In Memory of Warmer Summers

August 11 through 16

Wolf Lake, MI; Lake George, MI; Bay City, MI; North Branch, MI; and Yale, MI

Take a good look at this house near Brown City, MI

It was supposed to rain all day and through the night on the 12th so a day of rest was a strategic decision.  Only it didn’t really rain until we set off for Wolf Lake on the 13th.  Then it rained.  That happens sometimes, but we got our rest day in and that may (or may not have been) the recommendation of a doctor or two, so check that off the list.

We FINALLY started our trek eastbound once more moving away from the coast of Lake Michigan after tracing that coast for what seemed like miles that would not end.  Lake Michigan is absolutely beautiful in that part of the country, but it was past time to move on.

Going inland immediately put us back into farmland and Sallie made the observation that she missed the crops and associated farm activity during our time on the lake.  She observed, “I missed the smell of corn.”

However, as we were enjoying th the U.P. and Lake Michigan, someone came along and harvested all the wheat.  That’s too bad as I wanted to get Sallie a ride in a combine.

All the wheat is gone...

As so often happens, sometimes multiple times a day, we encounter folks who express genuine interest and curiosity about us with these heavily loaded bicycles.  It’s always fun to watch their expressions when we tell where we are going.  It’s even better when we tell them where we came from.  Today we had two encounters I’ll relate.

This is Victor Lucas.  He is the Town President of Luther, Michigan, population 318.  We stopped for a mid-morning snack in Luther and he spoke to us as he was leaving the post office.  Victor is retired now, but occasionally teaches ballroom dancing.  Years ago he worked 15 years for Arthur Murray Dance Studios in Chicago.

Victor was so impressed with our adventure, he invited us to his home.  We had to decline, but I gave him the contact information for Adventure Cycling Association as he has plans to offer camping for cyclists at the town park.

We stopped in LeRoy for lunch and this couple sat near us and immediately engaged us in conversation regarding our journey because they saw the bicycles parked outside.  They are from Grand Rapids and have a summer home not too far from the restaurant.  They call it their “weekend getaway”.  We told a few stories and listened to a few more and had a very nice time visiting with them.  Toward the end of the meal, they collaborated with the wait staff to pick up our check.

About halfway through this trip I began to feel badly about posting some of our less than pleasant encounters so I started making notes about the folks who were extra nice to us and I’ll probably do a post about these at some point, but it is worth mentioning (more than once) that these kinds of positive encounters take place every day, often multiple times a day.  When we got to the campground this afternoon, a fellow from another site stopped by, heard we did 61 miles today, and gave us a high five each, and he’s not yet aware of our whole trip.

There’s a lot to be said about the great encounters we continue to have.  There is so much attention paid to the 24 hour news cycle filled with disastrous stories that we are in danger of losing touch with the fact that people are fundamentally good and very supportive in this country.  Our travel experiences prove this every time we venture out.

On the 15th we stopped for lunch in Frankenmuth for “World Famous” fried chicken from Zehnders.  For some reason when we showed up after riding in the humidity we were not seated at a table with a white linen tablecloth, but the chicken was good.  Frankenmuth is a large tourist attraction for the way they honor their Bavarian roots.

Frankenmuth was lovely, but Sallie doesn't do well with a lot of tourists, so we didn't hang around.

That night we stayed at a campground outside of North Branch and as the weather was supposed to drop a lot of rain in the evening and through the morning, we were invited to set our tents inside their pavillion.  Rain indeed.  It rained several inches and flood warnings were on until about noon.

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August 5th through 10th

Petosky State Park, MI; Whitewater Township, MI; Suttons Bay, MI; Elberta, MI; and Manistee, MI

We hit a bit of a snag that’s cost us a couple of days and some miles, but resolutions are forthcoming.  We’ve had some compounding medical issues that resulted in a trip to an emergency room and a subsequent follow-up to a walk-in clinic.  I won’t go into details here as that’s not appropriate for the internet, but as stated, we are confident resolutions are forthcoming, and basically both of us are fine…well that is a subjective opinion, isn’t it?

2 Months and 3,000+ Miles

For those who are interested in such things, I have some stats for from this ride.  August 9th marked two months that we’ve been eastbound on the Northern Tier (remember we are doing the North Lakes option as well as the Erie Connector).  As of the 9th, we have completed 3,179 miles total. 160 miles of that was associated with our riding the San Juan Islands, so on the NT itself, we topped over 3,000 miles.

When we started the ride, we estimated mileage at something close to 4,500, but that did not include miles in the San Juan Islands.  We have no deadlines so we are quite flexible with our mileage and not having to estimate averages and ETAs is a bonus.  We’ll finish when we get there, so if you ask in the comments, we don’t really know.

We’ve had no flat tires due to punctures (knocking on some wood here as I say that) to date. I experienced one flat tire that was actually a tube failure at the neck of the valve, so that hardly counts.I rotated tires on both bikes at about 2,500 miles as the rear tires were wearing a lot more rapidly than the front.  That is normal and expected. 

By the way for those interested in tires, Sallie is running the ever popular bombproof Schwalbe Marathon Plus (700×32) and I have on a set of Schwalbe Marathon Supremes for the first time (700×35).  I had expected I might be more prone to flats and greater wear than using the Plus, but so far I am impressed with how they are holding up and I find them to be very comfortable, more so than the Marathon Plus.

This is how hops are grown. They must be heavy.

