My Review of Thule Revolver 4-Bike Rear Hitch Rack

Originally submitted at REI

Carry up to four bikes on the Thule® Revolver without giving up the convenience of full rear-vehicle access.

Thule Revolver 4-Bike Rear Hitch Rack

Great for my needs

By TwoTireDoc from Minnesota on 12/8/2008

4out of 5

Gift: No

Pros: Durable, Easy to Use, Stable

Cons: Doesn't swing far enough

Best Uses: Large Cars

Describe Yourself: Avid Cyclist

The bike rack itself has been incredible. Have consistently traveled with 3 bikes without incident. It's sturdy and I have no worries about my bikes falling off during drives on bumpy fire roads (i.e. Moab). My only disappointment has been that the swing arm doesn't open wide enough with my bikes on it so that I can lift the tailgate on my SUV. I can open the tailgate window with no problem so it hasn't been a deal breaker. I will have have recommended this rack to friends.

(legalese)

Family Blog

I've started a new blog so that I can keep this one as my own outdoor blog. The new blog is about our family and is called Wanderful Days, which probably doesn't mean anything to anyone but us! So head over there for our periodic goings on! (=

The Jig Is Up...

Something I was directed to during a study break...

EPPP is coming up soon!

I passed my practice exam on September 30th. That felt awesome! It was half the time and half the number of questions. But it got me used to the environment. That was more important to me before the test. Now I'm thrilled that I passed!

The real test... Wednesday, October 22nd. 12:30pm. Say many many prayers for me!

EPPP - Licensing Exam

Is a test an adventure? I guess it can be. This particular test isn't outdoors, so maybe writing here is inappropriate. But... how many times do I have to write it before it gets through your thick skull?? It's *MY* blog! (= So I'm studying for the EPPP. The licensing test for psychologists. And it sucks. No wait. I mean, it's awesome! One good thing, which I always enjoy, is that I'm learning and re-learning some things. Some not so useful and some quite useful. My trouble areas are neuropsych and stats. Always have been. And it's showing up here too. But my practice test scores are improving all the time. This is a very good thing. I still haven't gotten the confirmation regarding the range of dates I have to take it. I'll get a letter eventually that will have a 60-day period in which I have to take the test. Then it will be crunch time!

The test is 225 items, 25 of which don't count because they are just testing them out for future versions. Problem is, I won't know which 25 don't count! I'll have 4 hours and 15 minutes to complete the exam. The test has eight content areas: biological bases of behavior; cognitive-affective bases of behavior; social and multicultural bases of behavior; growth and lifespan development; assessment and diagnosis; treatment, intervention and prevention; research methods and statistics; and ethical, legal and professional issues. Much of it is already in my head. Hidden in quagmire! Some of it is nowhere near my brain. So I'm doing the best with what I've got. And praying a lot!

During this time, I am grounded from my bicycle. I'm back at work so I don't have as much free time as I did over the summer break. I could camp if we could come up with a good time to go. But we haven't. So, basically, I study and exercise. That's it. I get a movie as a reward once in awhile. That's a good thing.

Everyone around me will be very happy when this process is done!

Devil's Track Lake Campground - Day 3

Got up at 5:30am. But we didn’t know at the time that it was so early. But we were all wide awake. So we went outside and started working on breakfast. We thought it was overcast. But really the sun hadn’t risen! lol As Lorrie was doing breakfast, I checked the time in my car. We had a good laugh about that!

When we were first stepping out of our tent, there were 4 poodles standing at the opening to our site looking at us. They started barking so Emma and Tori barked back. That loud group was already up and apparently they didn’t think their dogs needed leashes. When we walked to the bathroom, they barked some more. I’m sure the other campers appreciated that noise so early!

After sunrise and breakfast, we went back to bed. I feel like my metabolism is still on Red Ribbon Ride speeds so I’m hungry often. I think that’s part of why I have been waking up so early. I’m HUNGRY! But I don’t eat a lot because I’m not riding 70 miles a day so then I get hungry again soon. Anyway… we slept a few more hours before really getting up. Lorrie needed to check her for phone messages so while she and Tori did that, Emma and I moved the chairs down by the lake and played some fetch in the water with some driftwood. She didn’t really get into it until Tori came back. Aww! (= We played down there until lunchtime... heated organic frozen burrito. Very nice to have the lake in our backyard!

At that point, we needed to decide if we were going to stay another day. At first I didn’t want to because of that loud large group. Then we realized that they had “disappeared.” Obviously while we were playing. Anyway, we decided to head toward home thinking we could camp another place along the way if we chose to. A very dark cloud started coming our way, with thunder, just as Lorrie took off the rainfly. It sprinkled a little but we got everything down and in the car very quickly. I’m getting pretty good at packing that car! (= Emma and Tori were already sitting in the backseat watching us the whole time. They always seem to know when to jump in. We drove into Grand Marais and stopped at the outdoor store, the coffeehouse, and a jewelry maker. It was a little chilly there next to the water but it felt good.

