A quiet and peaceful night for emJay and I at the Schroeder Motel. We were over to the school fro breakfast and lunch making at 6:00am!!!

emJay helps load up Connie for a day of riding . . .

Glidden is known for the ‘Largest Black Bear in the World’. 666 pounds and standing 7’10’’. Every business in town seems to have Bear in the name!!!

a . . .  as we left town here was one of the Sappi wood yards where all the timber hauling trucks we have seen drop their wood . . . right next to a rail line!!!

Our first town to ride through was Butternut . . . a very neat and tidy little community.

. . .they were not celebrating veterans as such but their local citizens . . .

. . . including jack Koch who had a 40 year career in Wildlife Management with WDNR . . . great tribute to local citizens . . .

. . . to bad it was only 9:00am . . . a ‘tini seemed like a good idea!!!!

. . .lots of deer on today’s ride. This one was getting ready to check out the garbage can when I showed up. Put back it’s ears and was gone!!!

. . . hey nice idea, buy what about bicyclists!!!!

Denise helped this turtle across the road. It had two leeches attached to it back!!!!

. . .  lots of nice color today along the road . . .

 

. . . the flowers seemed to come in batches.

. . . the this is funny. I would have liked to meet the individual. I bet they know how to celebrate life.

Next town down the road today was Mercer . . . normally sort of a sleepy town . . .

. . . but the first Wednesday of every August is ‘LOON CELEBRATION DAY’ . . .and today is that day. Approx. 5,500 people descend on the town. Over 200 vendors set up shop. Everything you probably wouldn’t buy at home but people are on vacation!!!

. . .besides the pelican in Pelican Rapids, MN . . . the giant musky in Hayward and now the ‘Largest Loon’ in the world . . . right here in Mercer, WI.

emJay has some Nature Conservancy supporters who live in Florida half the year and Mercer the other half (I bet you can guess which half is where). They have a nice furniture store with lots of northern WI motif. Perfect for the cabin . . .

. . . and Otto invented this patented weed rake for removing weed in front of the cabin. Snow scoops too!!!

The Deer Lodge . . .

  . . . was welcoming visitors, along the way.

. . . today we rode by the WinMan Rec area where the mbbt has mountain biked or the last several years.

. . . we tried to stop at this place last year and it was closed. Still is . . . out of business, like so many establishments around the northern part of the state.

. . .soon we were entering the boulder Junction area at the end of our 70 mile day. The county has a paved trail the last 18 miles into town . . . nice!

. . . including new bridges just for bicyclists!!!

. . . this poor crittter did not survive crossing the path. Lots of bikes along the way . . many curious about our loaded bikes and what we were doing!!

. . . as we neared town we passed this fellow touching up the large propane tank proclaiming Boulder Junction as the ‘Musky Capital of the World’. I crossed the road and asked him’ I thought Hayward was the Musky Capital of the World?’. No answer. I thought maybe he hadn’t heard me or had ear buds in listening to music, so asked him, ‘Did you paint the fish too?’ . . . he never looked at me as he walked back and forth to his paint tray, but finally responded, ‘I’m working, I don’t have time to talk’. hmmm. .  I thought. I said, ‘Maybe I would let the Chamber of Commerce know that’ He responded . ‘Good idea!!!’. Never looked up . . .

nice stay in Boulder Junction . . . today it is 73 miles to Crandon!!!

We’ll be riding through the Northern Highland State forest today . . .

. . . and soon we were in the VERY small burg of Star Lake . . . here is the whole place . . .

. . .this was going to be our original lay over location until we changed it to Hayward . . . GOOD DECISION!!!!!

. . . lots of ATV/Snowmobile trails up here. one could mountain bike on them but road bikes, especially loaded, would not work so good . . .

. . . beautiful riding today, first on County K. mbbt has ridden this on several of our trips. No traffic, just enough up and down, lakes . . . beautiful . . .

funny . . . bike and bobber!!!!

. . .oh and we are still in loon county . . .

. . . surprised Corvin passed up this delicacy!!!

. . .looks like a lightning hit. Today it was originally predicted to have over 3 inches of rain in the area and strong head winds!!!! As it ended up, it did rain most of the day but the headwinds were not a problem . . . wet though. VERY wet!!!

