2010 Bike Trip

July 11, 2010

Our plan yesterday was to take the Mackinaw – Gaylord bike trail, a converted railway corridor. We got onto it shortly after leaving the campground.

The gravel was hard-packed, but it was still gravel, and slow. After a few miles of trail, we switched over to highway 27, which parallels the trail, at least some of the way. There wasn’t much breakfast at the campground, so we stopped at the first place we saw in Cheboygan. Elliot noticed the sign that said “Deep Fried Pizza.” The Yeck Drive-In still has actual carhops. One of them explained to us that the Deep Fried Pizza is like a Pizza Pocket. She said that if we sat in the shaded pavilion, she could bring our food to us.

Our food was delivered by carhop Hayden Panettiere I mean, Ricci.

Elliot had the Deep Fried Pizza, which turned out to be substantial. I had the Olive Burger. I was surprised that it was not black olives, but green olives, in the sauce. As far as I know, this is the only place serving such a thing. It was wonderful. Elliot had a very filling marshmallow shake, and I had a chocolate malt.

This couple joined us in the pavilion a little later. Roger and Mayra have been married 40 years. They went on the inland passage cruise to Alaska for their anniversary.

Before leaving Cheboygan, we stopped at McDonald’s to sync to the internet. While we were there, the real Ronald McDonald walked in. Elliot got a video with his flip. Ronald travels with a handler, who was glad to take our picture with my camera.

At Topinabee (TAW-pin-a-bee), I was trying to decide whether we could continue on the highway, or had to start taking the bike trail. We are riding without the benefit of the Adventure Cycling maps for the next few days, using just Google maps. I was talking to a couple on bikes outside a store, when the store owner came out and handed me a booklet on the Michigan North Central State Trail. Her name was Janice, and she and her husband owned ABC Rustics in Topinabee. A while back, he built a log cabin on their 100-acre lot, and enjoyed it so much, that they now make furniture out of Alder, Birch, and Cedar (hence the name). They don’t even need to buy wood; enough grows on their land.

We followed highway 27, under Interstate 75, and into Downtown Indian River, where we picked up the bike trail again. Just a quarter mile in, at 3:30 pm, I heard an explosive BOOM! PING! Rear tire had blown out. In fact, the tire was torn. I had expected 2000 miles from my expensive tire, but it blew after just 1300 or so. I lined the tire with a boot, and hoped that it would hold. Indian River looked sort of big, so we doubled back to see if we could find a bike shop with a replacement tire. We stopped at McDonald’s for the Wi-Fi access, and found that there were no bike shops in Indian River, and in fact, none for miles and miles. There would be none in any of the cities further down the trail, except at Gaylord, the terminus, 30 miles away.

At 5:00 pm, 3 miles before Vanderbilt, BOOM! PING! Same tire, slightly different place. There were no easy solutions. I decided to go through the time-consuming operation of swapping the front and back tires. and using another boot (I had brought 3). At least it was somewhat shaded, and there was no car traffic. Elliot went on into Vanderbilt, since I was going to be a while. There was cell service, so we were never out of touch.

All I could do was go slow, and hope it would hold another 13 miles to Gaylord. The last patch held for 10 miles only. We went over a number of small bridges. From one of them some college age kids were jumping into the river 20 feet below. The river seemed shallow to me. I asked how deep it was, and a girl in a bikini told me about 6 feet.

About 5 miles out of Gaylord, we saw a bunny in the distance.

A few more miles, and Elliot was getting far ahead of me on the trail. I actually encountered a jogger going the other way. She said we were technically already in Gaylord, but it was 3-4 miles to downtown. Great! Even if I had to walk the bike, it was close enough. It was 8:30 by the time we reached downtown. The tire had held out.

Once in town, I opened the laptop in McDonald’s (again) to search the internet for Motels. Too many fancy ones. There was a place called the Downtown Motel that looked more reasonable. I was concerned that it might turn out to be the kind of transient hotel in Blues Brothers, but it was actually fine. Free Wi-Fi, continental breakfast. $52 a night, and we checked in for two days.

We did 65 miles for the day, but those were hard miles over gravel, and with bike trouble.

Rest Day, Elliot’s Birthday

July 11, 2010 5:00 pm

On the internet this morning, I looked for churches near the motel. I found Community Church on hwy 32 nearby, with services at 9 and 11. Elliot wanted to sleep in. I went to the front office to get continental breakfast, which consisted of coffee, a jug of Sunny D, and 4-packs of mini-donuts. Very basic. But the room was inexpensive, and it had internet, so I was happy.