We took our time heading back. Stopped for lunch at the restaurant outside Two Harbors with the double decker bus out front. Half pound burger for me, BLT for Lorrie and we were good! From Two Harbors, we took the scenic drive to Duluth. The first half was totally trees and tiny glimpses of Lake Superior. We had to laugh at that “scenery!” Then it go beautiful with the road right up again the water. We saw a few signs along the way for the MS TRAM, a bike ride that Lorrie and I did last year and a couple of her friends did this year. That was kinda cool. They had ridden there early this morning. The drive from Duluth to home was pretty basic. No fun stops. Just potty and food stops for the dogs…. and avoiding I-35 as soon as possible!

I don’t think either of us could be any more well rested or relaxed after this weekend!

Devil's Track Lake Campground - Day 2

4am! What am I doing awake?! Pretty wide awake and I had to pee. I didn’t want to walk to the outhouse alone. Sometimes I get a little weird like that. Turns out we all to pee. So Lorrie, I, and the dogs all squatted outside together. (= Now *that’s* bonding! Back to sleep for a few hours before getting up to a busy day of relaxation! Lorrie made breakfast on the Whisperlite, bacon and eggs. Got things cleaned up then headed to the little store a couple miles away for some wood and ice. They didn’t have wood! What?? So we had to drive a little closer t town to buy a stack on the side of the road. Money supposedly went to the local hockey team. (= On the way back we stopped to check out a resort on the way and some private cabins. The resort was okay but the cabins were very cute! Beautiful views! Once we were back, Lorrie made lunch of TVP (texturized vegetable protein –> soy) tacos. Then the clouds started rolling in and it looked like a big storm. So we closed things down and jumped in the tent. We played cards, read, and took a nap while the very small storm passed over us. Afterwards, we went for a little hike. Deep grass that was recovering from snowmobilers. Beautiful flowers! Tori and Emma Blue both did great! We just took it slow and grabbed some kindling along the way.

Back at the site, we got a fire started and lounged some more. Hot dogs over the fire for dinner. (= While getting the fire going, a huge, loud group of women and children pulled into the tiny site across from us. Three huge tents, I don’t know how many kids, and at least 3 women, one of whom had the loudest most annoying voice. That sucked. But we ignored them…. and their 3 or 4 yappy dogs. They were still loud as we were getting ready for bed though most of it by then was the 3 women gossiping around the fire. Some interesting details about peoples’ lives. Too bad I don’t know them! Ha! They eventually went to bed as well.

Devil's Track Lake Campground - Day 1

Long stressful day! Up at 5:30am, which is WAY early for me but becoming more usual lately. Out of the house with dogs and gear by about 6:30am. Good job! We hit some rush hour traffic in The Cities but for the most part the drive was smooth. At this point, it’s all about avoiding I35 and the numerous closures. We made our Dunn Bros. stop in Hugo, just north of St. Paul. No samples out yet in the grocery store yet. Darn! Lol Back on the road. We made it to the US/Canadian border around 3pm. Lorrie went into professional mode and I just did what told me. We parked on the U.S. side so she could go in. I had a muzzle ready for Emma Blue in case an office came to my car. No one did. Lorrie came out about 20 minutes later and said we needed to cross into Canada and then come back. Well, she needed to. I didn’t. But we decided I should drive since it’s my car. That’s when I started getting nervous. I hadn’t prepared to cross so all I had with me was my driver’s license and no birth certificate. Lorrie explained what we were doing so he let us go with a warning to me that I need more ID to get into Canada. Then crossing back to the U.S., the officer gave me a hard time again until Lorrie explained. He told us to park and that our IDs would be inside with the officer Lorrie was working with. All this time Emma Blue was sitting quietly in the back with her muzzle on. Not a peep from her. That was totally God’s spirit holding her back! She didn’t even try to get the muzzle off. Weird! So, in my camping clothes I went with her to the office. He asked a few questions for each of us and obviously had some things on the screen about her. He asked me what I do for a living and when I told him, he asked if I could stay for a little while. Lorrie had warned me to just answer the questions and do what they want. So, of course, I said I would. He said, "Yeah, there are a lot of people here who have issues!" So the ICE officer was joking around with us! Interesting! Then he took what seemed like a personal call, while probably listening to us on a speaker. He was definitely watching us. Anyway, long story short, we did well and she got her TN status in her passport. Now she can start working again at the beginning of August. A major relief!!

Our reward… camping!

