Bicycling Coast to Coast

  Stats:   Today's miles: 93 .0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,572 feet Total miles traveled:   2,035.3  miles Total feet climbed:   61,822 feet Note: Today I crossed 2000mi mark A thunderstorm late in the evening tested the water resistance of my tent (only moderate leaks) but after a quick tear down/pack up I rode the back roads to Cresco and picked up the Prairie Farmer trail to Calmar. It was a great, flat, rail trail through stands of old black walnut and cherry. The afternoon ride through the rolling Iowa farmland (corn, cows, beans, hogs, repeat) was in stark contrast. A little tailwind helped roll up the miles and partially made up for the weather delay.

Stats:   Today's miles:  0.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   1,942.3  miles Total feet climbed:   59,250 feet Strong winds from the south blew up over night. My general rule is that if winds (headwinds) are over 20mph its not worth the effort required to ride. The winds early were above that level, however I thought if I could even grind out 25 miles, I’d be a little further along the route and in a better location (food, cell coverage,…). I rode out about 3 miles just to test the wind and with a lot of effort to hold about 7mph, I turned back, re-setup my campsite and spent the afternoon ‘relaxing’.

  Stats:   Today's miles:  67.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   1,811 feet Total miles traveled:   1,942.3  miles Total feet climbed:   59,250 feet I crossed the border into Iowa today! Lime Springs is pretty small but it was the most accessible location with a campground without going another 20+ miles. With one small bar & grill, a Casey’s a mile out of town and limited cell service it was OK for a night.

  Stats:   Today's miles:  70.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   2,274 feet Total miles traveled:   1,875.3  miles Total feet climbed:   57,439 feet It worked out to set up my route through Minnesota to stay with relatives along the way. My second leg was from Matt & Martha’s to Polly Schmitz’s. The ride (on new tubes!!) was uneventful. It was nice to spend the evening with Polly, Matt & Danielle and family and neighbor John.

Stats:   Today's miles:  42.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   659 feet Total miles traveled:   1,805.3  miles Total feet climbed:   55,165 feet Some days should just be taken as a mulligan…. It was great to get back on the road after spending time with family and grand kids. The weather was great and the route to Matt & Martha’s promised to be easy. The first challenge came at mile 10 in Cokato…the first flat tire since Oregon. No problem, I quickly changed the rear tube and was on the way. I made good progress all morning and was on the Dakota trail in Mayer when I had a second flat. Thinking it must be a fluke ( valve not sealed….etc) I pumped it up, confirmed that it was holding air and pushed on down the trail. A mile later, I pulled into a shady section and started changing the flat. After replacing 2 more tubes(all previous flats that had been patched) and replacing a patch only to have it fail, I had exhausted all my spares and was out of...

Stats:   Today's miles:  0.0 miles Today's feet of elevation gain:   0 feet Total miles traveled:   1,762.7  miles Total feet climbed:   54,510 feet Dead Rattlesnake count:   31 I’m spending a few days at home to visit with family and see the kids and grandkids. I dropped my bike off at Outdoor Motion for a little maintenance (thanks Chad) and am doing some route planning and modification for the eastern leg of the trip which starts on Tues (08/30/2022).