At that time, I noticed that there was First Congregational Church just one block away, but their service was at 10 am, and it was too late to get over there. For some reason, that church didn’t show up on Google.

We went down highway 32, back and forth, but couldn’t find the church, even though we had an exact address, and knew it was near the Home Depot. Oh, well.

That torn tire still was in my thoughts, the thump-thump-thump reminding me on every revolution that the boot couldn’t hold much longer. We went to MC Sports, but they had only bicycle tubes, no tires. We tried Dunham Sports, but the only tires they had were 26-inch mountain bike tires. The final stop was at Alphorn Sport Shop. Duane had exactly two 700 x 35 tires left. I wasn’t sure they would fit on my rims, so he let me try one on before buying it. He also helped change the tires, and tightened that loose head bearing on my bike that had been bothering me for a couple weeks. Labor charge: $0.00 If you’re on long range tour, Alphorn is the place.

We were considering going to a movie, but there were occasional rumbles of thunder, and intermittent spatterings of rain. For most of the day, we just stayed in the room watching TV, or on the internet. I wrote a few postcards.

Not many places except fast food and bars were open nearby for dinner. Sugar Bowl was the exception. Elliot had Lemon Rice Soup and the Whitefish Dinner, while I had Swiss Onion Soup and Perch. Usually, we don’t get dessert, but this time, we split a Greek Rice Pudding.

Mileage for Sunday: 6.0

July 9, 2010 9:17 pm

This morning, we walked over to the Northern Lights restaurant next to the motel for breakfast. We took our time, because it was going to be an easy day.

We rode the Arnold Line Ferry to Mackinac Island.

Motor vehicles are prohibited on the island, so the only forms of transportation are walking, bicycling, and horse-drawn carriages of all sizes.

The town is a madhouse of bicycle and pedestrian traffic. I took this during a break in the traffic.

We stopped to see Arch Rock. The outer rim of the island is an 8-mile perimeter road, but the inside of the internal part is crisscrossed with steps and trails. I wish Merrianne (my wife) were here, I think she would have enjoyed the hiking. The island has light breezes, and is like Hawaii, only not so humid.

At a concession partway around the island, we met this family. Gary (the elder) and Sue once snowmobiled all the way across the U.P. Their daughter is Sophia, and their son is also Gary. He’s going to college in the fall.

Even though we were riding at a very leisurely pace, we were soon back in town. Marc’s Double Oven attracted me because it said Free Wireless Internet in the window. Actually, there were quite a few public wireless access points in town. Elliot and I had orange sherbet there. Elliot had Kiwi sauce on his. I met Marc, the owner, who was a really nice guy.

We did a little shopping in town. My “God is Still Speaking” shirt continued to get a lot of attention. The girl behind the counter said she liked it. She was a Christian, of course, but also signs. Elliot and I decided to loop the island again. On our way out, John asked me some of the particulars of our trip. He was a Christian, also. I gave him a card.

Elliot had seen these strange birds with “Mohawk” feathers when the wind blows. I took a picture of them on the next pass. Does anyone know what they are?

After landing at Mackinaw, we looked for lodging. Before leaving the island, I checked the internet and found that the Day’s Inn and all the nice motels on highway 23 were about $100 a night. We kept riding until we saw more modest motels, but those were still pretty nice. 2 miles out of town, we came upon the Mill Creek Campground. $15 for a tent site ($13 with no electricity). Wi-Fi, but not free.

This family was having late afternoon ice cream, and we chatted. Patty had done extensive cycling in Hawaii, New Zealand, and Australia before. Her son was hoping to get into it, soon. They’re from West Virginia.

July 9, 2010

An ironing board and iron was provided with our room. One thing about Comfort Inn, they do provide every comfort. But for $89 after discount, they had better provide every comfort! So when I woke up I took the shirt I got at the thrift store for $1 and ironed on one of the url decals that I brought along. I let Elliot sleep a little longer, but woke him up at 7:50, so we could get continental breakfast. Comfort Inn’s breakfast is good, including hot waffles. I asked the staff person wiping the tables how far it was to St. Ignace (IG-nus), and she said it was an hour and a half. That meant 90 miles to me, which should have been broken into two days, normally. But I got a crazy idea. It wasn’t too late. It was overcast and cooler, but rain was not forecast. We could try to go all the way that day. If we fell short, we could simply camp or take a motel along the way. I took two oranges and two bagels for the road.