We drove back down the way we had come. Toward Grand Marais about 40 miles. Then we took Gunflint Trail, the same road we took to Camp Menogyn for our first BWCA trip. A little bit, maybe 7 miles or so, down the road we took a left on CR 8, which took us to Devil’s Track Lake Campground. It’s a small state forest campground with only 16 sites. We were hoping since it’s mid-week we could get a good site. The campground is on Devil’s Track Lake (surprise!) with 12 of the 16 sites on the lake directly. All 4 of the inland sites were available. Surprise again! One after another the lake side sites were taken. Until 14, which was open along with 15. We took 14, though I wasn’t happy about it at first. There were some pretty steep steps that went down to the water. I could see us falling down them in the dark or one of the dogs falling down them. And with Lorrie’s bum ankle (still from canoeing the Blue Earth), I was worried about her getting down there. I was wrong! It was a great site! We set up the tent near the stairs as it was the only place it would fit. But the door faced away from the stairs! lol

The view being above the water was gorgeous! We got everything set up and I got a fire started so we could start our lounging immediately. We had stopped at the Co-op in Grand Marais to eat dinner, so we were set. The dogs were pretty happy just to not be driving anymore! (= The campground was very quiet, even with all those lake sites full. There were motorboats on the lake and some float planes. So it isn’t totally peaceful.

The sky is light and we’re already heading for bed. The sky stays lighter longer up North and it’s before 10pm. But we’ve been up since 5:30am and it’s been a stressful day!

Red Ribbon Ride - Day 4

Route -Northfield to the State Capitol in St. Paul

Distance = 45.69 miles
Time = 3.31.00
Average speed = 13.0 mph
Maximum speed = 30.5 mph
Odometer = 3392.7 miles

Took me awhile to get to sleep. But once I did, it was solid! Five in the morning still came too early for me! I was very stiff and thought today might actually be miserable even though it was shorter. I got a little better as I started walking around. I was also worried about forgetting something since I didn’t have to account for everything like when I was camping.

Lorrie dropped me off at the middle school around 5:30am. Plenty of time. By the time I’d found a table to sit at and got my food, the rest of my teammates started making their way in. As soon as Kelli set down her water bottles, I realized I didn’t have mine. Oops! Need those! So I called Lorrie and she had put them in the refrigerator for me last night. Sweet! Out of sight out of mind though. Especially for me that early in the morning! I made her cup of coffee to take with her. I’m guessing it was Peace Coffee since they sponsored us. But I don’t know for sure and Lorrie said it was AWFUL. We all took our time eating and then when we got ready to go out, John said a prayer while we all held hands. A nice way to start the day. Should have been doing that all along I suppose.

After preparing our bikes (tire pressure, etc.), getting a couple photos, and lollygagging a little, we set off. The route took us through downtown Northfield so I led the way. That was pretty fun. Northfield is such a cycling friendly place, I thought there would be more people out. Maybe they were all out riding! Anyway, it was still nice. We turned right on Highway 3 from 2^nd Street where there’s a slight incline. I heard all kinds of moaning and groaning with that good morning incline! (= We proceeded on to Farmington where there was the first pit stop. I was feeling pretty good by that time. Seems like I generally start feeling stronger as I ride more rather than more tired. The rest of the ride was mainly Kelli and me up and down the rolling hills through Farmington, Apple Valley, and Eagen. There was a Twins Pit Stop (2) that was SO cute! We stayed there for quite awhile. They all had their Twins uniforms on, there was a beer vender (fake beer), Twins cutouts for us to pose in, and they would every so often play a little game in the grass behind them with a whiffle ball and one of those huge plastic kids’ bats. Cute! We were taking our time for the most part because at the end of the ride would be the holding area where we would have to wait for everyone to finish and until about 1pm before the closing ceremony. Felt like we were at Pit Stop 3 forever! Lots of people came and left. But there were only about 7 miles through St. Paul left to the finish. Jean showed up with her new team, Mrs. Peterson’s Peeps, so I asked if we could wait for her and all ride in together. So we did. Along with Mrs. Peterson’s Peeps. It was a long “peloton” with lots of cheering and chattering. A funny thing happened though, remember that guy who “stopped short” that caused an accident with Lorrie and another guy on A Day on the Ride? Well, he showed up in front of me… I was leading the big bunch. I tried to slow down to let him go but he just slowed with us. I purposefully missed a light so he would go through it. But he stopped. Kelli and I passed him at one point, but he came right up to the front. Normally I wouldn’t care. I would just follow him. But he wasn’t pointing out pot holes or grates in the road, which are dangerous. He’s dangerous! I told Kelli why I was riding so inconsistently and she said, “Good plan!” Apparently he had caused an accident on one of her group rides as well. Scary! I kept him far enough ahead that I could see what was in the road and could send the message back through the two teams. At stop lights we did cheers. I’m sure the people in those neighborhoods thought we were crazy if they didn’t know what was going on. (= Heading up to the holding area, Rand showed up next to me and tried to race as we’d done the 2^nd day. I beat him to the top but then missed the entrance to the park. lol Dorks!

