Saturday and Sunday were two absolutely gorgeous days of riding punctuated for a few hours by rain and scattered thunderstorms. On Saturday we took the Sparta Bike Trail from Wonewac, Wisconsin to Lacrosse, Wisconsin a distance of 70 plus miles along an old rail trail with fine gravel surface suitable for road bikes. The most fascinating aspect of this part of our day was entering three tunnels along the route built around 1873 from a third of a mile long to three quarters of a mile. We had to dismount and walk through each. I was enamored with the engineering and effort it took to build each of them through solid rock and overhead springs. At that time the cost was $58/foot.

After getting off the dirt/gravel trail at Lacrosse we took back to the highway then crossed the mighty Mississippi into Minnesota ending our ride at Houston, a total distance of 100 miles for the day.

One of the fascinating factoids I learned in our travels through Wisconsin came in the little town of Portage, billed as the gateway to the North. We wondered why and I started asking questions. Portage is part of The Fox–Wisconsin Waterway formed by the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers and was a major trading area. First used by European settlers in 1673 during the expedition of Marquette & Joliet, it was one of the principal routes used by travelers between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River until the completion of the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 and the arrival of railroads. The western terminus of the Fox–Wisconsin Waterway was at the Mississippi at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. It continued up the Wisconsin River about 116 miles until reaching Portage, Wisconsin. There travelers would portage to the Upper Fox River, or eventually, use the Portage Canal. The interesting point to me was that one river drains to the St Lawrence River eventually and the other separated by a small strip of land drains to the Mississippi River. It is hard to surmise that with the naked eye.

As we crossed the bridge and the Mississippi River at Lacrosse, we took a picture at the sign on the bridge. When we finished, Alan notice a group of people down below the bridge going to dinner. He shouted down to them…..something along the lines of “Yeh, we are glad to be at the mighty Mississippi on our bike ride across North America. We have journeyed 1300 miles to get here! They all clapped and cheered us on and Alan, all pumped up, added you can vote for me in the next election.” I guess he was excited to be there. 🙂 The Mississippi was a beautiful sight; actually a major milestone crossing on a bike.

On Sunday we left the campground at Houston, Minnesota and journeyed with some tailwind on a crystal clear morning towards central Minnesota. I was surprised at the natural beauty of Southeastern Minnesota along the Root River. We were so captivated by our ride we missed a turn. We planned a 95 mile day to the intersection of I-35 and State Route 30 about 90 miles south of Minneapolis. However, the missed turn ended up costing us about 18 miles. After recalibrating, taking a trail for about 10 miles up a mountain, and pedaling more hours than normal we ended up doing a 112 mile day. Frankly, we have been fortunate in not taking too many wrong turns for long. Today’s turn was all part of the journey. Wasn’t planning to do a 112 mile day, but having to do it gives us confidence for the future that we can. About 22 miles prior to the end of the day’s journey, we stopped in Hayfield and a combo café/bowling alley. Some folks were sitting around the bar who were totally enamored that we were riding to Seattle. One elderly lady named Donna, got up to leave and came over and gave me a high five. I have never been high fived by a 75 year old, but she said she was inspired. She certainly gave me a shot in the arm for the next part of the journey. Fortunately, we ended the ride in good shape, other than being tired. After consuming 12 ounces of chocolate milk (our replenishment drink of choice), I hopped in the Tahoe with trailer attached and Lisa driving. We rode 90 miles north to Arden Hills to visit our friends Herb and Donna Janes and their families. A night catching up with the Janes’ was a real delight. Donna had a pulled pork feast for everyone and seeing Tim, Becky and Kristin and all the grandchildren was really a blessing. We stayed the night with Herb and Donna and are spending tomorrow with them catching up. After 4 days of riding and beginning to average almost 100 miles a day, it’s a good time for a break.