July 3 - July 9 , 2008 - North Dakota to Minnesota, part II

The next day, July 3rd, we'd planned to have a short trip, just to Cooperstown where we wanted to stay two nights in order to watch the parade and festivities of Independence Day. We were very disappointed to learn in Cooperstown, that the parade was held a week later. So we had only a half rest day.

In the afternoon we saw a few bicyclists coming into town and heading for the City Park. So after dinner, we walked to the park to talk to them. It was a group of four riders (which was the rest of a group from Adventure Cycling) and a group of three (Bob & Barb, a young couple, and Jay, a retired gentleman). They were all heading East and wanted to make it into Fargo tomorrow , 90+ miles away. Another single rider had checked into our motel too, also heading to Fargo tomorrow.

          Barb, Bob, and Jay            

Next morning was sunny and warm with southerly winds. Our motel buddy took off at 6:30. We and the other 7 riders took off at 7:30. We could make the pace of the group for about 14 miles, then we fell back. But at the first stop in Hope, we met all of them again. One of the guys was from Wisconsin and he advised us to take the ferry across Lake Michigan from Manitowoc as a convenient shortcut.  At the next stop in Page (only the bar was open) we met Bob, Barb and Jay again. When we reached the little town of Arthur, our goal for the day after 60+ miles (nothing open in town), we just saw the three taking off for their final 30 miles. We instead headed for the City Park, where we camped. The restrooms were open but not the showers. No showers for us on July 4th! The firecrackers in the evening were not too bad, so we had a nice sleep.

 

City Park in Arthur, ND

Next day only 30 miles, but against a strong South wind. In the Harwood gas station we ran into one out of a group of four guys we had met in Washington State, when we were still riding with the support van from Mike&Marilyn. We had half a rest day in Fargo.

 

                        

	Fargo, ND
	Camping in Pelican Hills
	Buffalo

We met all of the group of four next morning at the complimentary breakfast in the motel before Maren and I headed out for Minnesota. We had NW-wind, but it was very warm. Until Hawley it was flat and straight in US-Hwy 10, but then came the changes: Hills, trees, curves, more farmhouses. The traffic increased, the closer we came to the lakes. We camped that night on a campground near Pelican Lake.

 

                                  

	Pelican Rapids
	The town of Pelican Rapids
	Hills and trees in Minnesota
	Typical Minnesota farm

Next day the wind had changed to SE and it was cloudy all day. After a second breakfast in Pelican Rapids it was nice riding, until we discovered again the well known thunderstorm clouds. This time we just made it into one of the rare rural grocery store at Otter Tail Lake. We stayed in the town of Battle Lake, where I played with the two kids of the owner of the motel that evening.

The next two days were both fun to ride. Strong tailwinds, peaceful countryside, small nearly traffic free country roads, ridable hills. We rode 60 miles to long Prairia and 30 miles to Little Falls the other day.

We are here in Little Falls preparing for the final two riding days in Minnesota and the crossing of the State of Wisconsin from Osceola to Manitowoc on a route of our own.

 

                                  

	On the porch in Battle Lake
	Another wide load
	Church in Little Falls, MN