more Wisconsin fun

There's a website called WarmShowers where touring bicyclists may be able to find a bicycle friendly host. We called "Joe", in Two Rivers, and asked if we could stay with him the nite before we needed to catch the ferry. Joe is retired (although he has 2 jobs?!) and he's an avid cyclist.
He had a prior commitment, so left his house key in a place we could find it "so we could shower and help ourselves to the frig" before he came back.
He and his lovely wife Carol let us shower, do laundry, gave us a bed to sleep in and insisted that THEY take US out for dinner. Unbelievable how sweet and accommodating they were to us. So don't believe everything you hear on the TV and news about the horrific things people do to each other...cuz let us tell you, there are WONDERFUL people out there in our world.....

Wisconsin fun

So just when we thought we couldn't meet any nicer people, Brent entered our lives.
We were sitting outside a tiny store drinking Peace ice tea and starting talking to a local bicyclist, Brent, who was doing a "short" 90 mile ride around his area. We had fun talking to him about our experiences and his wild Great Divide bike ride, where he met a grizzly bear. We were lamenting about how we missed the city parks of Montana and ND, where we could camp for free. Brent told us we ought to ask the police or sheriff if we could stay in the city park in Freedom, where we were planning to ride to.
So we did! The police officer was SO nice about it. As we were taking turns relaxing in a chair we found in the lost and found, who drove up with a cooler of Wisconsin beer but Brent!! He took the chance that we had really camped in the park and drove around looking for us. Such a fun nite with a new friend!

I luv sweet tea and wifi

Senior citizen parking

Found a chair in the lost and found

trail angels

Shirley

Brent

Food

People ask us what we are doing for food on our cross country trip.
All 3 of us are on a Yankee budget and so mostly buy groceries each day for the next day.
For breakfast, we usually have granola or cereal or muesli with powdered milk. For lunch we have almond or sunflower seed butter on tortillas or flat bread or cheese and cucumber or pepper sandwiches. We brought 2 Snowpeak backpacking camp stoves and make OreIda flavored potatoes mixed with ramen noodles OR Knorr pasta dishes for supper. Little did we realize that it would be impossible to find the disposable propane/isobutane canisters that our stoves require in Montana, North Dakota, or Minnesota...so we were eating sandwiches twice a day for a while till Shirley brought us some fuel from an REI in Arizona.
(I asked a clerk in ND if anyone ever went backpacking in her state-she smiled and pointed out that there really weren't any mountains to backpack on...)
Anyway, we also eat a lot of Clif, Odwalla, Performance bars and pretzels for snacks. And nuts and sunflower seeds...
A treat is to go to Subway and get a $5 sub. Fred and I can split one and feel full.
And although I could count the times I have gone to McD's one one hand in the past 30 years, we have gone there quite a bit for their 50 cent "Senior" coffee and free WiFi.
All 3 of us have lost a little weight...but all 3 of us needed to so that's a bonus!

Shirley

Jim's sister Shirley drove all the way from Arizona to be our "support wagon" for a week. She met us in Alexandria, MN, on a day that we were SO hot and spent. She whisked us off to a motel where she soon had a cold beer and a grinder for us. It felt wonderful to be waited on.
She then carried the bulk of the items in our panniers for us each day that she was with us to give us a break from our 30+ lb loads.
Each day she drove ahead to the campground that we were planning on biking to and made sure it was satisfactory plus reserved us a spot. She had our favorite Peace tea and beer and snacks waiting for us. Jim would give his lil sister a shopping list of stuff he needed and she never failed to find his requested items.
She delighted us with her cheerful mood. We will surely miss her when her week of spoiling us is up!

Snippets about Minnesota

There are lots of lakes and lakeletz in MN...and quite a few hills.
There is no "Welcome to Minnesota" sign! At least not on the roads we were on, both entering and leaving the state.
The state offices "shut down" 3 weeks before we entered the state. That meant no camping in state parks, no roadwork, no open rest areas! Luckily we were only in the state for 4 nites..and we did have trail angels for 2 of those nites- Jeff in Downer and Father Stan in Pelican Rapids.
Our feelings about Minnesota may be skewed, as we had terribly hot & muggy weather (heat index of 123 degrees one day), blustery headwinds when we were expecting tailwinds, and the worst case of deer flies "in 25 years", according to one local...

Snippets about North Dakota...

The best thing about North Dakota, IMHO, was the hospitality shown to us by Kathy and Ron of Williston.
North Dakota also has a Big Sky. I guess Montana just got it on their license plate first...
North Dakota has SUCH friendly people. Almost everyone on the road waved to us and almost all drivers on country roads moved way over for us.
North Dakota is flatter than Montana.
Like Montana, every little town has a water tower with the town's name printed on it. And every town seemed to have a grain elevator. It was welcoming for us to see these items on the horizon...
North Dakota is farmland.
Every little town has a "city park", where they let bicyclists camp for free. Amazing hospitality for us!

