  The lake shore, at 1520 miles, are longer than the California coast and are a great place to fish and boat.  Campgrounds, most without water or electricity, are found around the lake.  Most are accessible only through unmaintained roads and we were warned “If you see a single raindrop on the back roads near Fort Peck, head back immediately.  These roads tend to wash out easily and getting stuck is a real possibility”.   With that in mind, we found a camping spot just off the main road but still next to the lake.  The high temps of the last two days were gone and with the breeze, it was actually a little chilly in the RV.

At the bottom of the dam overlooking the Missouri River, is the Fort Peck Interpretive Center and Museum.  The center features exhibits on Fort Peck Dam construction and homesteading, wildlife of the CM Russell National Wildlife Refuge (which surrounds the lake) and paleontology including a cast of Tyrannosaurus rex.  This is a free museum with excellent exhibits.  Tours of the power plant are also available, although we skipped that.

Monday- June 6^th – Beaver Creek Park – Havre, Mt

Lots of hay in this area along with a lot of wheat

A 42 mile loop ride started our day.  Because of the drop in temps, we actually started out in jackets.  Riding was quite pleasant for the first 15 miles.  We had to ride the next 15 miles on US highway 2 from Nashua to Glasgow. Hwy 2 is the main east-west highway in Northern Montana and in a lot of areas there is no other paved road.  So, while not super busy, it does have a fair amount of semi’s and RVs pulling cars or boats or both… and the speed limit is 70mph on a 2 lane road with no shoulder.   Montana drivers are not nearly as courteous as North Dakota drivers.  We had several cars within 3’ of us going 70+, including an 18 wheeler and a truck pulling a boat.  If you haven’t experienced it, getting hit by the air pressure front from a semi going 70 mph is pretty scary.   You nearly get blown off the road and then immediately get sucked back in toward the trailer.  Hwy 2 is designated by Adventure Cyclists of America as the “Northern Tier Cross-America Route” and is the suggested travel route across most of Montana.  Sure glad we did not take that route 2 years ago.  Regardless we made it back to the RV safely.  

After the ride, we packed up and headed out.  Again we saw a change in geographic make-up as we moved further west.  Havre is surrounded by plains but just south are the Bear Paw Mountains.  Approximately 20 miles south of Havre is the biggest county park in the US, Beaver Creek Park at 10,000 acres.   How could we not travel into it to spend the night?  We camped by Bear Paw Lake in a campground run by Mt. Fish, Wildlife and Parks.  Again we have the campground almost to ourselves, with only one other camper across the lake.  

Riding in Beaver Creek Park

Weds., July 7^th – Havre to Great Falls, Mt

Just a short 17 mile ride through the park and then into the RV to head to Great Falls.  We had planned to ride to a ski area south of the park, but just south of the park was a pretty good size herd of free range cattle.  This was a pretty narrow canyon and the cattle were pretty skittish of the bike.  It wasn’t long before we looked like a one bike cattle drive.  Plus there were a couple of bulls butting heads alongside the road.  Progress was slow, and visions of a cattle stampede from the cowboy movies started to become a very real possibility, so we just headed back to the RV. 

It quickly clouded up and rained off-and-on for most of the day but this didn’t prevent us from stopping in Loma for lunch at “Ma’s Café”.  Loma is a census-designated place – had to google that.  It simply means there is a concentrated number of people in the area, but it’s not even an unincorporated town.   Ma’s gets points for billboard advertising which drew us and obviously others in.  The food was typical café style and sold a potpourri of other items, plus it’s a casino… but just about every gas station in Montana is a casino.

2K's Kafe - #2 rated place to eat in Great Falls

From Ma’s we continued south the Great Falls.  After all this time in the RV, we decided it would be nice to spend the night at a hotel.  Dinner was at Ernie and Bert’s, not of Sesame Street Fame, but a very nice brewpub - # 1 of places to eat according to Trip Advisor.