. . . my old buddy Earl Meyer always carried a red arrow in hi his briefcase to honor those from WI who served in the 32nd division.

. . . the second EAUTIFUL ride today was through the national forest. 20 miles on Military Rd. Again no traffic, a little up and down and BEAUTIFUL scenery . . . and the Feds are looking out for the turtles!

. . . great riding, a surprise around every corner. Quite a comparison to ND!!!

. . one of the first roadside memorials I’ve seen in WI . . .

. . . soon followed by another. Both on the national forest roads . . . sad.

. . . a drumming school . . . probably a good thing is is located out in the sticks!!!! Mark stopped in and tied to talk to the folks. Not to friendly, leery of outsiders????!!!!

. . . suddenly a ‘road angel’ appeared with sea salt caramels and a BIG kiss . . .  nice!!!

. . .emJay and I have talked about RV’s in the past  . . .  this one looks, ‘interesting’!!!!

. . . hey Snaren, these folks must be from Ashby!!!!

. . . next little burg down the road was Hiles. Looks like there are a few Trumpster fans living in Hiles!!!

. . . Hile’s  Humor !!!!

. . . we finally arrived, in the rain, in Crandon . . .  where the gang is staying side the Baptist Church . . .

 

. . . a washer and dryer, warmth and a few old newspapers to dry out the biking shoes.

Pastor Dan, his wife Elizabeth, and their 4 children were GREAT hosts. emJay and I hoteled it though!!!

Doc Mike was in his element. Having 11 grandchildren he is good a bedtime story telling!!!!

The gang had a great night of sleeping in the Baptist Church

. . . and . . . emJay and I slept GREAT in the Main St motel . . .

People are ‘fleeing the ship’ for several days before we literally board the ship in Manitowoc. Doc Mike and Wade are veering off course for 4 days, heading to Green Bay for Packer weekend!!!  Jim ‘s wife Nancy is coming up for several days and they are moteling it. She will cross with us on the ferry and then drive back to Chicago. Mark has continued to have leg problems with his shin splints. His wife picked him up last night and they returned to Cedarburg. He’ll head to the doctor for some special treatments . He needed to shave his leg before he left for home. We teased him we could apply a Mustard (we have three bottles we are carrying) Poultice to his ankle as our special ‘on the road remedy’. Couldn’t hurt!!!!

This is what the remaining riders ‘faced’ on todays 74 miles ride. A string 15-20MPH wind BUT . . . it was actually a tailwind. The first we have had of this strength on the whole trip. It would REALLY help us sail down the road and eat up those miles FAST!!!!

. . . her was a BEAUTIFUL Lutheran Church we passed along the way . . . being renovated on the inside!

Lots of logging going on in the area . . . mmmm wonder forestry ‘best management practices’ are being followed here??????

Lots of grouse up in this part of the state and this is one of several improvement areas we passed . . .

. . .the nights have begun to coo la little which is GREAT for sleeping. emJay brought up a lighter sleeping bag I was thinking of switching out but am going to keep the heavier one. I hope this cover is to protect the plants from bugs and NOT from FROOST . . . too early in the year!!!!!

. . . just ahead lay this dreaded ‘DTT’ (Delaminated Truck Tire) . . .

. . . just lying in wait to jump out and bite a bikers tire . . . the group hasn’t had a flat since our riding on the Interstate system (other than Denise’s major tire BLOW out failure).

. . this was funny . .  . a golf green some landowner had created in a small forest clearing . . . 

. . . we crossed over the Wolf River which I believe is WI longest free flowing river and known to whitewater kayakers’ and canoeists throughout the Midwest.

. . . we passed these beauties along the way. I  asked them all to line up for a photo and they were happy to comply. Eddie, on the left, insisted on more of a ‘profile shot’ to show off his better side!!!!

. . . along he way we met Andrew and his daughter, Nadeja (means Hope in Bohemian), who are from Camden, Maine heading to Oregon. They are the first west bound riders we have seen since Fargo. They actually started a month later than planned because Andrew had a back issue. A great team . . . safe biking!!!

. . . we are near the Antigo area, Home of WI’s state soil . . .the ‘Antigo Silt Loam’ (yes, we do have a state soil!!!), which means LOTS of tator fields.  . . . and the terrain has started to flatten out some. Yippee!!!!

