I can't believe I'm in Ann Arbor, Michigan, sitting in my sister's rocking chair (using her neighbor's wi-fi - thanks, dude)! It always feels like a big deal to get on the several planes it takes to reach Detroit, so the fact that I actually rode my bike here remains - honestly - unbelievable.
We spent the morning doing errands, then had lunch with Bill Smith, our former neighbor who is the kind of family friend that simply becomes family. I also took my bike to the spa - Two Wheel Tango, my sister's favorite bike shop. Got a new chain & cassette (it wasn't urgent but would've become so in the middle of nowhere, most likely) but other than that, bike's in great shape. Yay bikey!
I was really, really tired after 8 straight days of riding - averaging over 75 miles a day. Monday was the only really hard day of actual riding, with all those hills all afternoon - but while the road got flatter, it also got hotter and more humid every day. 
On Wednesday I had another round of crazy good luck - after riding in a light but steady rain the last 20 miles into the town (well, intersection) of Leroy I was pretty wet but enjoying the cool, when I got to town and found the only place to stay: Muddy's (aptly-named) Travelers Inn. About one minute after I pulled in, it started to pour - buckets of rain, for over an hour. There was flooding in much of central Michigan as a result - I just can't believe my luck with this stuff. (Not to mention that's a part of the world I find a little creepy; it's fertile ground for the Michigan Militia, and I didn't really feel like camping by myself in some deserted campground... much less in a pouring rain.)
On Wednesday I had another round of crazy good luck - after riding in a light but steady rain the last 20 miles into the town (well, intersection) of Leroy I was pretty wet but enjoying the cool, when I got to town and found the only place to stay: Muddy's (aptly-named) Travelers Inn. About one minute after I pulled in, it started to pour - buckets of rain, for over an hour. There was flooding in much of central Michigan as a result - I just can't believe my luck with this stuff. (Not to mention that's a part of the world I find a little creepy; it's fertile ground for the Michigan Militia, and I didn't really feel like camping by myself in some deserted campground... much less in a pouring rain.)
The next morning there was a thick ground fog that took hours to burn off - and then it got really steamy. The heat really snuck up on me - riding creates a breeze so I wouldn't realize how hot it was (low 90s, w/high humidity) until I stopped, and then the sweat would be literally dripping off me. I ended up riding in what amounted to my underwear: a sport tank-top kinda thing and those bike shorts you kind of giggle at. Usually I wear a jersey & baggy shorts over that stuff - it just looks so silly - but it was too dang hot! No, I do not have a picture of myself in this get-up. But I thought it was fun to be out on the road in my skivvies.
On the road - following the Adventure Cycling Erie Connector route and then the Larry Macklem route (a friend of my sister) - I discovered a side of Michigan I'd never seen: the most amazing, gorgeous bike path I've found on this whole trip (the Pere Marquette trail) and the state's immense agricultural mid-section. Endless fields of corn, some sugar beets and then a surprise crop of sunflowers! That was especially exciting.
I broke my iPod so couldn't space out on music, so instead I spaced out thinking about... uh... ideas for more exciting road trips... how much I love to ride my bike (good thing!), how lucky I am to have so many people sending me their love & support, and, of course, when I might stop and have a snack.One of my errands today (facilitated by my endlessly supportive sister) was going to see if they could revive my iPod. Alas, they could not. The good news is they gave me a new one! since it was still under warranty. I was bummed and also laughing at myself - that this amounts to the challenge & adversity of my trip, not really much of the actual riding (except for days like last Monday, which you develop a kind of amnesia over). Then the guy offered to load up all the demo music he had on his repair laptop, so I'd have something to listen to on the road! It's not necessarily what I would have picked but kind of like listening to some weird radio station... which I realize I can also do, so that will be folded into the adventure.
Tomorrow I am crossing over into Canada!! You can't ride across the Ambassador Bridge (from Detroit) so my sister is driving me into Windsor. I should be in Niagara Falls on Friday, and then get back into the US in Buffalo on Saturday and hit the Erie Canal bike trail to cross upstate New York.I'll be camping this week and I don't know if I'll have internet access until Friday...
And as promised, here are pictures of the last eight days of riding, from Escanaba into Ann Arbor. Michigan is big, and was full of surprises - can't wait to see what I come upon next.
Beautiful pictures, Ruth! I've driven your route but certainly never cycled it. It's a long ride in a car, mind you! I'm so impressed.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, got your email and responded re Massachusetts.
Happy trails! It's all downhill from here, right?
Sarah