Thursday, July 8^th – Valier, Mt

We enjoyed a rambling, easy 27 mile ride through Great Falls down the River’s Edge Trail.  The trail runs along the Missouri River and provides easy access to spectacular views of the river, dams, waterfalls and Giant Springs State Park (yes, it has a giant spring flowing directly into the MO river).  Along the way we stopped at 2K’s Kafe for breakfast - #2 place to eat in Great Falls according to Trip Advisor.   It seems a little like we are visiting “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” with an emphasis on “Dives”. We’re pretty sure the Fire Marshall would not approve of the 6 or 8 things plugged into one outlet with a 3-way plug and an extension cord.   Breakfast was quite good and the service was quick and friendly.

Falls and damn on the MO river at Great Falls

After a stop at a bike shop and Walmart to stock up on groceries and essentials, we drove north to 

Valier, MT to a town run RV park.  We talked to the camp manager and he said that he had 55 RV’s in 51 units in the park over the 4^th of July weekend…Hard to believe since there are 6 campers here now and Valier is literally in the middle of nowhere.  The campground is not even on Google maps.  Our campsite is right next to Lake Frances.  Temperatures are rising, again, so it’s nice to be able to hook up to electricity for air conditioning.

 

Finally found Lewis and Clark.   "Damn, where did that dam come from!"

Montana Badlands

Friday, July 3 – Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Overview of Makoshitka SP in eastern MT.
Rare shot over Beth's shoulder...

We started the morning off riding the 27 mile park loop in the opposite direction.   Again we saw plenty of wildlife including a pair of pronghorns, several male bison alone along the road and a herd of bison with calves in one of the grassy areas.

After our ride it was then time to move on, crossing into Montana.  We stayed at a “Cowboy Garth” campground  (click the link to read about the Cowboy Garth reference) in Glendive.   An RV park was here in the past, then the land was bought and an Astoria hotel built.  However, behind the hotel, Larry was working on reconstructing the RV park.  Electric, water and sewer hookups were available but we were one of only four campers there.

Saturday, July 4 – Makoshika (ma KO she ka) State Park

"Lonely bike" shot

We have Beth’s Mom to thank for finding this park.  It was in Country magazine (a subscription from Mom) as a “Hidden Gem”.  Just outside of Glendive, the park is considered one of the most impressive badlands areas in America and the largest state park in Montana.  Ten species of dinosaur fossils have been discovered here, including Tyrannosaurus rex.  This park is considered the eastern entrance to the Montana dinosaur trail.

We spent the morning riding the gravel roads (15% grade in some areas) and hiking to fabulous viewpoints.   Pictures just can’t convey what the eye sees.  As we rode back into town from the park we got to join the last 100 yards of the local parade down the mainstreet of Glendive..  What a glorious way to spend the 4^th of July.

Back along the Lewis and Clark Trail

Hazy wet ride along the Missouri River in ND

Tuesday, June 30

Today started with a wet ride.  It was just spitting when we left Cross Ranch SP but it turned into a rain off and on for the 42 mile loop.   The first 15 miles were the dirt river road running along the Missouri River so we took the fat tire tandem.   Having left the flat plains of eastern ND we were happy to have some rolling hills to ride.

Then on to Fort Abraham Lincoln SP outside of Bismark.   We journeyed into Bismark, the capital of North Dakota.  We had dinner at an Irish pub (ranked #2 in Bismarck by TripAdviser) and it was good food and gave us a chance to walk around downtown. 

Fort Abraham Lincoln is where Custer rode out for his fateful last stand.  The North Dakotans are quick to inform you that he was in good health when he left ND.   Hope our luck in Montana is better than his at Little Big Horn.

Theodore Roosevelt NP

Wednesday, July 1

We rode downriver from the state park, following the Missouri River to Sugar Loaf Recreation area and back. Beth scored both a motorcycle and a auto ND license plate on this 25 mile out and back ride.   Weather was great, but still a little hazy from the smoke blowing in from Canadian forest fires.

Then onto Theodore Roosevelt National Park in Medora, ND in the badlands near the Montana boarder.   We are staying in the South Unit at the Cottonwood campground... and yes, there is plenty of cottonwood floating around the camp site.   Again a dry camp with no electrical service, but water is available if needed.   

