Day 42 Itasca State Park, MN - Two Far 2018 - Trailing through the Rust Belt - CycleBlaze

June 27, 2018

Day 42 Itasca State Park, MN

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Today was a half and half and day.  We were half on the trail and half on the road.  The first half was comfortably cool for Team A and the second half was comfortably warm for Team S.

We started on the Paul Bunyan Trail in Walker and quickly connected to the Heartland Trail.  Most of the way, it is heavily wooded.  We passed many of Minnesota's 10,000 lakes.  We saw a big beaver lodge, but I didn't get a picture.  Here are some scenes from the trail.

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Note that blue sky!
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We went through a few tiny tiny towns on the trail.  In Akeley is what is purported to be the world's largest Paul Bunyan statue. We had to wait our turn to get these memorable photos.  Paul seems to be a popular photo stop.

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Worth the wait, don't you think?
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In the next town, Nevis, we discovered the world's largest tiger muskie.

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Boris Fayferit's 31 feet long, made of cedar and redwood covered with concrete scales. It was designed and built by Warren Ballard outside his Nevis taxidermy shop. Minnesota Governor Luther Youngdahl dedicated the big fish on August 22, 1950, to honor tourists who spent their vacations (and dollars) in the state.
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6 years ago

Our progress to the next town was impeded by some tree work along the trail.

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For my local Florida readers, I saw this in Dorset.  Does it belong in Citrus/Levy counties?

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Rich McKayIn answer to your cryptic comment: "Elvis did."
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6 years ago

The Heartland Trail ends in the town of Park Rapids.  They have two lanes of parking right in the middle of their "extra wide" Main Avenue.

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After Park Rapids, we rode north on our old friend, US 71.  There was a nice, wide clean shoulder all the to the state park.  

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Team S loved the bright sunshine and 80 degree temperature!
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Today's ride: 54 miles (87 km)
Total: 1,980 miles (3,187 km)

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