And we are off! We left at 8:45 to avoid some of the day’s heat.
Here we are, smoochie and smoochette, heading off on a big adventure.
Our first noteworthy experience was crossing temporary waterways that were flooding the trail, thanks to four inches of rain the night before!
EmJay noticed some critters needing help…
…Pollywogs that were being flushed across the bike path due to the rushing waters.
Rick found these folks at Rosa Park rehearsing for a parade!
Thank goodness the sign was not flashing today. Onward to Merrimac!
EmJay is proudly “flying the TNC flag” today!
We met up with Laura and Heidi of Madison who were training for The Great Divide ride later this summer. Rick, Heidi and Laura compared notes on Ortlieb packs, camping gear, and cross country epic trips!
One of the themes of this trip is: what should Rick give MJ for her birthday? This is a good option: a pork shaped food wagon!!
Hmmmm… $6000 Or Best Offer. Rick has some thinking to do! What is a pig-shaped trailer really worth?! MJ loves pork SO much….
As biking up a hill on the Lodi Springfield Road, who should we run into but 3 people Rick biked across Big Bend with in April! David and Jane live in Austin TX and David has strong ties to Wisconsin. Tommy G is a local riding buddy of Rick’s. Small world!
EmJay can’t resist horses! Here is to Milly the Horse from Newton Iowa who has long since passed over the Rainbow Bridge. Horse Number 2 looks a bit like Milly!
But Horse Number 4 and MJ hit it off. Add Horse Number 4 to MJ’s potential birthday gift list. Let’s see…Pig Food Trailer; Buckskin horse that likes to kiss!
Hot and just a bit tired (MJ at least), we arrived at the Merrimac Ferry.
Bikes and their people get to clamber on first!
The WoHus enjoy the ferry ride.
The nice Schoep’s Ice Cream Man serves up a yummy Bear Tracks cone….
….which immediately melted in the 94 degree temperature!
Here we are at the Ice Age Trail lot…
Where you can see the tremendous geological history of the area. Ancient mountain range laid down by Pre-Cambrian seas; river valley that carved through the range gets plugged on either end by the last glaciation, just a mere 10,000 years ago! It all comes together at Devil’s Lake.
Holy Cow it was hot! Over 110 degrees reflecting off the black asphalt!!
MJ needed some extra R and R. So we clowned around at the wonderful Circus World Museum in Baraboo.
This is a lovely Ringling family mansion in Baraboo that is now a B and B.
In the Old Home Stretch, we found a Culver’s… MJ was so ecstatic that she broke her rule of Only One Custard Per Day.
Surprising, eh?!
We met Stella and her people, who also love a nice custard!
Just down the road we checked into our “credit card campsite” for the night….
MJ was EXHAUSTED!! By the end of the ride, we had ascended 2342.5 feet. And we had supposedly burned 2869 calories!
So we ambled down the street to Fratelli’s restaurant. Where Rick enjoyed a nice ‘tini!
And EmJay did some serious carbo-loading. Please note the broccoli!
All those burned calories justified sharing a yummy Mocha Panacota. Delicious! Served with locally grown strawberries.
Kathy, the hostess, is the owner’s mother and was very welcoming. Olivia was our server and took care of our every need with a smile. Pam, the homemade pasta- and dessert-maker was too busy in the back to join us! And once we left the air-conditioned comfort of Fratelli’s to walk back to the motel, it was still 84 outside! Yikes.