In the holding area were lunch and a massage. That was all I cared about! Lunch was a pretty good sandwich and pasta. And I got the last cookie from the “Cookie Waiter” from the previous pit stop. I didn’t want one back then because I didn’t know what kind of ride the next 7 miles would be. My patience paid off! (= I got a great 10 minute massage in which the knot on my left shoulder blade was highlighted. Ouch! She made a funny comment at some point to another of the massage therapists. I had sunscreen and sweat all over me so it was easy for her to do the massage. She said to her co-worker, “Hey, she came pre-lubricated!” which, after some of the other comments from the weekend, made a few people laugh. Definitely one for Adam’s quote book! Then we waited. And waited. Thankfully there was shade in the area so we weren’t all burning up. Once they had us line up we were a little more in the sun and we had to wait awhile there too. I think we were waiting for the crew to walk down to their waiting area before we went to the font of the capitol. Eventually we were freed. It was a very very slow ride down a pretty steep hill. Didn’t seem like anyone fell or crashed into each other. Good thing! When we got to the sidewalk coming up to the Capitol, we could start hearing the cheering. That was very cool! There were so many people there! I saw Lorrie right away with the camera trying to get every moment. They split us into two sides so she had to wait and see which side we went to. Poor thing. But it worked out. After we were all lined up with our bikes in front of the stage, the crew walked down in a space left for them in the middle of the two sides of cyclists. Seeing the crew come in is always emotional for me… and others. They have spent the past four days taking care of nearly our every need. I never saw anyone angry or frustrated… just smiles. They are an amazing bunch of people! More so, I think, than the cyclists. We just ride. Well, we do ride far so I guess I should give us some credit too! Heheh! Anyway, we splashed them with water from our water bottles as a salute. The program was pretty quick. Thankfully since it was very hot and very sunny. This is terrible but I have no idea who the people were that spoke, aside from Teresa, the ride director. The first was a woman who is a politician and then someone who I guess is a radio personality and a local comedian. I’ll go to the ride website later and see if I can find out who they were and do an addendum. lol Lots of cheering and photos followed. Jean’s partner Rose was there with some of their friends from church and a few signs. Lorrie had her sign with her as well.

It was nice having someone there for me this time. All through the ride actually, not just at the end. I remember how I felt at the end of the AIDS/LifeCycle ride in LA with no one there cheering for me, feeling like there wasn’t anyone who was excited to have me back after a week. I would say maybe Emma was glad but she’d spent her week with Emily and Ila so she might not have been quite ready for me to be back yet! lol Anyway, that was a very nice feeling! I can’t believe how lucky I am to have such a supportive girlfriend and that I get to ride my bike as much as I want. Incredible!

I don’t plan on doing much more riding this summer as I have a licensing exam to prepare for. I made that decision before the RRR because I felt like the training or even the pressure to train was taking me away from studying. So, no more rides until I take the exam. Back to running for awhile.

Also, if you sponsored me financially for this ride or encouraged me along the way… I want to THANK YOU VERY MUCH! The support means everything to me!!

To see all the photos Lorrie and I took, go to my gallery at:
http://www.kodakgallery.com/jenniferphd/main/red_ribbon_ride

Red Ribbon Ride - Day 3

Route - Rochester to Northfield

Distance = 71.82 miles
Time = 5.07.53
Average speed = 14.0 mph
Maximum speed = 35.5 mph
Odometer = 3346.8 miles

Another bad night of sleep. Arrgh! This time is was my own fault though. I thought I was being smart just taking out my sleeping bag liner to sleep in so I wouldn’t get hot. I couldn’t shut down my brain for awhile after I got in and I had a quick conversation with Lorrie. She was at her friend Marv’s going away party. I fell asleep for about 30 minutes and then Lorrie texted me and woke me up. Ha! So then it took me awhile again and I was in and out of sleep. At about 2am I realized I was awake so much because I was cold. I know that should be an easy conclusion to come to but think about all I’ve done the last couple days on very little sleep. I was a little out of it. Then I had to pee but didn’t want to get up. So much thought. In my daze I was also thinking I didn’t want to pull my sleeping bag out. Though it takes about 30 seconds to pull out and a minute to put away in the morning. Eventually I went into the middle school where we were camping so I could pee (I know, TMI!). Then had a clear enough head to pull out my sleeping bag. And I slept awesome for those 2 hours from 3am to 5am! Got up and did the routine. Cycling clothes on, threw all my stuff in my bag, packed sleeping bag, and rolled up sleeping pad. Then inside for breakfast. Eggs and oatmeal, potatoes, a banana, and soy milk. Typical. Back outside to take my wet tent down. It wasn’t raining but it was very dewy and foggy.