Bison who was a little close for comfort... giving us the eye

Teddy Roosevelt established two open range ranches here; one with partners and one his own operation.  Elk Horn became his principal residence, a place he could live the "strenuous life".   By spending time here, he developed many of his conservationist ideals.  

Thursday, July 2

We rode the 36 mile loop of the south unit.   

We are definitely back in the west now, with buttes and great rock formations.  We felt a little like we were back home in NM, but way too much green grass for that.   

We were lucky to see a variety of wildlife including prairie dogs, feral horses, mule deer and bison.  One of the bison was so close to the road we were a little worried he might come after us as we were climbing a pretty steep hill and he would have had no trouble running us down.  

A field of  Canola.  We have seen huge fields of the yellow flowers and Beth finally Googled it to find that ND is the largest producer of Canola in the US.

#29... North Dakota (Obama's 50th)

Saturday, June 27 – Red River State Recreational Area

Grand Forks, ND

We left Itasca State Park and headed out to Red River SRA.  Red River SRA is part of the Greater Grand Forks Greenway and is located in the city of East Grand Forks MN on the banks of Red River of the North and Red Lake River.  We were able to get a non-electric site for the night.  We took a bike ride around the Greenway in both MN and North Dakota, checking off another state (#29) on our list with our 3^rd two-states-in-one-ride on this trip.   We rode through the University of North Dakota which has a beautiful campus. Total bike miles  – 22.    

Shortly after our ride, a thunderstorm with tornado warnings rolled in.  Despite some heavy rain, thankfully no tornado.   I would really hate to see what a tornado could do to a RV campsite.  After the rain let up we took a short walk to dinner at the Blue Moose on the river front.  With the park in downtown Grand Forks, there was easy access to a lot of options.

Rainbow after the storm... and a guy with a full sized
 diesel tractor to pull his 5th-wheel

Sunday, Jun 28 – Graham’s Island State Park, Devils Lake, ND

Another morning of driving took us into North Dakota to Devils Lake, ND.  We needed to take care of laundry and shopping so made a stop in town before heading to Graham’s Island State Park. Unfortunately we ran into one of the last remaining bastions of “Blue Laws”.  ND still enforces a wide of array of retail sales restrictions on Sunday, so much so that most stores don’t even open until noon… Not even Walmart!!!  But by the time we had finished up laundry, it was past noon and we could stock up before heading to our camp site.

Devil’s Lake is ND’s largest natural lake and the second largest body of water in ND.  It is well known by sport fishermen for walleye and northern pike.  Too bad we don’t fish. But there were plenty of fishermen around.  We saw some of the largest RV parks we have seen and plenty of fishing boats in the area.  Grahams Island has close to 200 RV spots and they were completely full on Saturday night, but we had no problem getting a spot on Sunday.

Monday, June 29 – Cross Ranch State Park, ND

Humid, hazy morning

The morning started off with a tough 42 mile out and back ride.  It was very flat riding with humidity in the 90’s and 10 – 20 mph wind in our face for the first half of the ride.  The humidity was so thick the sun was just an red ball in the sky.  Not a lot to see, we were either on levy roadways which run through the lake or in farm country.  Our original plan was to ride around the entire lake, 65 miles, but with the stiff headwind the last 15-20 miles back to the RV could have been a very unpleasant slog so we road to the town of Minnewaukan (or what’s left of it) and back.   

It was quite interesting to see how much higher the lake was than in the past.  Because the lake is endorheic (Google challenge) the water level can rise and fall dramatically and is more saline than most typical fresh water lakes.  The lake has risen 25 feet in the last 10 years.  Entire barns were in the water. Over 300 homes and 70,000 acres of farmland have been flooded.

After our ride, we moved on west to Cross Ranch State Park, ND which is located along seven miles of the last free-flowing, undeveloped stretches of the Missouri River about 25 miles north of Bismarck.

