Day 054 - Bay City to Tawas City - Two Far 2023 - Oranges to Apples

June 8, 2023

Day 054 - Bay City to Tawas City

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I tend to talk to myself while riding. Today I was saying "Aw crap" to myself more than usual. The first one occurred just a mile into the ride when I approached an intersection and saw a "No Outlet" sign on the other side. I continued on down the road and, sure enough, I came upon the dreaded "Road Ends" sign. Luckily, there was a path off to the side that led to the road you can see in the photo below, so that turned out to be a very small "Aw Crap".

First obstacle of the day. It's hard to see, but there is a cable strung between the signpost and the gate which totally blocked off the road.

Within a half mile of the first obstacle, I was saying "Aw Crap" again as I came upon a bridge with a "Road Closed" sign. Here again I got lucky, as they were just painting the bridge, and a County worker said I could go ahead and cross.

Just past the bridge I picked up the Frank N. Andersen Trail which took me through the Tobico Marsh. The trail ended in a neighborhood which was on the shoreline of Lake Huron. I rode for a mile or so, catching glimpses of Lake Huron between the houses, before I uttered my third "Aw Crap", only this was an "AW CRAP!!".

My first view of Lake Huron, shortly before encountering a major obstacle.

The neighborhood road abruptly ended at a chain link fence with multiple "No Trespassing" signs posted, and there was no way around it, even though I could see where the road continued on the other end of the field. I had to backtrack over 2 miles before I came to a cross street that would take me out to the highway. In all, this little detour added 6 miles to an already long 65-mile day.

I could see the road on the other side of this field, but could not get to it. So Close!!

In Linwood, I picked up my original route and thought my troubles were behind me.

I did enjoy several miles of cycling bliss.

I was really enjoying the country roads and scenery when I encountered yet another "Road Closed" sign and uttered another "Aw Crap". Here again, I got lucky as one of the workers said I could walk my bike through the construction zone, but he warned me to be careful.

Walking my bike through the construction zone.

Back on the road, I encountered my "old barn for the day".

The Au Gres River Marina is just a short distance from Lake Huron.

North of Au Gres I encountered yet another construction zone, this one lasting over 10 miles. The shoulders were milled, which didn't slow me down, but it made for a very rough and bumpy ride. I didn't want to be selfish and keep all cycling bliss to myself, so I shot some video to share :-)

View of the lake from Tawas City. The photo shows the smoke haze from the fires that are burning in Quebec. Hopefully, it will not get any worse. I could smell the smoke, but it didn't really bother me today.

I was a long day and, yes, there were some aggravations, but it's all part of bike touring and there's nothing I'd rather do.

Life is Good (but some days ARE better than others) :-)

Today's ride: 72 miles (116 km)
Total: 2,563 miles (4,125 km)

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