To make the miles, we stopped at a gas station first and got a small can of 3-in-1 oil. The chains had been squeaking since the rainstorm.

Just around the corner from the Comfort Inn, we started seeing cheaper motels, about a dozen of them. One place had right on the sign, “$40 for 2”. Some had wireless, too. Oh well, no regrets. We did have a nice breakfast.

The terrain was mostly flat, with gentle winds in all directions. Because we were making miles, we were more rigorous about drafting.

Here are a couple pictures of roadside flowers. These were there pretty much the whole way. Marilyn, maybe you can make an ID. Sorry I didn’t have time to take better pictures.

At 3:30, we stopped at Johnny B’s, a place just after Naubinway that claimed to have the best Italian food in the U.P. That’s very possible, because it was the only Italian restaurant we saw, not counting pizza slices at bars and convenience stores.

Johnny Beato, the owner, was at the bar with some regulars. Someone had brought him a huge mushroom previously, and he had cooked it. He said that in the wild, if you see that the bugs don’t eat a mushroom, don’t eat it. And he said his mother would fry a wild mushroom with green parsley. If the parsley turned brown, she threw it out. I asked about all the motels for sale along highway 2, and there was general agreement that big chain motels had driven them out of business. They also conceded that the economy was bad. Johnny’s brother Joe has his own restaurant in Detroit.

We passed through several construction zones in Michigan, which have these signs.

About 7 pm or so, we reached the outskirts of St. Ignace Remembering the $89 Comfort Inn, we started looking for clusters of cheap motels even before we hit downtown. We didn’t need a pool. Even this place would have worked.

We saw a KOA 2 miles before town, and also a motel that advertised “$25 – $45” right on the sign. With the profusion of motels, we decided to go into town to see if we could get something closer, and near dinner. It was a short ride if there wasn’t anything reasonable. In the city, we stopped at a Super 8 to check the price. $94, and that was for the room without the lake view. No, thanks. There was still plenty of sunlight left, so we went to get dinner first. There was a McDonald’s, Burger King, and the like, but I didn’t want a fast-food chain. A local Drive-in was across the street, and also Big Boy, and Truck Stop Restaurant (that’s the actual name). We tried Truck Stop.

There were only two waitresses working the whole place, so service was slow, but the food was delicious. The whitefish was sweet, caught locally just that day.

As I was paying at the register, I noticed some humble coupons for the Normandy Motel. It looked like someone had copied them 4 to a page, then cut them apart with scissors. The coupon said “Special, 2 people, $45”. Our waitress didn’t know where the Normandy was, but the other waitress did.

It was ideally located, close to the docks for the Ferries, next door to a restaurant (for breakfast the next day), and there was also Glen’s Supermarket and Family Dollar across the street.

The owner’s name was Elvis, and he gave us #7, a large room with 2 queen beds, for $45. He also gave us a discount coupon for the Ferry. It was a clean room, but there was no wireless, and the plugs all looked like this, so wouldn’t accept the laptop charger. I remedied that by getting a couple adapters at Family Dollar for $1.15. I intend to leave one in the room.

July 7, 2010 8:35 am.

Woke up at 6:36 am. Eastern Daylight Time. Ugh. There were coffee, Sunny D, and donuts in the lobby. Not great, but as the large room was $53, I couldn’t complain. After checking out, we went to the Wal-Mart across the street to get more Eucerin Calming Creme for Elliot. The prices were the same as San Jose Target.

We went to the Arby’s right next door for lunch. The dark specks on the wall are Caddis flies, as in the inset. Those things are all over the place. Now I know why fly fishing lures look the way they do!

The last thing to do before leaving town was to fill my rear tire to pressure. My little hand pump can put in 40 PSI or so, if I strain, but not much more. Perhaps that was the reason I was getting so many flats – I would hit more rocks and potholes before I could reach a gas station to get the tire fully inflated. The first gas station we went to had no air, and the second charged $1.00 (a full dollar, not even 50¢)! It would be a bargain compared to another flat. The pump only started when I put in the money; there was no storage tank on the compressor. It was not a high pressure compressor, and I think it only got my tire up to 80 PSI, but that was better.

July 7, 2010 11:43 pm

We saw Lake Michigan for the first time. Well, at least some bays on Lake Michigan. The waterfront is dotted with motels and resorts, with a typical lake view of cattails like below.