Abandoned house that is being taken over by Devil's Lake

Off to the Headwaters of the Mississippi

Mississippi flowing from Lake Itasca

Thursday, June 25^th  – Itasca State Park

After the night at Birch Lake Forest Campground we decided to bag the Lake Woebegone trail.  We had seen the trail and much of the local roads (beat to crap) on the way to the campground. We are getting a little tired of the rails-to-trails, cornfields and beat up roads so we decided to head 100 miles north to Itasca State Park and the head waters of the Mississippi River.  We thought that we should be there fairly early to get a campsite since every Minnesotan we talked to suggested going to this park but indicated that it was quite popular and getting a camping spot in the summer could be tough. 

By arriving early we were able to get a campsite next to Lake Itasca but checkout for the current occupants was not until 4 pm.   We parked by the visitors center and rode to the Mississippi headwaters at the effluent of Lake Itasca, then on around the Wilderness Trail for a total of 16 miles.

Mississippi crossing not far from the headwaters

Itasca State park includes not only the beginning of the Mississippi River but a large tract of Minnesota’s remaining old growth red and white pine forest.  Established in 1891, Lake Itasca is Minnesota’s oldest state park. 

Friday, June 26^th- Itasca State Park

Our goal today was to head to the home of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, as well as, the curling capital of the US – Bemidji, MN.  Our out and back ride of 69 miles followed the “Great River Road” (car) and “Mississippi River Trail” (bike) and was our longest ride so far.  Scenery was different with mostly pines and birch trees.  Much of this area is state park, recreation area or nature preserve so traffic was light although the roads had plenty of cracks.  But the day was beautiful and the ride was quite manageable.

Paul Bunyan and Babe

In downtown Bimidji in a park by the lake, we found the Paul Bunyan statue which is 18 feet tall and weighs 2 ½  tons above the footings.  Babe is constructed of wooden ribs covered with canvas.  At one time Babe’s eyes blinked and smoke came out of his nose.  The statues are on the National Register of Historic Places as official cultural resources worthy of preservation.  Why??  We don’t know… very folk art looking and clearly won’t be in the Louvre next to the Venus de Milo.

P.S.  Beth finally scored her first license plate of the trip… Minnesota!

Minneapolis Meandering Metric 100 (>62 miles)

Sunday, June 21^st – Mississippi River Trail, IA

Iowa tourism road sign... read left for the full test

After all the rain yesterday, today was sunny with low humidity and nice temperature.  We did another section of the river trail from Pikes Peak state park to Guttenberg, Iowa.  We found some serious hills as we rode along the bluffs and down to the river and back.  Just before descending into the town of Guttenberg, IA we saw this nice little ditty along the side of the road like a “Burma Shave” ad:

“This is not a clever verse

We tried

and tried

it just got

worse

Our Iowa”

 Total route – 37.5 miles

After the ride it was time to pack up and head into Minnesota.  Our campground was a state campground (Kruger) near Kellogg, MN.   Kellogg is known as home to LARK toys.   A destination toy shop with a full size, custom hand carved carrousel inside.  The animals are beautifully carved and quite unique.

Monday, June 22^nd 

Dar (Donald's sister), Beth, Ted, Margaret and Donald Fischer
We don't remember what was so funny...

We woke to rain that showed no signs of stopping so we bagged the planned ride and moved on to the Minneapolis/St Paul area.  We had a great visit and dinner with Margaret and Donald Fischer (  Heidi’s parents).   We camped at a large county campground, Baker Campgrounds about 15 miles west of Minneapolis -  A very nice facility with over 200 camping spots but relatively empty.  In our travels over the past 3 summers, the county campgrounds usually offer the best facilities at the best rates in the area if you can find one

Tuesday, June 23

No rain, low humidity and temps in the high 70’s so a perfect day for a ride.  Our route took us from the campground to Minnehaha Falls on a meandering tour.  Minneapolis has an extensive network of trails throughout the Twin Cities, so routing on bike trails and bike lanes was not a problem…. Staying on the route was.  Ted uses a web based tool, RideWithGPS.com for generating our ride routes and then downloads them to our Garmin bike GPS’s.  Frequently the route directions are “continue straight” where the trail is curving and splits into a “slight left” and a “slight right”… so what is “straight”?  So we frequently felt like Fozzie the bear… “When you come to the fork in the road… take it!”

