July 23, 2021
Houghton - Ontonagon, MI
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I was out the door early today, 9:10 AM. Jacinto was surprised why I was leaving so early on a 50 mile day. We have climbing today. That's reason #1. #2 is that I hoped to get to town and relax, as tomorrow is a 67 mile day. I'm not looking forward to it. Although, we are MON (middle of nowhere), so the riding should be good.
It doesn't matter what route you pick out of town, it's a honking climb. I went for the main road, Highway 26. I took the bike path down as far as I could to miss the town traffic. It was three miles to the top of the worst of the climb. Then another three until it leveled off more. That took me an hour. Part of my time was wasted trying to negotiate the walkway that didn't have curb cutouts. Some I could bump down, some I had to walk. I gave up and rode in the road when I could. It was five lanes and light traffic. I was happy when the walkway disappeared, leaving room for a shoulder.
For the most part today, 26 wasn't the friendly road we remember. The shoulder was much smaller and had a rumble strip. Traffic was light, but didn't seem as considerate. I'm not sure of the temperature when I left. Low 70's? It was 84 when I arrived in Ontonagon.
The wind was a strong headwind to start. That was no fun at all. There should be a rule against having a climb AND a headwind. Pick one. That's enough for a touring cyclist to face. Yea, someone isn't listening to my opinion. I have both.
I had nothing in the tank. I kept grinding out the miles. It felt as if I were going uphill all the time, even when I wasn't. Thank you headwind. At this rate I would never get to town. Here I wanted an easy day to set me up for the big day tomorrow . . . it's not happening.
The majority of the day was tunnel of trees. I was on a bodacious downhill (not to be wasted, especially on days like today) when I saw land that had been cleared enough to have hay fields. I would have taken I photo, but I didn't want to put the brakes on at 28 mph. I needed any speed advantage I could get.
Highway 26 must be a small enough highway to not rate a single rest area. I was getting used to the cushy treatment - we've been having rest areas about every ten miles. Amazingly frequent. So frequent I could hardly squeeze anything out when I stopped. I had to stop. That's a rule, isn't it? Especially if you're a woman? Today was a different day. I had to make use of guard rails and a judiciously placed bike. Men, you don't understand the struggle. You have the plumbing advantage on this one!
Last night we had checked our trip mileage - today we would turn over 1,000 miles! I kept my eye on the odometer and took a 1,000 mile photo. The entire trip should be 1,800 miles. We are on the downside.
I checked my elevation profile. There is some downhill involved today. Thankfully. I can always use a little downhill at the end of the day. With a tailwind? Thank you! I had some rain sprinkles right when the wind turned, but nothing to get worried about. I was so, so happy to quickly pass those last few miles. Just outside of town, I saw an IGA grocery. Did we want anything? I called Jacinto and he was six miles back. He would take chips, salsa, and a pop. I didn't even try to talk him into making the grocery run. I owed him, since he picked up dinner last night on the way into town.
As I pulled into the grocery parking lot, a man on a tandem bike was leaving. He had removed the stoker seat and handlebars and had installed two milk crates and now used the bike as a grocery getter. He got the bike about a year ago. We spent most of the time with him admiring my bike and how did all of the parts go together. He had an entire milk crate of soda pop. It must have been on sale. The man said it had just rained really hard in town. Indeed, I could see rain drops all over his bike. A different man coming out of the store commented on the high humidity, now the rain was done.
This grocery is the best stocked store I've been in perhaps the entire trip. We've seen many of the little bit of everything type stores that usually do have some produce. Those are so nice to have MON (middle of nowhere). This was a genuine grocery with a deli and everything. There was a huge selection of ice cream. I debated getting a rotisarrie chicken and some sides. I was carrying most of my meal from last night and Jacinto still had food also. I went with the usual apples and bananas, plus Jacinto's order. I bought a Gatorade to supplement my water tomorrow. On a typical day I have one electrolyte bottle, and one water bottle that are of stainless steel. Then I have a refill bottle. I use that most longer days. Buried in a pannier I have a bottle of water from home that I haven't used yet. Jacinto carries a 100 oz. Mule Camelbak. He empties it most days. He has two water bottles as back up.
I almost expected to see Jacinto outside waiting by my bicycle. I wondered if he had passed me by and was waiting at the motel. From the tandem rider, I knew that it was a nice downhill into town. That is not good, as we have to come back to the main intersection tomorrow. Ah, well. Live it up while we can.
Towns the last several days haven't looked as prosperous. Some (Hubbell) have been all but ghost towns with most buildings abandoned. Even the buildings that are occupied look run down and shabby. I'm sure with the hard winters up here, it is difficult to keep buildings in repair. Ontonagon falls into that category. Here, most buildings are occupied, but need some repairs and a coat of paint. There were several restaurants coming through town. The North Cafe had a sign outside advertising a $6.99 breakfast. That would be just the thing, if I didn't have such a long day ahead of me. Arguments could be made that the long day is exactly the reason I should stop for that breakfast.
I pulled into our motel. I was SO relieved it wasn't the very run down building with the motel sign out front. This building looked well repaired. The owner, Vickie, was extra chatty. All I wanted was to get in the room. We did discuss the irony of having two Presque Isles so close together, one in Michigan and one in Wisconsin. Jacinto pulled up while we were talking. I was on the far edge of my fuel tank and really needed to eat. I hadn't eaten my apple today, thinking I might want two tomorrow. Then I bought another one at the grocery, but didn't eat anything because I was almost to the motel. Food! I need food! A cyclist walked up and started talking to Jacinto about Tour de Yooper (I hope I've spelled that correctly). It's a 1,200 mile tour with a limit of 26 people. I normally would have wanted all of the info. Now I just wanted food.
After we had our stuff inside, Jacinto said, "Weren't we supposed to get two beds?" I looked around in a stupor. Indeed, we have only one bed. I'm still wanting food. I don't care. Much later, I cared. I wondered if I paid for two beds and only got one. That I care about.
I sat down all stinky, without a shower and ate cold Mexican food. It was delicious!
We've decided that we have enough leftovers that need eaten that we aren't going to dinner. The fan in the window is going full speed. Jacinto walked to the gas station for a beer and said a sign downtown says 90 degrees. Maybe all of that riding we've been doing in the southwest has made us immune to the heat. I didn't think it felt too hot or humid. I suppose there are advantages to headwind - it helps cool me off.
After we eat our leftovers, we are having ice cream from the gas station. They have three flavors . . . . we will buy one!
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3 years ago
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Today's ride: 53 miles (85 km)
Total: 1,014 miles (1,632 km)
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