We lost one tent due to that windstorm in North Dakota that shredded Sallie’s fly, and had one tent die on us as my old and trusted REI Quarter Dome finally gave out and was sent home for major repairs.  That tent has been replaced by a marvelous Mountain Safety Research MSR Hubba Hubba, two nights in that and I’m spoiled for life.

A maple leaf canopy as seen looking up through my tent fabric

I broke a kickstand plate, had a compass, a bite valve and a tail light fail me, but all of those things were quite old and the miles are starting to take their toll.  Most importantly we’ve sent nothing home that we packed but didn’t need, and with the exception so far of a spare tire, we’ve used everything we packed at one point or another, so that’s worked out well for us. 

As I’ve said many times, we are not fast, but we are steady.

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August 2nd through August 4th   

St. Ignace, MI; Mackinac Island; Mackinaw City, MI; Petosky State Park, MI

The approach to Mackinac Island (pronounced “Mackinaw” for what? simplicity?) is a bit like Going-to-the-Sun-Road in terms of logistics, but not nearly as complex in terms of deadlines.  Just long lines.  Of people.  They call them “fudgies”.  People who go to Mackinac Island for the fudge.  Okay, Sallie and I both tried a sample, but no, we did not really partake in the whole fudge thing.

Once we got off the ferry and arrived on the island we stopped for a second breakfast snack and each of us got a soda and a piece of carrot cake.  That cost us a quick $18.  Hmmmm.

After experiencing the local tradition of fleecing tourists, we departed for the loop road around the island where the crowds thinned, but the sights were plentiful.

We stopped for lunch at a recommended place that had good food at a fair price and visited with the local college youth that were there for the same reason.  They seemed to very much enjoy their summer jobs on the island and that was nice to learn about.  Someone has to sell the fudge.

As soon as we could we left the crowds once more and rode the interior paths and drives catching what we could of the sights before taking the ferry off the island.  I’ve always wanted to visit Mackinac because there are no motorized vehicles allowed.  The concept interests me but if you put a gazillion tourists in one place you still have a gazillion tourists even if they are getting around on horse drawn carrages and bicycles.  We pretty much don’t do well with large crowds, so that’s now checked off the to-do list.  I recommend folks try the island in January. 

Arch Rock, Mackinac Island

Grand Hotel. We were going for their brunch buffet, but htere's a dress code. No spandex allowed.

The Governor's Summer Residence

This is the bridge that links the U.P. with the rest of the state. If you have to cross a bridge is the U.P. correctly called a penninsula?

The swimming in Lake Michigan is extremely enjoyable.  We take every opportunity we can, particularly because there are no alligators.  Visibility right on the shoreline is about 20 feet, so the water is clear making the experience all the more enjoyable.

This is the famous M119 road, “Tunnel of Trees Scenic Route”.  Nice riding.  It’s interesting that on narrow roads without lane markings cars are quite a bit more cautious.  We should do this everywhere. 

I once read of a study where a town removed all traffic control devices.  They had record low numbers of traffic collisions as a result.

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July 28 – August 1

Iron River, Michigan; Hardwood, MI; Rapid River, MI; Indian Lake State Park, MI; Little Hog Island State Park, MI

We crossed into Michigan on July 28, straight into the Upper Pennisula, or U.P. as they refer to it. 

Before reaching Michigan, we had one last ride on a trail in Wisconsin (free of charge) on the Heart of Vilas County Bike Trail.  A great trail that brought smiles to everyone especially after we got our bearings and were no longer looking for missing trail markers and signs.  They said they will be up in two weeks.

Still rocking the Maple Leaf in Escanaba

Upon arriving in Iron River we discovered we were sharing an entire campground with volunteer firefighters from all over the U. P. engaged in not just one, but two parades that very night, and a firefighters competition the next day.  Let’s just say we were lucky to get out of there with some sleep.

Our next stop brought us to Hardwood, MI where the campground was what is referred to as “primitive”.  That means a pit-toilet and a water pump.  The good news was this site is on the shore of a lake on the east branch of the Sturgeon River so Sallie and I went for a swim to help clean up after the day.  For me this includes cold shaving in the lake.  That’s not pleasant, but it is better than cold shaving in the frigid waters of the water pump.

Ryan Conaughty arrived to join us at this site and a swim.  We had great fun hearing his always entertaining stories of his adventures since we last saw him in Fargo.  Toward sunset Ryan and I took a few minutes to go down to the lake to watch the sunset.  He was quite moved by the view and spoke of the beauty we are so privilaged to see when we set out on our tours.

I have to confess that the hours I keep prevent me from seeing too many sunsets until later in the year when the days get shorter or we get close to the eastern edge of a time zone.  Its not like I’m not paying attention though, I spend my day checking the sights, sounds, and smells of the land and I am forever gazing at the enormous display of stars when I rise at night.  Sallie and I get up at 5:30am and getting to bed before sunset is pretty much mandatory for us.

Ryan runs on a different schedule.  He can sleep in until some time after we’ve already left camp.  He once said, “The later I sleep, the more rest I get.”  Can’t argue with that.

He sees more sunsets than I and maybe I should take more time for these.

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Sallie and I will dedicate that day’s ride to Ty Herring of Fernandina Beach, Florida.  Ty will be undergoing some important surgery that day.  May the physician’s hands be skilled, the healing fast, and perfect function return quickly.

Keep looking up Ty!

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