I got over to the bike corral near 6:30am. Good job! Thomas, Kelli, and John were still standing there so we took off together. We stayed together for a little while then I had to stop for water with one of the support cars. I had forgotten that last night when we pulled in I had added Gatorade to my water. Disgusting! There was a ½ pit stop at one of the Rochester Chipotle restaurants. They had mini donuts, which killed me not to have. But with 70+ miles to go, donuts aren’t going to cut it. Didn’t stay there long. Kelli, Thomas, and John had taken off but John was stopped at a light so I caught up to him. He took off to catch up with them and I went my usual speed. I had a moment thinking how glad I was that I don’t have the mentality of having to “keep up” all the time, that I’m okay riding alone. A few moments later, I saw John flip on his bike and fall into the road. By the time I got up there, he was up and had checked his bike. He said he and the bike were both okay and that he just wanted to take a moment to compose himself. So I took off figuring he would pass me up soon. Got to the next pit stop and told Kelli and Thomas about John. They laughed and asked if he was okay. Such is the nature of our team. We all took off from there (Douglas) and headed to the next pit stop. I have to mention that this first pit stop was a “tribute” to Northfield and the Jesse James Gang. Cowboys, sheriff, a bank, etc. It was cute. (= John ended up missing the 2^nd Pit Stop and went directly to the 3^rd Pit Stop. Said he felt out of it.

At lunch, Eric’s Bike Shop showed up so I had to wait and see if this mechanic could fix what the one from last night messed up. Arrgh! Why did I let them touch my bike? I’ve never had a good experience at Eric’s so I thought I would give them another chance. Dumb! I don’t have access to several of my gears after I asked the mechanic last night to help me get access to the one I was having trouble with. The mechanic today didn’t make it better but made it different so I could at least do some creative shifting to get the access I needed on the few larger hills. Guess I’m going back to Milltown Cycles! And now I get why most of my team supported The Alt instead of Eric’s in the pre-ride preparation!

After that, I rode most of the route on my own. Between Pit Stop 4 and Pit Stop 5, I literally did not see another rider the entire time. Weird! I think I wrote this before but I often feel alone in this ride. I think because I was near the front today, I got less attention from the road crew as well. Didn’t see them on that particular stretch either. Thank God for the yellow arrows or I would feel like I was going the wrong direction! (=

Lorrie and Darshi were waiting for me at the 5^th (Nerstrand) Pit Stop. That was awesome! Tori and Emma Blue were with them too. (= Didn’t spend much time there since I was almost done for the day. But I got them and me some snacks before taking off. “The Last Big Hill” (for real) was coming up. Out of Nerstrand, the route took me down a road I had not ridden before, I think it was something Valley View Road. It felt strange to be “lost” in my own neighborhood. There were a bunch of big rolling hills before the last big one. It was pretty intimidating to look up at so I just had to keep telling myself I’ve done bigger. Another rider rode up with me, which I know was supposed to be encouraging. But it was actually more annoying. It’s great that some of the stronger riders stay back and help those who need the encouragement. I just wasn’t one of those people today. (= The people along the side of the road and the homemade rap were awesome. The cheering is a great part! It was also cool because Thomas, Kelli, and John were waiting for me at the top. That made me feel good! So, except for Jean, we all rode in together.

This day was also full of potholes. That was very hard on my arms, hands, butt, and lower back. For some of them, I was thinking it was good to be alone so I could see the holes clearly. I kept worrying about the groups of riders where the 3^rd or 4^th person wouldn’t hear the first person while the 2^nd person is trying to avoid and not pointing well. I’m sure a few people went over their handlebars on those. )=

Once at the Northfield Middle School, I just had to wait for my personal shuttle (Lorrie) to pick me up and take me home. To my own shower! Yay! Darshi and Bhanti were at the house and they all watched Kung Fu while I took a nap. After they left, I took a shower and got ready. Lorrie and I drove back out to The Last Big Hill and cheered for the last few people coming in. It’s amazing to see such determination.

Back to the school for dinner – pasta – and “Friends and Family Night.” Good pasta! Then Jeanie White was introduced by our pastor Paul and Jeanie spoke about her son Ryan White. That was pretty powerful! She was very “down home” except when talking about Elton John or Michael Jackson as close friends of the family. Toward the end, I was getting pretty fidgety and ready to sleep.

Afterwards, I asked Cheryl, the physical therapist who had worked on my Achilles, to take a look at Lorrie's ankle. She said it look like a packed sausage! lol She said we had been wrapping it wrong and making the swelling worse. Oops! So she put a funky tape job on it and then the Ace ("tenser" as Lorrie calls it) bandage on and explained how it should be done. It was VERY nice of her to do that! After we grabbed our Tiramisu and some fruit, we headed home. I am REALLY hoping for a good night sleep!