The day was hot and humid. Elliot said it was our hottest day. Nevertheless, the route was flat, and we screamed down the highway with a tailwind. At 2 pm, we stopped at a store near Rapid River, and got some Stewart’s Pop. I’m told this brand is local to Michigan. (Julie – is that true?) Remembering the savory pasty that I had the other day, I bought a hot pasty from this store to take on the road. There was also Elk jerky (venison) for sale, so I bought a package.

90 minutes later, we reached St. Jacques’ Grocery, at the top of a little rise. We got some cool drinks again, and I broke the pasty into two pieces for us to eat. It was bland to slightly sour – not nearly as good as the bakery one. We took our time on the bench. I went in for a final visit to the bathroom, and when I came out, I saw a young woman in cycling clothes outside. No, it was two young women.

Evan was a middle school teacher from Milwaukee, and Elizabeth was from Chicago. The two had been friends since their college days at UW Madison, and were going around the lake. Elizabeth asked about campgrounds ahead, and I told her about what I remembered seeing on the way in. They did not plan to go all the way to Escanaba that day, and it seemed like Rapid River, 13 miles away, would be their best bet. Both of them seemed surprised that we were thinking of going all the way to Manistique by evening.

I gave them our cards, and we took each other’s pictures. When Elliot and I were posing, Elizabeth and Evan each snapped their cameras at exactly the same time, and said “Perfect!” in unison. That’s how in-sync the two were.

Evan said they had a headwind coming in, but it would be a tailwind for us. If you asked me, they were going in the wrong direction around the lake. Our tailwind out of Escanaba would be a killer for them. I shouldn’t pity them, though. Healthy, strong, young and beautiful, they have everything going for them.

We reached Manistique at about 7 pm. Elliot was feeling a little nauseous, and I must admit, I had a little cramping in my stomach. It could have been the pasty. I thought it tasted a little weird. Rather than hunt for a deal among the 3 motels in the area, I stopped at the first one we could find – the Comfort Inn. It was $89 after discount, but it was a medical emergency. We felt much better after a couple hours, and went to dinner at the Bob’s Big Boy next door.

In the restaurant, there was a family sitting in the booth next to us. The mother liked my “I will fear no evil Sudoku” shirt; she was an avid fan. She said her sister worked at Barnes and Noble, so could find her all the good Sudoku books. She had a 25-foot long continuous interlocking sudoku puzzle at home, and after a month, was on the verge of finishing it.

The hotel had no pool, but did have a Hot Jacuzzi. This seems to be a common theme here, no pool. I have no idea why. We didn’t want to try the Jacuzzi. There had been enough heat and humidity in the regular day.

No flats today, and no rain, either. We did 59.4 miles.

p.s. Kendra and Mona made remarks about tans…

July 6, 2010

In the morning at Sagola, we mailed back a package of stuff. Elliot was never using his jeans, which took up a lot of space. We also sent back a pound of genuine wild rice, which was indigenous to this region. Everything fit into a $10.70 flat-rate Priority Mail box. Cheryl at the post office helped me pick out the right size box. She was a cyclist, doing rather long local mountain bike rides. She already knew who I was when I came through the door. Kris had told her. That’s the way small towns work. I wished I could have visited longer with Cheryl, but we wanted to do 60 miles that day.

Just as we were leaving, I realized that the my front tire was flat again. More delays. I put on a brand-new tube. Since I had a sink at the motel, I found the leak and patched it. It was another impact puncture, not a thorn. That made 3 flats, all on the same wheel.

We were seeing lots of big logging trucks on the road. They had a considerable draft as they pass, but the drivers are professional, and give us lots of leeway when they can. Here is where they are headed.

We stopped for lunch at the Mill Town Inn, and were glad that we did. The place is an old schoolhouse converted to a Bed and Breakfast, and also has a bunkhouse for groups.

Donna was our server, and brought us lumberjack-size portions for a very reasonable price. A couple local men were at a nearby table, studying a map of lakes to look for fishing spots. One of them said that he hit a black bear last year and it totaled his car. The bear was over 500 pounds, and was killed instantly. He called 911, and when they arrived, they sold him a permit on the spot, and he got to keep the dead bear.

Anne told us that if we were concerned about the weather, that we could wait out the storm in the bunkhouse. It seemed to have let up, but even if it hadn’t, we probably wouldn’t have stayed. There was just one rumble of thunder before lunch, and it was quiet thereafter.