More pics Wobegon Trail and yes. . . Wisconsin!





Riding the Lake Wobegone Trail and having FUN!

 

Jim and Mimi

Fred

Mimi





Fred and Jim get Haircuts!

Shh...it's a secret...

When we started telling people our plans for the cross country bike ride, most asked us if and how we were training. Sometimes we told the truth (that we really didn't have the time to train) and sometimes we told a little white lie (" oh, sure! We are training!")
Fred and I felt confident that the trail would train us...that's what happened when we hiked the PCT and it gave us great confidence in our body's abilities to adapt.
And sure enough, that is what happened to us on this bike trip. We tell this tale to inspire any "oldsters" like us....to just go for it!

Central Lakes Trail

We were lucky enough to be able to use a Rails to Trails trail today, making a 74 mile day much smoother with no cars or rumblestrips bothering us.
Tomorrow we catch the Lake Wobegon Trail for another 60 miles before we get back on a road near Bowlus. And the terrible heat wave is supposed to break tomorrow! And Jim's sister Shirley drove all the way from Arizona to carry our panniers for us for a few days. She plans to drive to the campgrounds where we want to stay each evening and camp with us.

Pelican Rapids, Minnesota

After our wild nite near Fargo (where they sounded the tornado alarms while we were getting drowned out in nearby Downer, MN) we spent many hours washing the mud off our tents and clothes.Thanks to Jeff and boys Nick and Taylor for saving us and being so kind to us!
Anyway, we didn't get riding till 10:45 and by then it was muggy and in the 90's and we were fighting headwinds and crosswinds. Oh, and back to climbs...
We only rode 35 miles to Pelican Rapids where we plopped down at some picnic tables in the city park. Soon a kind man came over to us with info on the Rails to Trails bike trail that we could take in 25 miles. It turned out that he was the priest of the Catholic church nearby. He offered to let us sleep in the cool basement where we could actually shower and get out of the oppressive heat for a nite.
Another trail angel...are we lucky or what?

Wild night in Minnesota

We left Fargo in the early afternoon after having new back tires installed at a bike shop. We rode as far as Downer and as it was late and hot. Mimi went into a store/bar and asked if we could sleep on the lawn. They were happy to let us so we set up camp and returned to the coolness of the bar to relax and drink beer. Late in the evening we retired to our tents and then at about 3 AM we were aroused by a storm of at least hurricane size. Thunder and lightening and owind and our tents seemed ready to blow away. The employee at the bar, Jeff, and his son came out in the middle of the storm and invited us into the store where weo rode out the storm drinking coffee and watching our tents fill up with water. Everything is wet and we are drying out in the bar. We are using their washer and dryer and Internet. Once again we are so impressed by the kindness of strangers.

Some Pictures Fred Sent(via i pod to holly)

Last word from Jim on Monday is that "It is so hot we can hardly stand it!' I just read the weather for Fargo, ND, it is pouring rain. Yikes! Jim's sister Shirley is currently travelling from Phoenix to join them for a week or so. She will use her van to be their support vehicle! Anyone who knows Shirley knows they will have a lot of fun when she arrives. Enjoy the pics!

Ice cream in Hope, ND

 setting up camp 

taking a break

More on trail angels

So we got to Wolf Point, Montana hot, dirty, and tired. Rode up the hill to the city park and collapsed at a picnic table. We soon heard this young man shouting, " Hey, bikers, come on over and have a burger! We've got lots of food here! Have a soda!" he and his extended Native American family were having a picnic- and graciously invited the white men.

Our most remarkable trail angel story started in a Subway shop when some Williston natives heard us talking about riding the 1804 route. A woman named Kathy and her husband Ron said,"Pardon us for eavesdropping, but you should NOT use that road. It has become very dangerous with the oil boom!" other natives joined in with the same admonishment. As we went outside, Kathy ran after us and gave us her phone #, saying, "I will borrow a truck to drive you past the dangerous part..or if you want a place to stay, you can come sleep in our basement for a nite!" As we had really wanted a rest day (but no motels were available 70 miles near Williston!) we decided to be brave and called her to ask if she really meant we could stay at her home. She said Absolutely! So there we were-in a fine home with beds and TV PLUS she made a wonderful dinner for us PLUS she and Ron took us on a 25 mile car ride to see the beautiful scenery that we would be missing along Lake Sakawakea by not riding on the 1804.
Ain't life grand?