Red Ribbon Ride - Day 2

Route - Lake City to Rochester

Distance = 71.61 miles
Time = 5.46.00
Average speed = 12.4 mph
Maximum speed = 36.0 mph
Odometer = 3274.9 miles

My neighbor snored all night. I slept horribly! Not a good thing with another long day coming up.After breakfast, as I was taking my tent down and getting things ready to go, I spoke with the snorers other neighbor. He said he hadn't gotten much sleep either. At least I wasn't alone in my agony! (=

I got started later than my whole team. They left around 6:30am and I wasn’t out of camp until just after 7:00am. I ended up taking my time and stopping for photos, especially around Lake City. It’s beautiful there! Ran into Jean Z., a teammate, at Pit Stop 1 then rode with her to the next pit stop. That was nice! We took it slow and chatted a lot of the way. The rest of the day is a blur of rolling hills and a couple doozies. Interesting pit stops were The State Fair complete with Princess, Bearded Lady, and a Bozo the Clown cut out. And they served cotton candy! Gross! lol I didn’t have any but from the look of the garbage, lots of people had. (= Another was the theme of the musical Wicked. Lots of support from the car and motorcycle crew, the motorcycle crew especially on the hills. That was great! We also experienced the “Last Big Hill” complete with rap that was developed for just that purpose. (= At lunch, Rand, a former teammate I guess, asked if I wanted to join him and a couple other people, Adam and Kelly, he’d been riding with. They waited for me, so I did. That was nice. I feel like I’ve been doing a lot of this ride alone, including the training so it’s gotten a little lonely. Mostly, that’s fine. But sometimes I wish I was the same pace as others or part of a team that rides together. So anyway, we jokingly raced up the hills. Not downhill because my bike is so much faster than theirs (hybrids and mountain bike) regardless of the rider. We completed the “Last Big Hill” together too. That was fun. Not much cheering after that point. We just had to make our way through Rochester, which turned out to be an interesting adventure with the strange stoplights.

Back at “home,” same routine… turn in bike, get gear, tent up, shower, chill, dinner (Chipotle burritos) and then the program. Showering was an interesting experience reliving middle school memories of not wanting to shower with a group. Thankfully I’m more comfortable now than I was back then. I also had to remember how to use those, too short, sinks where you put your foot on the bar below for the streams of water to come out. Weird! Haven’t seen one of those in a very long time! During the program, Thomas, a teammate, got “caught” doing something nice for someone. I think they said he helped change a flat in a mosquito-infested area. Food is inside the school, Willow Creek Middle School and it is air conditioned. So that’s where I am now. I’ve set up my tent away from everyone else… so far… and I am really hoping for no snorers nearby. We’re on the infield of a middle school running track and I set up my tent on the outside of the track while everyone else is on the inside. (= I definitely need a good night sleep!

I was proud of myself today. My ego brewed a little at first with the hills and thinking about how I had been in California. Then I let it go and had a pretty good time. And really, I did quite well. (=

We ride home to Northfield tomorrow! Sleeping in my own bed and I get to see Lorrie! (=

Red Ribbon Ride - Day 1

Route - Mall of America in Minneapolis to Lake City

Distance = 76.78 miles
Time = 5.35.11 ride time (about 8 hours total)
Average speed = 13.7 mph
Max speed = 29.0 mph
Odometer = 3203.3 miles

We got about 4 hours of sleep last night. Yikes! Took me awhile to get packed. But I finally did. It was hot as hell in the house so it took me awhile to get to sleep. But when I woke up, I was pretty awake. Lorrie woke me before the alarm so that was a nicer way to wake up. Took Cedar all the way from home to the mall. (This is only significant to those who live in the area and know what a mess I-35 has been lately.) On time! Most of my team was already there so it was just a matter of waiting for the Opening Ceremony and for the ride to get going. Jean and her partner Rose put airplanes on top of our helmets for the theme, "I believe I can fly." Cute! Opening Ceremony was nice. Andy Ansell, from our church, spoke and Reverend Robyn Provis, also from our church, blessed us on our journey. After about an hour or so, we were off. About 8am. I felt tight. But that's expected. Rode with my team awhile and then I made a light that they didn't so I went ahead for a little while, knowing they would catch up. They did eventually and passed me up. I think they are generally about 2 or 3 mph faster than me at most times. Pretty basic ride most of the way.

Rain was in the forecast so I had my jacket with just in case. Good thing! It started sprinkling about 30 or so miles in. Then it became a downpour. No big deal. Except there was lightening, both horizontal and vertical. Scary! I passed up the Burritobago (Chipotle's suppoprt RV) thinking I should just make it to lunch. The next pit was a church in a little town. By the time I got there, it was pretty bad. They ended up closing the road to us so we had to stay at the church. We only had access to the parking lot originally. But the custodian at the church called "The Boss" and asked if he could let us inside. We ended up staying there a couple hours. It was pretty cold since we'd all come in wet. First aid offered milar blankets for us to share. Those things TOTALLY work! I'm getting one for our camping gear!