Further down the road, my rear wheel felt soft. I stopped and listened carefully, and could hear the little whine of the leak. This time it was the rear wheel, so I had to take everything off the back to fix it.

We saw lots of deer, both alive and dead. The live ones were even more shy about getting their picture taken than some of the people we met. They might be 15 feet from the road, but as soon as I pulled out the camera, they bolted.

We finally reached Escanaba at 8:15 pm or so. We had crossed into the Eastern Time Zone, so it actually wasn’t so late. Outside a convenience store, I met Tim Hurkmans, who had ridden up on a bike and was enjoying a drink. I gave him a card, and in return, he gave us some aluminum coins. It turns out he’s a Christian, and has a bunch of them to hand out. He said there was a motel by Hardees, reasonably priced, with a laundromat nearby. He grew up Iron Mountain, and used to work at Fed Ex.

The Lincoln Host Motor Inn had no pool, but had free tanning beds. I guess that would be an attraction, with lower upkeep than a pool. But as you can see from our blog, neither of us needed a tan.

I went to the Suds ‘n’ Sun laundromat two blocks down to wash the remainder of our wet clothes from the previous day. Was there something about tanning in Escanaba? The host at the laundromat was a beautifully-bronzed blonde with a charming smile, who was not too proud to mop the floor at closing. I didn’t take her picture, because I didn’t want to look like a Perv.

We did 65 miles for the day, very respectable.

July 5, 2010 9:33 pm

It stopped raining last night. This morning, we left the Motel before 10, because there was neither internet nor breakfast. We headed for the breakfast place in town, only to find it was closed on Mondays. Around the corner was a cafe, but that had gone out of business the previous year. So we just ate whatever we had on hand – Elliot had a piece of leftover chicken, and I had some trail mix. After syncing to the internet outside the hardware store, we hit the road.

A few miles down the road in Nelma, we stopped at the Brule River Tap for sandwiches. It was the third bar in a row that we ate at. There are not that many restaurants in the north woods, and usually they are bars.

The bartender put on the weather channel, and told us that it looked like rain coming. After we left the building, as if on cue, the first big drops started to fall. Remembering what happened to my cyclometer the last time, I put a plastic bag over it, and secured it with a tie-wrap.

It was 30 miles to Crystal Falls. We stopped at the IGA supermarket to get some food. The next stop was at CoVantage Credit Union to get cash.

No surcharge!

After that, it started raining hard. I couldn’t find highway 69. We went away from the main strip to a thrift shop, and the lady there told us how to get to 69. It turned out to be the main street that we were on previously. The lady said that we were not the first cyclists that had come by. Two girls from California had stopped at her place the previous fall. I would have liked to visit more with her, but I was dripping wet, and we had miles to make

I got my second flat of the trip on the road, in the rain. Same front wheel, but a brand new tube. At least it was the front wheel, which is much easier to access. I swapped in a new tube. There don’t seem to be thorns in this area; the predominant hazard is the grape-size gravel on the shoulder of the road

Michigan street signs suck! Not once did I see a highway 69 marker all the way to Sagola (seh-GO-lah), and that was a distance of some 20 miles. As soon as we hit town, Elliot spotted the Motel. It wasn’t obvious to me.

Bob and Kris Cary told us to just go into room 2 without checking in. They treated us more like house guests than motel patrons. I went into the office anyway to sign in, while Elliot went into the room. Bob gave us some extra towels to dry off with. Kris checked me in, and I was surprised to find out that the room was only $37 including tax. Cold and soaking wet, I would have paid a hundred!

It had A/C, heat, refrigerator, microwave, in-room coffee, cable TV.

There is self check-in after 6 pm. You just grab a room on the honor system.

This pile of wet clothes has about a gallon of water in it. It does not include the jackets, sweats, and socks that Kris dried for us.

Kris offered to take our wet clothes and put them in their dryer. I only gave her the most critical. There was no laundromat in town. No Wi-Fi, either. I should have taken a picture of Bob and Kris that evening, but I was soaking wet and trying to sort out the waterlogged an non-working phone and camera. Bob went to work at 4:30 am the next morning, but at least I was able to catch Kris. Even though she had a washer and dryer, she was driving to the laundromat in the next city, so she could do all the sheets and blankets at once.

Kris Cary in front of the Y Motel. Her husband Bob already left for work.