At Minnehaha Falls

With a few missed turns and backtracking we made it to the beautiful falls and park.   Total route – 65.5 miles… a metric century, 100km (>62 miles).

Wednesday, June 24

We spent another night in Baker Campground and took a 27 mile ride on the back roads south of the park.  Of course there were many lakes along the way and a lot of really nice houses in the area.  After getting back to the RV, showering, and dealing with RV logistics (dumping and taking on fresh water) we headed NW toward our camp site for the night, Birch Lake Forest Campground.  This is a primitive site, but gives us access to the Woebegone Lake trail for a ride tomorrow before we move further north to the Mississippi head waters region of Itasca Lake State Park.

Plenty of bike trails in the Minneapolis area (green lines), but they can be a bit confusing!

Still in Wisconsin and Iowa

Thursday, June 18  Military Ridge Rails-to-Trails

Along Military Ridge Trail

We saddled up and hit our third rails-to-trails in southern Wisconsin.  The Military Ridge trail runs from Dodgerville to Madison, WI.  We left our camp at Blue Mound state park and headed toward Mt. Horeb and Verona.  Blue Mound is the highest point in southern WI, so we knew there was going to be a climb to get back to the RV, but being on a rail-to-trail, nothing is too steep.

It was another great day for a ride and we clipped right along to Verona.  We decided to circle through town on the Ice Age Trail bike path which took us right to the edge of the Madison city limits with a nice view of the western edge of Wisconsin's state capital.  If Nicholas had been with us, we're sure we would have been riding right in to the state capital.

Epic Campus - Bike trail is in the upper right

When we were approaching the Verona we saw a giant construction project.  On our way back to the Military Ridge Trail we rode up to the project which turned out to be the Epic medical software company campus.  They must be doing really well. (Was this software mandated by Obama-care?) The campus is huge, with massive construction projects underway.  We rode through the edge of the campus which must be large enough to employ at least 10,000 people at this one location, if not more.

On our way back we stopped in Mt. Horeb to check out the "famous" trolls and have lunch at the Grumpy Troll Brew Pub.  Lunch and the beer was good, but we were  underwhelmed by the number of "trolls" along the main street.  First there is a sign pointing you to "Troll way" as you come into town, but then no further directions.  We had stopped at a craft shop and Beth asked where the trolls were.  What few were left were located further down the main street... I guess we were just expecting a lot more after all the hype.

Mt Horeb Trol

Friday, June 19 - Taking care of business 

We have been on the road for a few days and riding almost every day, so the laundry was piling up.  We found a nice laundry in Dodgerville and made pretty quick time that task.  We also stocked up on ice and diesel for the RV.

Our plan was to head to Pikes Peak State Park in Iowa, just across the Mississippi from Praire du Chien, WI.  Pikes Peak is known for the bluffs above the Mississippi and claims to be the most photographed park in Iowa.  We had tried to reserve a camping spot there, but had no luck, but they have a number of sites reserved for "walk-ups".  We lucked out and were able to get a nice spot in the campground by arriving pretty early in the day.

Pikes Peak State Park, IA view of Praire du Chien, WI

Saturday - June 20 - Rained out...took a hike.
We woke up to a far off rumbling that was shortly followed by a pretty steady rain until 10AM.  The narrow roads around here are popular for cycling, but with the rain and traffic, we decided it would be a good day for a hike.  We put on the rain gear and headed out on what we thought would be about a 6 mile hike to  Point Ann" at the far north end of the state park.  Well it turned out be closer to 10 miles.  The rain stopped within a few minutes of hitting the trail and luckily it was mostly cloudy or we might have been steaming in our rain gear.  It was a pretty hilly hike and we are both a little sore today.

Hiking in Pikes Peak SP

Editorial Comment:   While a very nice park, if Pikes Peak is the most photographed park in Iowa, there must not be much to photograph.   As we were told by a former Iowan maybe
 "I Otta Went Around".  