Snippets about Montana...

There's little white crosses beside the roads, marking every person who has been killed in a motor vehicle accident.

For some reason, the horses in Montana are the prettiest I've seen anywhere.

Montana DOES have a big sky! It's awesome to be able to watch a big thunderstorm miles away while you rare riding in the sunshine.

Most people driving cheerily wave to us. On country roads 99% of the move over into the other lane to pass us.

A lot of Montaneons seem to smoke..and their favorite brand seems to be Marlboros...judging by the amount of empty packages by the side of the road ( or are Marlboro men just litterbugs?)

Most towns have city parks where bicyclists can stay for free. It's a big plus when they have a pool in their city park where you can swim and shower for $2-$5.

Montana is NOT flat! Their license plate should say "Big sky and rolling hills country"

I love you, Montana people, but why do you leave your cars running when you go into the store? It's nice to live somewhere where you don't fear thievery, but really that wastes gas and pollutes the air...and I won't even start on your lack of recycling...

All in all, a great state..

Rest stop outside of Minot, ND

So after fighting crosswinds for 40+ miles, we stopped at a rest stop along the road. We saw this cowboy sitting in a chaise lounge reading a book. He came over to us, chuckling all the way, saying, "boy, the bicyclists heading west to Seattle are LOVING their tailwind! I bet your folks thought YOU were going to get the tail wind going thru North Dakota!"
I felt like kicking him in the shins with my Crocs...but then I noticed his steel-toed cowboy boots and thought better of that..
He went on to explain why he was at this rest stop reading his book and chatting with people. His house in Minot was still underwater...but it didn't matter too much cuz he claims the government is gonna take away his and his neighbors land anyway to make a "greenbelt" in town. When we exclaimed,"well, certainly the gov't will compensate you for your land, won't they?" he said, "Nope."
So glad I didn't kick him in the shins...

How we hate thee, rumblestrips...

So, in Williston, ND, the oil boom has made riding on the 1804 road dangerous. No shoulder in some places, windy and narrow roads, and huge oil-related trucks coming and going. Many townsfolk advised us to go on Rte 2 instead. Most said the shoulder was fine.
When we got to back on Rte 2, the crosswind was pushing us all over the place. The shoulder was about 10 feet wide, yes. BUT about 8 feet of that was gravel, which is hard for a fully loaded bike on skinny tires to maneuver on. Well you say, you have 2 feet of asphalt..what's wrong with that?
The damn rumble strip!!!! For those of you who don't know what a rumble strip is, it is many lines about 12" wide (think the ruts made by a tractor tire) grooved into the pavement to the right of the white line which marks the shoulder. They are made so that if a car driver is falling asleep, they will hit this and be jarred awake. You can imagine the jarring our teeth had when we slip over onto it...
Anyway,that left less than a foot for us to ride on cuz there was a sloped edge of asphalt leading to the gravel so we had to stay away from that.
Add that to fearing for our lives as huge trucks zoomed past us going 70 mph..
It was not a pretty sight...
Who knew we should have been practicing the tightrope walking game on WiiFit?

Favorite things by Mimi

I love Gu, Clif shot blocks, and 99 cent Peace tea. Gu and shot blocks help me up the hills and Peace tea is so refreshing!

Bikers & bikers

Motorcycle riders seem to like us bicyclists..I guess cuz we're both afraid of getting run over by a truck. They taught us their secret wave. I'd tell you what it is but they might have to kill me (the Harley guys make me a little nervous...)

A NEW STATE

Jim's story as told to Holly on the phone

This last week has been challenging as Jim said some of the hardest riding was in eastern Montana and in addition to this they rode some very long days riding 80, 90 and finally a 100 mile day.  Can you imagine? They pushed to ride 100 miles to get into Williston, North Dakota, where they were planning to stay in a hotel, sleep in real beds, take a shower and rest. But when they got to town there was no room at the inn! Apparently oil has been discovered there and it is  boom town. All of the hotels said "we are booked indefinitely". There were no campgrounds available. Finally they convinced the sheriff to let them camp in the city park. But only for one night. So they were discouraged to think they would have to get up and pedal the next day. But atlas they were rescued, some kind soul told them they could come stay at her house in the basement. Jim says her basement is "bigger than our whole house"!( I think this is an exaggeration our house is not THAT small) "I just finished watching the tour de france on a 52 inch flat screen tv"! ( I told him to enjoy it we weren't buying a new tv) He sounded very upbeat when last we spoke and was waiting for the beer to arrive.

We are grateful for all the kind souls "trail angels" who take care of our loved ones on this bicycle adventure. Thanks in Williston North Dakota for taking care of my husband and friends!