We did 60.7 miles that day.

July 4, 2010

At Conover, Wisconsin, we made a choice. The right turn is known as the Manitowoc Alternate Route, and saves some miles by going right into Lake Michigan about halfway up, and cutting across on a ferry. A left turn is the standard route which goes through the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, then down across the Mackinac strait. My friend Julie said the UP is scenic and not to be missed, so we turned left.

Phelps, WI, Part 2

US Independence Day, 2010. Yesterday, we checked into the motel for TWO days. Today was our first day without riding. Like Sabbath rest, that doesn’t mean we didn’t bike at all, but we did maybe 3 miles total today running errands.

At 8 am, we heard the carillon call of the church across the street, and went over to worship with them.

We chatted with Sue and Kip after church at the refreshment time. They actually have two homes, and split their time between St. Louis and Phelps. Their son’s family rides Centuries in support of Diabetes, since their grandson is type 1.

At noon, there was a parade, right down highway 17 in front of the motel. Many of the participants were on flatbed trailers being pulled by a truck or tractor.

Elliot got some beads. I didn’t see them until later. He said that some girls gave them to him. I asked if they were small girls, but he said they were older.

There is no internet at our motel. In fact, there aren’t phones in the rooms, either. There is a TV in our room, which gets 4 channels. Elliot slept a lot during our rest day, but I went out to see the town.

I got a drill bit, bolt, and nut from the hardware store, which to my amazement, was open on Sunday, even Independence Day. The clerk said they got a lot of business from the parade. And they were a bait shop, besides.

What I was really looking for was Wi-Fi. I used the iPod touch to scan around town, but no one seemed to have anything. The woman at the hardware store said that there was a picnic at the park on the hill, so I went up to look. Near the top of the hill, there was a sign pointing to the public library. The library was closed, of course, but I saw two girls sitting on the steps with an iPhone or iPod or something. I asked whether there was Wi-Fi there, and they said there was.

I spent over an hour on the internet, updating this blog, which is how the first Phelps post went out. It started to drizzle, so I couldn’t sit on the steps. While I was there, a few other locals drove up and parked their cars in front of the library, I would guess for the same internet access.

After that, I went down the street to the picnic. They were grilling food there, so I got a brat with sauerkraut for myself, and two cheeseburgers to take back to Elliot. While standing in front of the concession, I met Black (that’s his name), who had pain in his feet. He took me for a doctor, although I’m not sure why. Maybe it was the mirror on my helmet. He said that he had it for 18 months, and doctors couldn’t figure out what it was. He was going to Wausau soon to get some tests. I said I would pray for him. He did not want his picture taken.

The VP of the chamber of commerce, Delnice Hill, was serving at the concession. She said her husband used to ride, but doesn’t anymore, since they have 3 grandkids.

“Red sky at night, sailor’s delight.” I am hopeful that the weather will be drier tomorrow. We should easily make Michigan. If you see this post, that means that we made it to a Wi-Fi access point. Also, we want to mail some stuff home, but the Post Office could be closed on Monday, since July 4th was on a Sunday.

July 3, 2010 7:47 am

I awoke at 6:10 this morning. Every day brings promise of a fresh start, and a chance to do things better. I still haven’t gotten rid of the browser hijack, but have learned which process to kill to disable it temporarily, I think. I’m sitting in a laundromat in Mercer right now, doing our load of laundry which doesn’t even fill the washer 1/3 of the way. I put 12 ounces of the laundry detergent into smaller bottles for the panniers, but plan to leave the rest at the laundromat. We don’t need or want the weight. There’s a life lesson here, somewhere.

Elliot is back at the motel, likely sleeping. There was coffee, OJ, and toast at the motel, but that was all. A very basic continental breakfast. I will not sneer at food, though.

Susan Vacca was doing her laundry, too. Although they had a washer at home, she was bleaching items at the laundromat, because their septic system wouldn’t tolerate bleach. She confirmed that Wisconsinites don’t seem to eat many vegetables. They have their own garden. Susan has 3 grandchildren including two granddaughters 6 weeks apart. I offered her our excess detergent, but she said it wouldn’t agree with their septic system, so I gave it to Carol, another woman at the laundromat.

Susan Vacca

As we headed out, we saw people riding ATV’s. There are trails crisscrossing this entire area.