. . .some of our mbbt team spent Mondays, last fall and winter, hiking about 60 miles of the Ice Age Trail down near the Madison area. The trail follows the terminal moraine of the last glacial event in WI. Looks like we missed a piece!!!

. . I’ve been telling the gang about our ‘WI rollers’ (bumps you ride up and can just about coast down and 3/4 of the way up the next). To date they have all been ‘to extended’, large, to roll up. Finally we had a few today. Makes for nice biking!!!

. . . WI was one of the first states to come o board with the ‘Rails to Trails’ program. Most of our trail system is restricted to bicycles and hiking only, but here are trails that have been developed for ATV. Although one can bicycle on them, they are usually too rough and the stone too big,

. . . we finally blew into the Tilleda Campground, our home for the night. It is located right on the Embarrass River but it was easy to cross with this walkway. Connie REALL wanted to dip her hooves in the cool water after the big day.

. . . because of the rain from the last two days the camping area was a little ‘soggy’ and we were worried about mosquitos. No problem with either!!!

We decided while in WI we had to experience a good old fashion tradition . . . the Friday Night Fish Fry. Allison made reservations at the local restaurant and we took up all the tables they had available.

Usually a fish fry uses cod but as you can see above . . . there was a wide assortment of batter, beer batter or fried available . . . YUMMMMM!!!!

. . . I went with the fried blue gill and it was delicious!!!! After pie for desert and finishing our beers it was back to the campsite . . .

. . . along the way Rod had a call from Buzz, his wife. She has an uncanny knack of tracking him down WHEREVER he is!!!!

Breaking camp in the morning . . . we were all out of camp by 7:15am and on the road for another 70+ mile day this time  to Appleton.

. . . emJay checking the map for today. She will ride to the end and then bike back to meet us. Nice!!!

Fly fishing is big in this area of the state and it was fun to see fisherman as we rode by landing and over bridges . . .

. . . hey, what’s that on that bridge, half way across on the left . . .

. . .  a‘dry hydrant’ that WDNR championed with funding several years ago for rural fire departments. Having enough water to fight forest fires or residential fires in rural areas is a big problem. Tankers are used to haul water to the fire site. Rather than returning to town or finding a landing, backing down to it, using suction hoses to pull water from the source, tankers just pull up to these convenient ’hydrants hook up, fill and they are on their way. They are called ‘dry hydrants’ because unlike hydrants in cities that are always charged with water, these are just a suction tube with the appropriate fittings that extent down into the source. No freezing problems in the winter and always assessable!!!

. . emJay met the gang in Leeman today at the general store . . .

. . . a great little crossroads where many of us tied for a break  . . .

. . . father and daughter team John and Olivia. We met them in Fargo on our layover day.  From Seattle, they are biking to Boston and have raised over $10,000 to help save Orca whales.  Support member, wife and mother, Rebecca is following in an RV and providing support.

. . . we thought it was a great occasion for a group photo!!!

. . . on the road again we passed many WDDNR Wildlife Management areas today. Although the properties are managed for wildlife populations, forestry practices can easily be integrated into the property management plan and improve the WM cover. Looks like the forestry gang had a timber sale here on the Navarino Wildlife Area several years ago, leaving ‘seed trees’ for producing the next generation of forest cover.

. . . here was a GREAT old cemetery we passed along the way.  Nice setting!!!

. . . most of the farms we have passed in WI have been very neat . . . and here is a good example.

. . . we passed over Interstate 43 as we neared Appleton. Remember . . . only  you!!!

. . . LaCrosse, located on exactly the other side of the state, is REALLY reaching out for visitors!!!!

. . . as we approached the other side there was this sight of tragedy. Hard to tell what happened but it looks liker there were several victims involved . . . sad . . .

. . tonight we are staying t the home of David and Margarets’ nice ‘Warm Showers’ home. VERY comfy grass . . . didn’t need to use the stake hammer!!!! Corvin was cooking and used their kitchen to make a nice curry and we ate out on their deck.