For dinner we went to another Brewpub - Old Man River in downtown McGregor.   While they claim beer brewed on site and local food, it proved less than true.  Ted did have locally brewed beer but no beer brewed on site was available and they were out of the local cheese and sausages on the menu.  A little strange since it was Saturday night and they are mostly a tourist town.  Ended up eating mediocre bar-b-que sandwiches.  Ted's fried cheese curds were quite good.

Back in the Saddle in Iowa and Wisconsin

In the last couple of days we have picked off 2 more states, Iowa and Wisconsin  in our quest to ride in every state in the USA. 

Monday,  June 15

Camped next to the lake at Waconda State Park 

We spent the night in the Waconda State Park near La Grange, MO (north of Hannibal) with maybe 5 other campers in the whole park.  The geese greatly outnumbered the people.  It is a very nice park with a number of small lakes made from gravel pit mining many years ago. 

It was nice to have a fairly unremarkable day.   We started off with a fairly flat 26 mile ride through La Grange and Caton, Mo along the Mississippi river, then looping back through corn country to the west.  Very quiet roads and a very relaxing ride.  

As we rode through La Grange a small plant had its safety record posted - 26 years and 1 week with no time lost due to a work related incident.    Wouldn't you hate to be the one to break that record?  

While riding through Canton we passed a “Repurposing” shop (i.e. junk) and saw a yellow 10 speed bike that looked just like Ted’s first Western Flyer “road” bike that he had in the 70’s.  Ted has been tempted to hunt one of these down on eBay before.  We drove back by and stopped to take a second look.  The bike was in need of a lot of work, but the owners were quite proud of it and wanted $45.  Ted didn’t want it that bad and we would have to haul it around with us for another 6 weeks so we passed on it.  If he changes his mind it will still be there for a long time.

Roller Damn across the Mississippi at Davenport, IA

After our ride we took care of RV needs (dumping and taking on water) and hit the road to head to the Quad Cities area.  We found a really nice county park with RV hookups about 6 miles outside Davenport, IA.  For dinner we drove into Davenport to try out the brewpubs.  Great River Brewing was open and had a great IPA.  Then we walked to the Barrelhouse for a good supper.   Despite some very heavy rains we have had a relaxing day and evening.

Tuesday , June 16 – Davenport, IA riding the Great River Trail

From the campground we rode back toward Davenport and picked up the Great River Bike Trail which runs from the Mississippi headwaters to the Gulf along the Mississippi.  We started at Credit Island, riding through downtown Davenport, then across the bridge to Rock Island and then north through Moline, IL and ending at Hampton.  Along the way we were in river side parks, industrial areas and the river levies. 

John Deere Plant in Moline, IL - Deere world headquarters is
across the river in Davenport 

On the way back we stopped in downtown Davenport for lunch at the Front Street Pub.  One of the owners came over to our table and asked if we were from NM.  (Ted had his NM Zia bike shirt on)  Turns out she grew up in Aztec, NM near Farmington and Durango, CO.  So we chatted for a while about NM and the Quad Cities area.    

Talk about weird, the couple camping across from us in the New Glarus Woods SP are from Las Vegas, NM.   And when the ranger came by, he indicated that he used to live in Gallup.   This is a very small, dry campsite outside of New Glarus, WI.   Who could imagine?

Visiting "American Pickers" 

 On our way out of Davenport, we stopped at the Antique Archeology store in Le Claire, IA.  This is mostly a collection of memorabilia “picks” that they have collected from the TV show “American Pickers”, but it was entertaining to take a quick look at their expensive “junk”.

Wednesday, June 17 – Rails-to-Trails in Southern WI

It was an exceptionally nice day with temps in the low 60’s as we set off from New Glarus Woods SP to New Glarus, then on to Monticello and Monroe, WI.  first riding the Sugar River trail and then switching to the Badger Trail at Monticello.  In Monroe, we visited the Minhas brewery, the oldest brewery in the mid-west and then had a lunch of local cheese, sausage and beer at Baumgartner’s Cheese store on the square.  Monroe is also home to Swiss Colony.  We are sure everybody has received a Swiss Colony cheese and sausage package at Christmas at one time or another. 