We reached Winchester at slightly before noon. There was no functioning store there, only a small bar. Elliot and I had cranberry juice. Jocko and Dennis, a couple of locals, dropped in shortly thereafter. We gave them cards. The woman behind the bar recommended that we take Papoose Lake Road instead of highway K.

Papoose Lake Road

Papoose Lake Road had virtually no traffic for miles, and had obviously not seen a winter, yet, as there were no cracks. It was shaded, too, on that hot day. I don’t see why this isn’t the standard Adventure Cycling route. We saved a mile going that way.

The woods are full of small trees, here. Timber is used for all kinds of things.

This home had several lodgepoles drying in the yard They made a volleyball net out of two.

We reached Boulder Junction at 1:15. It was a touristy place, with upscale food, coffee, pottery and art galleries. Merrianne, I think you would have liked it.

Here’s another big fish for you, Lorna.

The day was getting hot. We went into a shop for ice cream.

Outside the ice cream store, there was a canopy, and I met some other travelers. They were from Wausau, like Mark and Tiffany. Their daughter Amber had a slew of cute questions, as could only come from that age. I left cards with them.

The Johnsons on the left, the Dudleys on the right

The bike shop in town did not have a toestrap, but the man there helped me drill out the rivet from the old one. He charged us nothing for the work. I think I may be able to repair it with a bolt and nut. We wanted to have french bread, and made it to the bakery just at closing. The bakery’s specialty was Pastys (PASS-tea, not PACE-tea, which is an ecdysiast’s accessory). I had a beef and rhubarb pasty, Elliot had a pizza one.

They were substantial, about a pound.

The afternoon was wearing on. It was about 4 pm, and we had to decide whether to take one of the nearer campgrounds, or be ambitious and try for Phelps, 34 miles distant, which supposedly had a motel. As it was the eve of Independence day, it was a distinct possibility that the motel would be full. And it was hot. As if on cue, clouds rolled over the sun, and the wind picked up. I took it as a sign from God to go for it,

Is it breezy? Look at the flag.

We got to Star Lake at 5:30. Plenty of time. Along with the usual cold drinks, I bought a postcard there. Debbie, the store owner, told us that the picture on the postcard was of an actual mother duck and ducklings by the dock behind the store, and if we went out back, we might see them. We looked, but possibly the boaters out there had scared away the ducks.

Debbie at Star Lake Store

The store was closed in Conover, so we continued on highway K. By doing this, we were making a choice that would impact the next couple weeks. I’ll talk about that in the next post.

We reached Phelps at just before 8 pm. There was still more than an hour until sunset. We needed the granny gear to get up the driveway of the only lodging in town, the Lakeside Motel. There was exactly one room left. The owner advised us that the A/C was broken, and the screen door wouldn’t close. No problem, it would do. Perhaps that room was left for us precisely because of those problems? And there was a Congregational Church just across the street. God provides.

The room was like someone’s normal house. It had a sink, stove, refrigerator, and all colors of towels, instead of hotel white. There was shampoo in the bathroom, unlike the $94 place in Mercer, which provided only soap. And there was a fan, which was quite adequate for keeping us comfortable.

We asked about restaurants, and the owner told us that if we didn’t mind going to a bar, there was The Great Escape 3/4 mile down the street. We had burgers there. There was a deck outside on the lake, and we watched a fireworks show on North Twin Lake. As it was only July 3rd, I expected that there would be even more fireworks the following night.

Mileage: 65.7

July 2, 2010 11:14 pm

I got up before 6 again this morning, and did some work on the computer.

Note to Dean: there’s your prayer request.

The day started out bad. I found that we had a browser hijacker on the netbook. It wouldn’t let me get to Windows Update or Hijack-This or any other helpful sites, but mostly let us go where we wanted. I was obsessed with killing the malware, but finally had to give up. We left the Motel at 10:45.

Our first stop was Blue Ribbon Meats in town – the only Co-op network ATM in a hundred miles, according to the finder. To my dismay, the ATM was not there. However, there was an incredible mural being painted outside Pop’s diner.

Good: an amazing mural artist in Glidden. Bad: no co-op ATM in the store

Good: delicious breakfast in Pop’s diner. Bad: Elliot got a stomachache, possibly from eggs, and we didn’t leave Glidden until 12:45. Before we left we saw the record Black Bear (665 pounds), and the largest white pine log ever hauled by sled. The bear picture didn’t come out well, but here’s the log:

We left into a moderate headwind, and at one point, there was a dust storm.