The house has it’s own well and septic system. We sort of overwhelmed the well with all the showers that were being taken. Allen and Denise were taking showers when the water suddenly stopped flowing. Still lathered up, and with shampoo in their hair, they stepped out to see hat had happened!!!! (oh yeah, they were in SEPERATE showers)

Morning came too soon . . . (in fact Corvin, our morning chef today overslept) but soon we were packed up and on the road to Manitowoc and our last night in WI!!!

As we road though the Fox Valley it was an interesting mix of ag, rural, urban and everything in between. Farmers are still installing ‘tile’ to dewater wet fields to be farmed. In the past, actual clay tiles were used to produce the drainage. As WNDR would buy the retired fields to return them to Wildlife Management areas, the tiles would be physically cracked and broken, while in the ground, to allow the fields to flood again. What goes around . . . comes around.

. . . today the ‘tile’ is perforated plastic tubing.

. . .  we have been looking for an  alternative to our usual lunch of sandwiches and Oreo cookies . . .wonder if Mr Taco delivers ‘on the road’ and what his range is????

. . . some ag land is being lost to the continued  ‘suburban’ surge.

. . . nice riding on this cool, sunny Sunday morning.

. . . now this farmer has made good use of recycled beer cans . . . John Deere would be proud!!!

. . . we are in a BIG dairyland area and a lot of the milk is sold to Sartori to make cheese. They have a large ‘family’ of farms that supply the milk. ALL very neat and CLEAN!!!!

emJay and I stopped at the Neustadter Nature Center to have a little lunchy . . .

. . . it wasn’t;t open but we snooped around anyway. Nice joint effort and partnership with WDNR . . .

. . . back on the road we met Ruth and Jack, who started biking from New York City. They are on their way to Minneapolis where they are planning to fly back to New York.

. . . tonight the gang is camping at the Manitowoc County Fair grounds. Sporadic rain in in he forecast for tonight so they will probably camp under this pavilion . . .

. . . while emJay and I will be staying in the lovely home of Todd,  Wisconsin TNC’s Director of Government Relations.

Kirill, Todd, Misha and Andrea. Andrea made a GREAT BBQ chicken dinner with all the fixin’s. emJay FINALLY paid off Todd with the four 6 packs of beer she lost in a bet they had made … I feel a headache coming on tomorrow morning!!!! 

. . . I didn’t have a headache and woke up in their guest room with this LOVELY view of Lake Michigan. Should be smooth sailing today!!

We had a a very nice night with Andrea and Todd’s family last night and a lazy morning today as we are boarding the Badger Ferry at 1:00pm . . .

Connie was a little apprehensive about being on such a big ferry. She has been on 6 car ferries before so this is a new experience for her . . .

. . .  it takes a LONG time to ‘decar’ a ferry this size.

. . . especially when some of the cars needed to be pushed off!!!!!

. . . someone left their electric system running and needed a jump!!!!

. . . at the ferry we met Matt who is traveling from Nebraska to point east . . . destination undetermined at this time!!! Nice!!!

Mark’s wife Laurel brought him back to the ride today along with three homemade rhubarb pies . . . Allison was the first to jump in for a piece . . .

. . . and emJay and I shared. (but only the plate though, we each had our own piece on it!!!)

. . . emJay had a road find for Rod from Hwy J yesterday. . . a large bolt with the start of a nice patina . . .

. . . he was VERY grateful!!!!!

. . . he also had a present for Denise, the ‘key’ to MI.

. . . and last but not least, Wade had a pair of Packer glasses for Rod, obtained at Lambeau Field during Doc Mike and his visit.

. . . it was time to board, but there was time for a final group shot in WI at the SS Badger Ferry dock.

. . .the bikes are sort of ‘shmushed’ in wherever there is room.

. . . Connie found refuge on the starboard side in this little stable!

. . .at precisely 2:00pm the horn was blown,the gangplank lifted and away we went!!!!

. . . Todd told us there is great viewing of the ship from the end of the breakwater, so emJay took a hike down it to wave good bye . . .

. . . goodbye to my Smoochie and thanks you so much for being part of our ride and of my life . . .

. . . see you in one months time. No more 3 month tours!!!!! I love you and miss you.

We say goodbye to WI . . . as we head for MI.

The poop deck below the bridge. It is a four hour ride to MI. The ship has movies, bingo, a bar, food, trivia contests and lots of activities to help make the time pass . . . and the weather is beautiful with calm seas.