Riding along the Sugar River trail

 Then it was the 20 mile ride back to the RV.  All-in-all a really nice day.

We are now camped at the Blue Mound SP, just west of Mt. Horeb, WI.  From here we have easy access to the Military Ridge Trail that runs about 40 miles in the area.

A Sad Turn of Events

Tuesday, June 9

After another night at Lake Shabbana, we took at 20 mile ride south and west of the state park.  Today was a little muggier but the ride was great – mostly rolling hills.   After a great lunch and visit with Beth’s Uncle Dewey and Aunt Kathy in DeKalb, IL we headed for Wisconsin.   We received a call that afternoon that Ted’s Dad was being taken to the hospital and Ted’s brother would keep us informed.  We proceeded to Yellowstone Lake SP in Wisconsin.  We were well out of cell phone range, but planned to be back in Monroe, WI the next morning.

Joe in his garden

Wednesday-Saturday (June 10-13)

By 9:30 the next morning the news was not good and we turned around to head back to Eldon, MO.  Unfortunately, he passed away within a few hours before we could make the 9 hour drive from Wisconsin.  Thankfully we had visited with him as we passed through Eldon the week before.  He had led a very full life at the age of 91, with many family and friends attending his funeral service on Saturday morning.  All of his grandsons were pallbearers, including both of our sons, Jim from Seattle and Ben from Albuquerque.  The family had the opportunity to gather several times to share stories from his life.

Sunday,  June 14

We have decided that it was time to return to our vacation plans.  Leaving the Jefferson City/Eldon area, we are camped at Wakonda State Park south of La Grange, Mo.   Our plan is to resume riding in the mornings while slowly making our way north and east through Iowa and back into Wisconsin. 

To Chicago and beyond

Chicago skyline from Lake Shore Dr bike path

6/5 - Friday... Our 30 mile ride turned into 37, due to some re-routing and construction.  We took the hybrid tandem (fat-tire) bike because 12 of the miles were on a rails-to-trail.   We should have taken the road bike as the trail was well packed limestone.   Today we encountered the heat and humidity expected in the Midwest, making for a little more difficult ride.

After riding, we drove into Chicago (Hinsdale, actually) to visit and stay with Joel and Sandy Pundmann.  Joel went to Rolla with Ted and was the best man in our wedding many, many years ago.  While we have stayed in touch, we haven’t seen them for probably 25 plus years, so it was good to catch up. 

6/6 - Saturday – Joel, Ted and Beth headed into downtown Chicago to ride Lake Shore Drive and see some of the Chicago highlights.  Lake Shore Drive is beautiful with fantastic views of the city.  It goes by Navy Pier, Shedd Aquarium and the Institute of Art museum.  It is a well-used bike path, with charity runs, a half-marathon, and many sightseers walking, on bikes and Segways sharing the path so it was very slow and go.  We then biked to Buckingham Fountain and back to where we had parked the RV. 

The "Bean" at Millennium Park 

Parking in Chicago is a challenge, especially for a large vehicle.   Thanks to a Kenny Chesney concert, we could not park in the lot in the Millennium park lot that Joel had scouted out earlier in the week.  We found a pay lot just off Michigan Ave a few blocks away.  The sign said oversize vehicles and trucks were $30/day, but there was no attendant in the lot and the self-pay system defaulted to $20 with no option to change anything.  When we returned to the RV, there was a $75 parking ticket stuck on the windshield.  An attendant was in the lot and said we should have paid for 2 spaces.  Needless to say, that was a sour note.  Joel, let us know how the protest works out.   Otherwise, we’ll most likely never be back in Chicago with the RV anyway… sue me!

We left the RV where it was and walked down Michigan Ave.   The art museum had outfitted the lions out front with Blackhawk hockey helmets… they are in the Stanley Cup finals.   And of course we had to have a Chicago hotdog, Garrett's "Chicago mix" popcorn (cheese flavored mixed with caramel popcorn) and see “The Bean”.

