Day 44: Bowlus, MN to Alexandria, MN

June 18, 2021

That's The News From Lake Wobegone

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Climbing Today; 1,108 ft Climbing to Date; 69,912 ft

We had no shower last night, so for the second time on this trip, I did a "sponge bath" in the bathroom. It felt good to get at least a little clean. The local youth were riding 4-wheelers and miniature motorbikes around the town square area for a while, but everything quieted down soon enough - it didn't matter to me cause I was tired enough to sleep through most anything anyway. Apparently I did, as Doc told me about some lady leaving the bar down the street after midnight in a screaming rage - I'm not sure I heard it at all, though I vaguely remember something that sounded like a kid yelling late at night.

Abundant Wildlife Along the Lake Wobegone Trail

The alarm went off at 04:30, and our day started with all the things required to break down the tents and repack all the gear. I heated water in my Jetboil and had oatmeal and hot chocolate, while Doc opted for coffee and such from the convenience store down the street. We were slow getting off today - mostly I was just tired and not moving fast - but we finally got rolling at 06:30. The morning was cool enough that I wore my wind jacket for a while. The trail was shady and there was lots of wildlife out in the early hours; geese, swans, squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits in abundance.

The riding was easy to Melrose, and by then we were ready for "second breakfast." Charlie's Cafe was the perfect spot for us, and we enjoyed coffee and "real" breakfast food. The riding had been so easy on the trail that we were lulled into thinking we would just easily cruise all the way to Fargo - but not so. In the afternoon the wind picked up considerably, and long stretches of the trail were barren of trees and we were exposed to the sun. It wasn't easy in the afternoon, and there were sections where we were barely crawling against the wind. We haven't hit the hard windy sections of the plains yet, but we are quite aware of the power of the wind.

Signage Along The Trails Reminds Me Of The Trails In Germany

By the way, we rode on the Lake Wobegone trail today - as in, THE Lake Wobegone made famous by Garrison Keillor on the Prairie Home Companion radio show; Lake Wobegone. Our route is northwest on the Minnesota trails until we reach Fargo, then we will turn west.

Mile Marker 106 On The Lake Wobegone Trail

We stopped for lunch at a bar in West Union, and noticed 2 other loaded touring bicycles outside. Inside, we met James and Shepherd, a father-son duo headed from Anacortes to New York. Shepherd is battling diabetes but wanted to ride across the country, and so he is. His story can be found here --> Their Bike Journey and you will see a snippet of him in today's video.

They told us the story of how the wind pretty much just blew them eastward across North Dakota - they would stand up on the bikes to catch more wind. And they warned us that we were going the wrong way attempting to cross the North Dakota plains westward. Well, great - that's all we need to hear. Studies have been done on the wind direction in the plains, and it's a crapshoot - whichever direction you are going, the wind may be your friend or it may not. So maybe we will get lucky and not have a terrible headwind all the way across North Dakota and Montana. Maybe. A constant 20-30 mph headwind can prevent a cyclist from making progress - the effort required to overcome the wind is just too great. So we have that to look forward to.

The Flag Shows Our Struggle Against The Wind Today

We are having some trouble getting hotel reservations - we are in Minnesota lake country and it's tourist season, so the prices are high and many hotels are full. So everyday is a new challenge. Tonight we are staying at the Cruise Inn in Alexandria, MN - it was 2.5 miles off of our route, but it was the only reasonably-priced option available.

It's Tourist Season And Lodging In The Lake Country Is Hard To Find

OK, I'm tired and need to close so I can get some sleep. My kids know I listened to the Prairie Home Companion on NPR most every Saturday, and occasionally "forced" them to listen to it - I suspect they may have actually enjoyed it. So then, good night everyone... "Well, that's the news from Lake Wobegone, where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average."

Today's ride: 66 miles (106 km)
Total: 2,315 miles (3,726 km)

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