The first plan was to start sweeping us (putting us in and our bikes on cars) to get us to the lunch stop. Most of us suggested they go pick up the food and bring it back to the church. That seemed the most reasonable to me since we had such good shelter. It also meant we wouldn't lose out on any mileage! (= So they did bring us lunch, chicken caesar wraps and pasta salad. Yum! They also made a ton of coffee for those who wanted it. That is the spirit of a ride like this! I'm sure they did not want to clean up after a hundren wet smelly cyclists. But they did and they were smiling and having a good time with us!

It seemed like a whole new ride once we got started again. Though my socks, shoes, and chamois (the big pad in the crotch of the shorts) were still wet when we were released! The next pit stop was on the Cannon Valley Trail, which was supposed to be lunch. This is about 10 miles from my home! The theme was the Flintstones and it was VERY cute! Then several miles down the Cannon Valley Trail to Red Wing, which was an awesome part of the ride. Smooth trail, slightly downhill. I was also excited because Lorrie was supposed to be waiting for me at the pit stop in Red Wing! And she was! It was very good to see her though it didn't last long. Twenty miles to camp from there. She stopped along the way to cheer with her cowbell along with some other people. That was great! The last 20 were hard! Headwinds made even going downhill difficult. I hate that! I rode with a woman named Jody for a lot of it but then couldn't keep up after about 15 miles. Then she stopped so I rode the rest alone. Seeing Lake Pepin was SUCH a relief! It still took a little while to get to Hok-Si-La campground. Definitely a welcome sight! Lorrie was there cheering again with my teammate Rand.

That was a hard day for me. It's good to be "home!" Typical routine follow: grab gear, set up tent, shower, eat. It's a beautiful campground with a wonderful view of Lake Pepin, which is really just a part of the Mississippi River. Dinner was grilled meats. Lorrie stayed until about 8:50pm and took off after giving me a massage. Hopefully I will sleep tonight! Though at the moment my neighbor is snoring very loudly. Argh!!

Canoeing the Blue Earth

Got up early to get prepared for our canoe trip down the Blue Earth River in Mankato. Lorrie's friend Daryl rented a canoe for us from MSU Mankato so we didn't have to worry about that. Got into town around 10:00am as scheduled to pick up the canoe. Lorrie and I ran a couple errands while Daryl took care of some business and because we had to wait for Jeanie to finish her chiropractic appointments. We ended up waiting until about 12:30pm before getting on the water. Not a big deal except that I was hungry. Aww! Poor me! Daryl and we drove our cars to the put in while Jeanie left hers where we would take out. She didn't have a canoe on her vehicle so that makes sense eh?!

Lorrie and I had decided that I would steer as I seem to do a little better in that area. She had told me beforehand that there were 3 or 4 small rapids to go through. She had to tell me this because I was scared! I've never canoed on a river before and it seemed a little daunting to me. Everyone else seemed so nonchalant about it. That never caught on with me! There were rapids almost immediately and regularly thereafter. Many more than 3 or 4 so Lorrie was apologizing for misinforming me. Too late! Already there! lol But they were small... level 1 or maybe even 0 on whatever that scale of rapids is. But for me, rocks are rocks and I know how rapids are formed. So it was scary. We did pretty well with Lorrie calling out the direction I needed to steer and where the rocks were and where the "V" that I needed to head toward was. It was good!

We stopped after awhile in a gorge for lunch. I don't really consider myself a wuss. Usually. But a river. Rapids. And now a slit in the rocks where water goes when it overflows. I didn't like that and it made me nervous. Even though I knew it was unlikely that the gorge would ever fill up *that* quickly. I spent a little time figuring out my escape route if something were to happen. There were some good roots and rocks that I could have climbed. Sounds like a panic attack, which it wasn't. I was just preparing. (= There was no increased heart rate or breathing. Awareness. That's what it was. But I was able to eat lunch and enjoy most of the time in there. Lots of cairns, which I love! Jeanie and Daryl had brought 3 bottles of wine so they all got started on that at lunch. One bottle down. I'm not a teatottler (is that right?) but alcohol with a river, rapids, and an inexperienced canoeist don't seem like a great combination. That just made me more aware of what I was doing since I felt like I was the clearest in head.