. . . however, the ship is a coal burner and puts out quite a plume of smoke. The EPA has evidently tried to shut the ship down several times but has not been successful. It is too expensive to switch to natural gas propulsion, so twice a day the coal driven ferry motors on!!!

We had a great time in MN and WI. Both states did a great job of showing themselves off and the riders loved them both. We had our first forecasted tailwind of the whole trip when we entered WI, at St Croix Falls. We also had the strongest tailwind of the trip four days later, a constant 15-20 miles hour, ALL DAY. I thought we had the most beautiful day of riding since leaving the mountains, Hwy K out of Boulder Junction and Military Rd on the national forest. But . . . we also had the first day long rain of the trip, and in 50 degree weather, as well as the most rude encounter of the trip in Boulder Junction.

Just like life in general, there is good and bad thrown at you everyday. It’s just a fact of life. Try to minimize the bad, move on, and enjoy the good when it comes along. This trip has been amazing and we still have a month ahead of us!!!!

MI here we come . . .

The ferry ride was smooooooooth and after a four hour ride we landed in Ludington at 7:00EST. A new time zone!!! We moteled it in Ludington and went out to eat at the ‘House of Flavors’!!!!

The following morning as we were getting ready to leave Wade noticed a bulge in hiss back tire. He has Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires just line Denise and many of the rest of us. Denise has had two side wall blow outs and now it looks like Wade is the next in line. He bought a new tire today.

Mark, our resident engineer, thinks low inflation may be causing too much pressure on the sidewall and causing them to weaken. We rarely check our tire pressure!!!!!

. . . oh it looks like there are pipeline issues in MI too!!!

. . . this sign will get your attention, it got mine. I had seen LOTS of groups of deer crossing the roads between corn fields, especially early in the morning. The fawns are so cute as they scamper behind and between their mothers.

The ACA Northern Tier route is part of the nationwide bicycle trail system. Two of the trails go through MI. We will be following Route 20 and it is WELL signed. Almost every intersection!!!

. . . saw this grasshoppa’ only 10 miles into the MI heartland.

. . .’more Midwest nice’ filling in of rumbles strips. I am beginning to think maybe stop sign rumble strips have fallen out of vogue!!!

. . .Smoochie . . . if I can find about 20 more of these there might be a nice waist length jacket in the making for you!!!

Right outside of Free Soil there was this memorial to a fallen State Trooper . . .

Ron told me Trooper Butterfield was shot during a routine cars top by a ‘young punk’. They authorities eventually caught up with him up around Dudley, there was a shoot out, he was wounded and arrested. Sentenced to life in prison, he hanged himself in prison,  a year later . . .

. . . what a name????

. . .Ron, the local historian, (Kim the C-store owner not shown by choice) told me his mother appeared on Channel 9 about 10 years ago and stated the town is named after a defunct political party named Free Soil. Going to need to look that one up!!!!

. . .the MIchiganders are looking out for you . . .

. . . living the good life in MI!!!

LOTS of gun and no trespassing signs in MI … more so far than we have seen in any other state . . . why???

Pabst . . .my old time favorite brew . . .not sure I would stop in here though unless I was specifically invited . . .Second Amendment Security!!!!!

. . .this is funny . . if you look close enough where the arrows are pointing you can see two guy wires holding the barn from falling over!!!!

. . .this must be the latest ‘get rich quick’ scheme because we have seen signs like this all over north WI and now MI. You can only get so much bandwitdh through a twisted copper cables that most folks in rural areas have coming into their house, their phone line. Must be talking satellite!!!!

They say it taste like chicken . . .should have bought some.

We are staying in a State Forest Campground out in the middle of nowhere, pit toilets a pump for a water source, no showers and the nearest two ‘convenience stores’ are 2 miles away, each way. Bernie and I are on chef duty tonight and for breakfast and lunch tomorrow. It was slim pickens with the pasta sausage dish we whipped up.

But three of Denise’s work buddies came to visit and brought beer, wine and ice cream!!! FUN !!!

With the time change breakfast is now 6:30am until 7:15am. We were gone by 8:00am!!!!

. . .nice of these folk’s to make mention of Allen’s 70th B-day he celebrated with us on the road . . .