6/7 – Sunday… After stocking up on groceries and buying a new tire for the road tandem we left the Chicago area and moved about 60 miles west to Shabbona Lake State Park.   Today has been cloudy and rainy so no riding.   Played some board games and Ted took some time to do some bicycle maintenance.    Hoping to get a ride in tomorrow.

6/8 - Monday … It rained most of the night, but clear blue skies by 9AM.  We had planned a 35 mile route through the farm country around the Shabbona area.  We hit a couple of unplanned dirt roads, but in most cases the dirt roads were in better shape than some of the highways.  We are near Dekalb, IL, which is clearly in the heart of corn country.  Dekalb seed corn was founded in 1912.  So spending most of our 35 mile ride in corn fields was no big surprise… and having a constant wind wasn’t much of a surprise either since most corn fields had several wind turbines.  It was a great ride even with a little wind.

Looking up inside "The Bean"

A Hectic Ramble Toward Chicago

Our plan is to be in Chicago by Friday, June 5th, so have had to "ramble" at a pretty quick pace these first few days putting 1350 miles on the RV in 5 days.

June 2, (Tuesday) - Check the box on two more states!

We had a great morning ride that checked off two states we haven't biked in yet; Oklahoma and Arkansas.  We camped at Natural Falls State Park, OK which is only 6 miles from the Arkansas state line.  We mapped out a loop from the campground that swung through Siloam Springs, AR which is home to John Brown University.  It was a small, but very pretty campus.  It was 28.5 miles on great rural roads with little traffic, mild temperatures and relatively low humidity.

Back at the state park we took a short hike to the falls and the lake (fishing hole!).  The falls are the 2nd highest in Oklahoma at 77 feet.  This must be our trip for seeing things that are ranked number 2.

Then it was on to Eldon, MO for a short visit with Ted's Dad.   We parked for the night in Beth's brother, Curt's driveway in Wardsville.  They are in Florida for vacation.  Thanks, Curt.

June 3 (Wednesday) - Hannibal, MO...

Hannibal turned out to be a bust.   It is a good example of a mid-America small town historic main street that is dying.   Antique (read junk) shops, many closed and for sale, lined main street.  The Mark Twain museum is a collection of small homes named after the Tom Sawyer/Huck Finn fictional town with little history of Samuel Clemans' boyhood.    A lot of hype for a very mediocre attraction,   Do they even require kids to read Mark Twain anymore?

The other notable Hannibal childhood resident, Molly Brown (Titanic fame) has a museum that we did not visit.   She is less celebrated.  

We walked Main Street and moved on to Siloam Springs State Park in Illinois.   This is the second Siloam Springs we have visited.  The first was on our ride within Arkansas on Tuesday.  We continue to be impressed with the Illinois state park system.  We stayed in a couple on our cross country trip two years ago.  This one is nice as well.

June 4 (Thursday) - Less than a week to our first flat tire.
We rode out of Siloam Springs SP and hit a gravel road which had been covered in a fresh new layer of 1" crushed rock on the road.  It was a lot like riding on marbles.   Less than 5 miles into the ride, within sight of the payment, we blew out the front tube and tire.   Luckily the folded dollar bill in the tire trick held and we finished the 25 mile ride with no further problems.  On our ride across the country 2 years ago, we went nearly 6 weeks and more than 2500 miles without a flat!

The roads were hilly but relatively car free.    Illinois has an abundance of rural paved roads that make for great riding.  Today the humidity was up and the small gnats and flies were annoying so it was much better to keep moving.  

We have moved locations again and are now staying in Jubilee College State park just outside of Peoria, IL.  Another very nice IL state park and convenient to the Rock Island Rail-to-Trail.  We'll be doing a 30 mile loop with about 12 miles on the trail.  The Rock Island was the first Illinois state owned rail-to-trail path.

Jubilee College was a frontier college active from 1840 to 1862.  It was one of the earliest educational enterprises in Illinois.  The actual college site is on the National Register of Historic Places.