Day 110 - Jefferson to Perry - Two Far 2021 - Sooo... Far

July 27, 2021

Day 110 - Jefferson to Perry

The heat and gravel win

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Our plan for today was to ride from Jefferson to Ames, traveling 50 miles on trails and 14.5 on local roads. It was a long route, but with so much of it trail, we didn't think it would be too hard.

After a convenience store breakfast, we left Jefferson on the Raccoon River Trail.

On the way to the trailhead, we passed this conveyor piling grain into the open storage area. A front end loader was scooping it up and loading it into the trailer in the background.

Another Jefferson sight was this old filling station. (Remember when everyone called them that?)

The Raccoon River Trail has a spur that ends in Jefferson.

This section of the trail is badly in need of resurfacing. The asphalt was very cracked and broken.

At the store before we left town, a man told us that the trail had been closed for bridge repair, but was now open. He thought the barricades might still be up, but the paving had been finished. A few miles down the trail, we came to the "bridge closed" sign, but rode on, hoping for the best.

We rode past this cool old truck after the bridge closed sign. We would soon see it again!

When we got to the bridge, it was really closed. There was no way to get across. A man working there was quite angry with us for being there and while Kerry was walking on the bridge to see if we could get the bike across, he told me he could do his f'ing job if we would get out of his f'ing way. I was very glad when Kerry got back and we could ride away. (I hate that I didn't get any pictures here.) There was no marked detour, but Kerry and his outstanding sense of direction found the way. Unfortunately, it involved two miles on gravel roads. I just HATE riding on unpaved roads. I'm always afraid we will fall. We didn't fall, of course, and rode safely on until we rejoined the route a total of 3.5 miles later.

There was another nice trailhead at Cooper, a few miles farther along, but we decided not to stop there.

We rode on to Jamaica, where Kerry had more luck with a "Closed" sign.

Jamaica, Iowa, home of Tojo's Bar and Grill

Quite the tropical hangout - but a "Closed" sign in the window.

Image not found :( — Kerry went to the door and found it unlocked. Inside, he met Tojo, who welcomed us in. We enjoyed a/c, sodas, rest and great conversation.

Tojo (Tommi Jo) is a real proponent of the cycling and the trail. She is also a joy to talk with. We appreciate her making us so welcome when she was not really open.

Kerry had to call me back to get a picture of the inside of the men's room door. Tojo thought the sign was good for her and her customers!

When we left Tojo's, it was about 10:30 and already well on the way to the high of 95 expected today. The detour added miles and time to the day. We started talking about stopping in Perry - only 12 miles away - instead of trying to make it another 48 miles to Ames. The more we discussed it, the better it sounded. So, that's what we did. We have a decent motel here and will ride on to Ames tomorrow. We will be able to take our time and enjoy the Raccoon River and High Trestle Trails tomorrow, still arriving in Ames by early afternoon. A fine plan, indeed!

Today's ride: 35 miles (56 km)
Total: 4,116 miles (6,624 km)

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Susan CarpenterHi Jeanna and Kerry,
I'm especially enjoying your ride through Iowa - I lived in Ames 30+ years before moving to NC last October. I've done six RAGBRAIs and logged countless miles on the RRVT and the High Trestle Trail. I'm sorry about the inexcusable rudeness you encountered at the closed bridge but you do seem to be experiencing some of the Iowa Nice. Wish I were there to join you on the ride across the bridge and welcome you Ames.
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3 years ago

Jeanna & Kerry SmithTo Susan CarpenterThanks for your comments, Susan. We have always enjoyed our Iowa tours. We've ridden in many parts of the state and this is our third visit to the RRVT and High Trestle Trails. Iowa is full of warm and friendly people and we often comment on how clean it is - it's rare to see roadside trash here. That's sadly unlike my home state of North Carolina where you have just moved.
We've never done RAGBRAI, but many of our cycling friends have and just love it. One friend has done nine!
Ames has been nice so far - we're visiting the Reiman Gardens tomorrow.
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3 years ago