. . . nice use of an old watering can. Snaren, you should make one of these!!!

. . lots of nice view sheds today . . .here was a great pasture type setting . . .

. . . just waiting to be developed!!!!

There are Amish in the area as noted by the horse and buggy DOT roadside signs. Here the Yoders had their ‘fleet’ line up and ready to go to town!!!

. . . more and more no trespassing signs. Not sure if this is unique to this part of the state or all around MI.Must be some property rights issue  . . .but stay away!!!!

65 mile ride today and here was our halfway point . . .to Claire, MI our home for the night was the Party Store!!! Stop NOW  . . and we did . . .

Six of us sampled the ‘Pizza Ball’. Moist crusty outer shell filled with a variety of pizza fixins’.

.99 cents each. On a busy weekend they will sell over a thousand of these little morsels!!!

. . .we turned onto a side road that had been recently seal coated.In a car you would never notice the smell. On a bike, on a hot, no wind day the odor was VERY overpowering and almost made one gag . . . went on for 5 miles!!!

Right outside of Claire was what I think is a ‘Biker Resort’ DON”T come a calling unless you are invited!!!

Tonight we are staying in the City Park in Claire, pop 2,500. Rod and Hugh are our chefs. They have several; supermarkets to choose from. Looking forward to it!!!

They whipped up a nice pesto angel hair pasta with rotisserie chicken. We even had fresh veggies tonight for a salad. YUM!!!

The whole gang sitting down to eat . . . David is sick and is staying in a motel tonight.

After dinner we decided to walk down to the local 50’s drivin/ice cream parlor. Behind our campsite is a car wash wish this HUGE blower system to dry off cars and trucks as they drive out . . .we are ALL hoping it is not a 24 hour operation . . .get out the earplugs!!!!

Mark decided on a Nutella malt . . .

 . . . oh, they deliver . . .

 . . . and Allen had a Strawberry Sundae.

Only 40 miles tomorrow to Bay City, MI. We are hoping to sleep in until oh, maybe.  . . 7:00am!!!!

The campground really quieted down last night and everyone slept GREAT!!!

. . . I woke up about 5:30am to make a nature call and when I looked out my tent I thought the mothership had landed . . .

Rod and Hugh were up and getting breakfast and lunch laid out . . . BRIGHT LIGHTS!!!!

. . . lots of goo fixin’s . . .

. . . with a ‘special’ delivery by Doc Mike . . .

. . . Cops Doughnuts . . .

. . . to big for one person to each . . .

. . . we cut them into thirds or halves!!!!

Soon we were out of camp and on the Pere Marquette Trail we would ride for the first 25 miles today . . .I hate trail riding, BORING. . . but at least this one was paved and had a little town about every 10 miles

. . . didn’t stop pedaling for 25 miles!!!!

. . . but nice facilities

. . . someone had even left some goodies . . . but I think I’ll pass!

The town of Coleman had a layout along the trail for 5.8 miles of the planets in our solar system, similar to the trail in Madison.  Here was the sun.

The planets are spaced in relationship to how they are spaced in the comsos and in relation to size.The ‘sun’ pictured above is 63 inches in diameter. Pluto, which I’m not sure is considered a planet anymore, is about 1/2 inch in diameter.

. . . here was the Saturn monument along the trail . . .

. . . the final stop with Pluto in the back ground . . .

. . . must be lonely that far out into space!!!

. . .

Stopped at the Averill Preserve which is a monument to one of the largest banking grounds in the world . . .

. . . during the great logging boom they would ‘bank’ the cut timber here until the spring when it would be floated down river . . .  how would you like to be one of the kids growing up in that town!!!

. . . it was a mess until things started floating!!!!

Along the way I met Joanie. Originally from Detroit, she now lives in Midland and handles the reservations and back systems for a local resort. She can do most of her work from home which allows her to skate almost everyday. She usually does tens miles. She can REALLY move!!!!

Along the way 5 miles of the trail had recently been asphalted and it stunk to high heaven, just like the road yesterday!!!

Along the trail was an access point to the home of Herbert H. Dow, the originator of Dow Chemical . . .

. . . nice layout but everything was closed . . .

. . . except for the smithy shop where the local boy scouts were learning how to work an anvil and make horseshoes . . . nice!!!!

