Today was another scorcher. It’s not been as tough to cycle in 100 degree F heat as I imagined, because you create your own breeze and it’s possible to stay hydrated by stopping at regular intervals and buying cold drinks at gas stations. But I will be glad when things cool back down in a couple of days.
I have had more than my fair share of blue skies and sunshine this summer, which is wonderful. I promise I am not complaining. But it requires the application of copious amounts of sun cream every morning, which further delays my usual slow start. It really isn’t a choice. I don’t want any part of me getting burned. I enjoy the AC at every stop and often drink a bottle of root beer in the shop before I go back outside. There is almost a routine to my stops, which generally include a cafe for lunch and somewhere later on for ice cream, interspersed with gas station stops whenever they arise. Sometimes that includes food as well. It depends how I’m feeling. The gaps between places have reduced, but can still be close to a couple of hours. So you plan ahead.
My journey today took me along the West Bank of the Mississippi River for more than 90 miles, and it was a pleasure. This is rewarding country, a mixture of wide flood plain, open river channel and high, tree covered, sandstone bluffs on either bank, far apart but visible. It never got boring. The roads were quiet and there was usually a boat or two to watch, as well as the now customary freight train action on the riverside railroads, one on either bank.
My lunch stop was in LaCrescent, MN, the self-styled apple capital of Minnesota. In a popular cafe in town, I proved a hit with a group of teenage waitresses. They sat me at a counter by their till and we chatted about my strange accent, my ride and where in England one of their cousins lives. It was great fun. They were quite surprised to learn that they, too, have accents! They served up a very good Eggs Benedict, too, and a passable mug of tea. So I left feeling upbeat about the world, despite the heat.
Two hours downstream, I collected my 48th US a state, Iowa. Just two more to go. I think I only passed through four small towns in Iowa; but I left favourably impressed. Lansing was my favourite. Here I stopped at a very popular ice cream cafe. It was in an old gas station. You ordered at a window and sat under the canopy at picnic tables, which was OK in the shade. They brought you your sundae to the table. I had a view of the river and I was pretty pleased with the whole thing. A welcome sign to the town said “Lansing – where eagles soar”. I looked up to the sky and there they were: half a dozen eagles wheeling high up on a thermal.
The last 20 miles got hilly and I had to overcome some long climbs and enjoy a couple of exciting descents. And then I had one last big bridge to cross and I was back in Wisconsin and my ride’s end at the town of Prairie du Chien. Tomorrow I will leave the Mississippi behind, rather reluctantly because it has been a good friend for more than two days of great riding. One lady today told me of another British cyclist who recently passed through pulling a trailer in which they kept a tuba. They apparently traveled like this right up the Mississippi from New Orleans to its source, playing recitals along the way. Maybe I missed a trick.
That mural is surely a falcon, not an eagle! But glad you are receiving such warm hospitality and that the ride is still enjoyable. Some really fab photos- you’ll have to write a book.
Also two island names near Prairie du Chien (also a rather odd name) caught my eye: Island Number One Hundred Sixty Six (all spelt out fully) and Scrogum Island (which could easily be got wrong). Any explanations for these names?