Screamin' Mimi

I like to go fast downhill. Not young biker chick 50 mph fast, but old(er) lady fast of say....38 mph. I may lag behind the guys on the uphill, but they know enough to let me go first on the downhill. One time in Idaho I made it ALL the way UP a steep hill after zooming down a steep descent. I like to see how far I can go up any hill without pedaling. Jim nicknamed me "Screamin' Mimi"....

pictures of pedaling across the Montana

leaving Great Falls

Leaving Montana

We're about 59 miles from Williston IF we keep on the Adventure Cycling maps but only 37 if we stay on Rte 2...what to do...I guess we'll decide when we get to the crossroads...
The gnats are driving us crazy!

Mimi's Keen sandal tan!

Animals we have seen...

A badger, big horn sheep, a western bluebird, hawks, osprey, western tanagers, meadow larks, red-winged blackbirds (every day! Until New York), coyotes (OK, heard but not seen...),deer, beaver, whistle pigs, butterflies, antelopes, avocets, hawks, mourning doves, frogs, toads,loons,Sandhill cranes,turtles, egrets,bald eagle,raccoons, bunnies, orange salamanders & cardinals (from New York on)

Trail angels by Mimi

Photo of trail angels Jim & Carrie
So, our first trail angel was Patty, in Sisters, OR, who let us camp in her yard and shower. Then there was Debra & Dale in Idaho, who let us use their guest rooms,shower, do laundry, loaned us their vehicle for errands, and fed us wonderful meals. Then there was Rob & Chelle from Missoula, who didn't flinch when we crashed their daughter's 2nd birthday party, instead warmly welcoming us into their home for showers,laundry,and meals. And lo and behold, while we were resting on the deck of a store in tiny Potomac, Montana, a woman named Carrie came up to us out of the blue and invited us to her home in Lincoln, 50 miles down the road. When we said we didn't think we were going to bike that far in one day, she said, "well, come for lunch tomorrow!" so we did!
Like Fred says, you'd never have all these people talking to you if you drove in in a car..
It's really fun traveling by bike!

Again with the bears

Jim here,
    Well when I left we were in Missoula and resting, we went to adventure cycling and got several free ice creams and had our picture taken and added to the "wall" of pictures . Then after resupplying and getting repairs done and having breakfast with some fellow cyclists we met along the way we set out again, a bit late, we did 54 miles and stopped in the town of Ovanda Montana.
    If there ever was a friendly town Ovanda is it. We arrived and were quickly given instructions on where we could get everything we needed for our stay. We decided to go to the  cafe/bar in town and have  a beer. While there we met a very friendly man that bought us pitchers of beer and the woman that owned the cafe/bar ( called the Stray Bullet) gave us free chips and cheese and crackers, During this time a fellow rider Ronnie, septuagenarian, arrived and more free beer came. Needless to say we did not eat dinner and "slept" very soundly.
    Up the next morning and off for an 84 Mile day, our longest yet. We stayed at a private RV campground. There were no bathrooms so the price was only 5 dollars, the rest I will leave to your imagination. Up early for obvious reasons and off to Great Falls (44 miles) and a Motel night. So tomorrow we head out on a new map across eastern Montana, right now its beer and chips.
    Oh and about the title we left Ovanda with few options within our usual range of travel. There was talk of stealth camping (pulling off in some off road place and camping). But during the time we were in the small town of Lincoln we went to the rangers office to see what was U S Forest Service land to camp on and there was a large exhibit on the subject of grizzly bears!!! thus the long day. By the way Fred and Mimi tried to keep me from seeing the signs knowing my fear of bears, we rode to camping in town.

Finally, comments from Fred!

June 29
We made it over Lolo pass early in the morning and had a wild down hill ride for many miles. We arrived in Missoula and stayed two nights with Rob and Chelle Terwilliger, camping in their back yard. We spent one day off in Missoula to rest and resupply but did end up riding 18 miles exploring Missoula. We had to visit Adventure Cycling for our free ice cream and went back several times for more. Chelle fixed us a wonderful meal of rice and lentils and a fresh salad. I went to REI for new pedals and no longer have to listen to clicking with each pedal stroke. The next day we were off again for a 54 mile day to Orvando but it was a late start as we had breakfast with Mike and Laurie. They are off on the Trans Am to Virginia.

Update from Jim's wife - Holly

Jim tells me they are happily pedalling through Montana, averaging 65-75 miles a day with some 80+ days! They have reached the 1000 mile mark. I am always telling Jim to drink more fluids, the attached photo shows Jim at the Continental Divide dutifully following wife's instructions!