We are in our tent and ready to sleep after a long day (85 miles) of biking through rural Illinois. My hands are starting to regain feeling after gripping handlebars for most of the afternoon's ride along county highways, with fewer than six inches of shoulder and tons of trucks and vacation bound RVs on … Continue reading Day Six: Muscatine, IA to Dallas City, IL

This was a short day for us in which we made our way out of Iowa City to get back on course. We’d gotten advice from bikers on the best routes to Muscatine and, as we left, we noticed the bank sign reading 88 degrees at 9:00. (Everyplace we stopped, the temperature was the main … Continue reading Day Five: Iowa City to Muscatine

So we started today with breakfast and coffee in the lovely river town of Marquette and climbed on our bikes and pedaled hard up yet another hill. Our route was to take us from there to Dyersville, IA, with a stop for lunch in Elkader. There was a little rain, and a constant wind, and … Continue reading Day Four: Marquette to … Iowa City

The day started overcast and foggy, but warmer and drier. Our night inside left us refreshed and rested. We got on the road by 8:00 and rode strong down highway 61 with its wide shoulders, right by the river. We felt great, riding through the bluff country of southern Minnesota (Houston County is especially beautiful … Continue reading Day Three: Winona to Marquette, Iowa

So we are warm and dry now after a day of biking in the rain. And in a cheap hotel room ... with our bikes. "We are content, and not in a tent," per my traveling companion. A persistent drizzle in the morning turned into a steady rain in the afternoon and we were cold … Continue reading Day Two: Frontenac to Winona

This will be brief because we're tired and in our tent which is cozy so we'll be sleeping soon. The day was beautiful - great riding and perfect weather. Highlights included a flat tire on Lisa's bike in Hastings which we repaired pretty quickly, meeting two St. Thomas people (Amanda from my office was working … Continue reading Day One: St. Paul to Frontenac State Park