. . . as we neared Midland here was a nicely restored bridge. Cost $7,500 when it was new!!!

The last 12 miles to the State Campground were on Wheeler Rd. Mark had read on several journals, months ago, to avoid this road al all costs . . .so of course we rode it.

. . . terrible surface, cracks every 10 feet, like rumble strips, no shoulder, high traffic . . . all the makings for a disaster. Couldn’t wait to get off it. I think this is the worst stretch of road we have been on the whole trip!!!.

. . .YIPPEE . . .soon the Party Store appeared and it is right near the campground . . .

. . . which is VERY nice. Good grass, no pay showers and multiple bathrooms . . . all the creature comforts old people need. Wade and Doc Mike are cooking tonight. We’ll see what they come up with!!!

Before we turned in last night we had to visit the local ice cream parlor right outside the park . . . as you can imagine they do quite a business during the summer . . .

. . . then a walk down to the lake . . .

. . . the sky and horizon were starting to fuse as the light became dimmer and dimmer . . . nice!!!

Today we were on the road and after a few moments getting lost in Bay City, soon we were n the country where soybeans are king and the land is FLAT. The plants were about 2 1/2 feet tall!!! Healthy!!!

This is the most elaborate wood vendor I have seen on the trip. Had whatever you wanted . . . wonder if he sold an ‘assortment pack’???

. . . right next store was Johnson’s, Home of the Giant Pumpkin . . .

. . . this was sort of interesting named town we passed through . . . didn’t see one Native American!!!

. . . someone was putting up quite the barn/house . . .

. . . sort of matches their house next door but only BIGGER!!! Lots of crosses in peoples front yard today like the one pictured above,

We rode for about 10 miles on Hanger Line Road which took us into the half way point for today, Frankenmuth.

. . . as we entered the burbs there was this very content pup that was happy just to watch the world go by. No bark or chase . . . NICE!!!!

. . . recycling day today. It is always interesting when biking by to see what folks are throwing out. Some Michiganders’ REALLLY drink a lot!!!!

Frankenmuth is a sister city with Guzenhausten, Germany. The town is know as Michigan’s Bavaria!!!

. . . a very prosperous and tidy tourist town. The first thing I notice when I looked up were the number of antennas they have mounted on their water tower. Must be quite the revenue source. Dave, from Dave’s Bunkhouse, got $800/month rent for just having one cell phone tower on his property!!!

. . .as I rolled down main street and looked down I saw the biggest spider of the trip so far. Lifted my feet up off the pedals!!!!

The architecture certainly fits the sister city venue . . . but sort of Disneylandish . . .

. . . the river has a Core of Engineer approved water control structure to prevent erosion . . .

. . . the town also has a covered bridge. Authentic . . . built in 1979????

. . . and of course the Bavarian Inn and Lodge. I walked around downtown for a while and a lot of the shops looked like the type you have in any tourist town like this. People on vacation LOVE to recreationally shop and buy things they probably have no use for at home . . . but it’s fun!!! They were lined up at the cash registers . . .

A stop in Frankenmuth would not be complete without stopping at Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. Check out the Bronners Trivia

. . .funny to see the parking lot full of outdoor Christmas decorations and nativity scenes in the middle of summer . . .

. . . right inside the door . . .

. . and it is nice for Bronner’s to set the record straight!!!!

. . . four aisles of just ornaments for pets . . .

. . . including cute colliesk types . . .

Diana said there are over 50,000 different items stocked in the store . . . they are open 361 days a year!!!!

. . .Bill and Roger were loading packages into Santa’s gift bag in this old Chevy . . .

. . .I wonder what their eclectic bill is a month!!!! Pictures don’t really do the size of this operation justice. If you like Christmas stuff . . .  put a visit to this place on your bucket list.

. . .

. . . lots and lots of celebrities have!!!!!

. . . and like many places, make it a full weekend excursion and stay overnight next door. Water slide too!!!!

. . . and when you get to tired to shop, tour around town in this buggy. Connie ‘The Clydesdale’ Cannondale was REALLY checking out this handsome guy . . . (the one pulling the wagon)

. . .finally it was time to head east to Otter Creek our home for the night. Storms in the forecast for this afternoon and night. Could be interesting!!!!