Bad: dust storm.

Nevertheless, we made it to Butternut, about 10 miles distant, in 40 minutes. We got cold drinks, as usual. Good: there was an ATM in the gas station store there, and I was able to replenish our cash. Bad: it was not a co-op ATM, so we got nicked $2 for the withdrawal.

Outside the store, I was accosted by a young waif selling raffle tickets. She was competing for Pioneer Queen. I got 6 tickets for $5. She was approaching anyone who would listen as they exited the store. It was refreshing to see some industry in a young person. This sidewalk angel gave me an improved outlook on the day. Autumn, if I win, just donate it to a good cause.

Very Good: Autumn Dornan, future Pioneer Queen.

The road was brand new just after Butternut.

Good: smooth road for 20 miles.

The black flies were swarming again, so we stopped to put on repellent. Unfortunately, when we tried to start up again, Elliot’s toestrap broke. We were not carrying a spare, and a cloud of flies orbited me like electrons about a nucleus, but I was able to use a large tie-wrap as a temporary fix.

Bad: toestrap broke. Good: able to effect temporary repair.

A common sign on the road.

The other common signs are ATV, Taxidermy, and Night Crawlers

We reached Mercer at 4:30. We only did 44 miles for the day, but it was enough. As it was 4th of July weekend, both cheap motels were full, and with hesitation, we got a room at the Great Northern Motel. Although it didn’t have “suites” in the name, the room was $94 before tax.

At a nearby grocery store, I found salad on sale. Restaurants here don’t put much stock into vegetables. (I don’t consider potato a vegetable.) There was also travel size toothpaste on sale, so I got a couple, and a $3.99 size of laundry detergent.

Good: stuff on sale. Bad: laundromat closed by the time I got there

There was a mouse outside the grocery store.

I did not feed it.

For dinner, we ate at the Wolf’s Den, which is a Bar/Restaurant attached to the Motel. They had a special, one pound of pork ribs and fries for $6. In fact, all their prices were quite reasonable. Elliot had the special, I had a plate of Bluegill fillets, and we traded a little. Both were tasty.

Bluegills are small.

That picture was taken by Tiffany. She’s a professional photographer, and was sitting at the bar with Mark. We chatted a little about the bike trip. They are from Wausau, about 90 minutes from Mercer. They have two big but friendly dogs, Joker, with the orange collar, and Brik.

It was just sunset when this was taken, but it looks dark on account of the flash.

July 1, 2010 8:30 pm

The Hayward KOA sells breakfast, so I got biscuits and gravy, and Elliot got a pancake sandwich.

I notice that all over this sandy area, there are ant holes.

The ants don’t bite, fortunately.

We got a very late start, leaving the KOA after 11. We went back to Hayward to get groceries at Northern Foods. The prices were really good, 12 oz package of cookies for $1, and postcards 5/$1. Had we more carrying capacity, I would have stocked up. We then went to McDonald’s, where we redeemed Elliot’s card for a free 10-piece McNuggets meal. We didn’t get out of Hayward until noon.

The ride down highway 77 was uneventful, so I’ll just share the common scenery.

These yellow flowers lined the road all the way over

Lakes and ponds were also very common.

We reached Clam Lake at about 4:30, and got drinks at the store. Elliot had two SunnyD’s. There was a motel in Clam Lake, so we might have stopped there for the day, but Elliot said he was fine with going another 17 miles to the next town. Glidden is important, because it has the only Co-op network ATM within 2 days range, and I’m almost out of cash.

There is free camping in the city park, but notice what Glidden’s claim to fame is on the sign: “The Black Bear Capital.” What would you do, camp, or take a motel?

Schroeder’s Motel

It’s pronounced “Schrader,” like the tire valve. The room was $50 including tax, and was cavernous. I don’t know how the motel makes a profit, everything is so reasonable. The pop machine is 50¢. Everything is well-kept. By the way, the place is for sale – 5 apartments and 6 motel rooms, for $199,990.

Elliot had downed an entire bag of Snyder’s mustard pretzel bits between Clam Lake and Glidden, so he was not hungry. I went to the restaurant down the block alone, where I had (on waitress Emily’s recommendation) a fabulous NY strip steak complete dinner, with salad and relish plate, for $10.99. Merrianne, I wish you were here to share it. And Stephanie McIntosh, tell Kelly that the restaurant’s name was the The Green Lantern.

We went 54.7 miles today.