Next stop was Triple Falls, which is now just a trickle. Lorrie and Daryl talked a lot about how beautiful it is when it's actually falling. It was beautiful as a trickle so I imagine it's incredible when it's really going! And it was so cool in there... the trickle was freezing! Nice! Another bottle of wine down there. So things got a little more goofy after that. And I got a little more alert. Despite my fears, I was having a pretty good time and the scenery was beautiful! It's just one of those things that when I'm not used to it, I'm more alert to the rapids and such than the beauty around me. I have to say I got a little more comfortable with each rapid that we did. Lorrie was doing such a good job getting me to the right spot that I started trusting her ability more. Not a reflection of her that I didn't trust her at first. Totally about my fear of water! We bottomed out on one rock and went sideways over one rock. That was it. Pretty good!

Third stop, "the rock." It's in the middle of another rapid. So we had to pass the rock with the flow of the water and then turn around quickly to go against the flow on the other side of the rock to park. Daryl walked out and climbed up on the huge rock with the third bottle of wine. Jeanie has a back problem and pulled her hamstring and Lorrie has a sore knee from the Boundary Waters. They couldn't get up on the big rock. I have no soreness and I couldn't get up on the rock either. They all ended up drinking the third bottle between the big rock and another rock where the water seemed pretty calm. I stayed on the other side to take photos and play in the water. I liked it there. I could float in my life jacket to cool off. (= We stayed there for quite awhile until Daryl realized how late it was and that people were meeting us at The Wine Cafe at a certain time, including his wife. So after dumping all the water from our canoes from the water fight, we took off again. There were a couple more rapids before the end. Jeanie turned around backwards in their canoe at one point. Apparently Daryl does all the paddling when he takes these women out! lol Lorrie said she rarely paddles with him either. Sounds like a good guy to do Boundary Waters with! (=

We made it safe and sound to the exit point, which was under a bridge and a sharp left turn fighting the current. I think we did alright with that one too. (= Carrying the canoe up to the parking area Lorrie stepped into a hole and twisted (broke?) her ankle pretty severely. She said she almost passed out from the pain. So we got her into the shade and let her rest with her ankle up and her head down while we got everything up top. Then we *hopped* her up to the top to wait while we got the cars to bring back. I think the weight of the canoe contributed to how hard she went down. This one was much heavier than the Kevlar we used in the Boundary Waters. Egads!

It took a little while for us to get the canoes all settled. Well, the one on D'Azul anyway. I didn't really know how Daryl had gotten it up there so he did it pretty quickly for us. We had passed the time limit so we couldn't drop it off at the school and had to leave it at Daryl's. It was crooked on the roof, which made me pretty nervous. It also moved around a little. I couldn't see how it would fall off. But I didn't want to risk it so I took my time driving. Lorrie was in the passenger seat with an ice pack from the cooler on her foot. In pain.

In the Wine Cafe she put her foot up and a new bartender got her some ice in a ziploc. Perfect! She was a good sport! I know she was in great pain but also wanted to spend some time with her friends.

Despite how it ended, it was a good day! Beautiful scenery that I need to go back and see more of! And we, for the most part, made it back safely. (=

BWCA II - Epilogue

We are four tough women 40-years and older! We worked awesome as a team and as individuals! I think each of us challenged ourselves and exceeded those challenges with flying colors! I was thinking that I'm relatively confident in my physical abilities and I've usually been able to accomplish what I set my mind to. But some of those portages, especially carrying the food pack and mosquitoes, tested my stamina. I'm not sure if it's a good or bad thing, but on the hardest day on the 2nd portage (Day 4, 220r) I chose to pick up a day pack to carry on my front while carrying the food pack. There was logic behind it too, regarding the number of trips we'd have to take. But it was still a lot. I closed my mind to everything but an occasional prayer and "1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4" steps. I was proud of us that day!

Another thing... lessons. My lesson for that day was not to do two long portages like that in 1 day. But if I have to, I can! (= I was a little surprised that we didn't bond more as a group. I thought part of that could be that we couldn't spend much time around the fire or together at night because of the bugs. But usually intense experiences like these bond people more. The other thing I thought was that Sue and Terry have been friends for 22 years and Lorrie and I are a couple. So pairing off made sense or was just easier. Not a big deal, just an observation.

I liked doing a week out there. Two night and 3 days isn't enough time to shut out the world. Six nights and seven days gave me time to shut down from electronics and really commune with nature... especially those mosquitoes! We definitely became one! That part I could have done without! I need the strongest repellent known to man!

Another thing I recognized was my irritability with Lorrie early on. I think it was my nervousness about what we were doing. It's something I need to be aware of at times when I'm doing something new. Neither of us liked how we talked to each other for short periods of time during the first couple days. But we talked about it and took care of it right away. A good learning experience!

I can't wait for next time! (=


Gadgets we Need

• Orange emergency flag
• Hammock (A must have!!)
• Tree hugger gadget holder
• Bag for pots and pans
• Two-burner stove
• Triangle stools ($10 each)
• Canoe chairs
• Deet spray (or nuclear bug spray if available!)
• Water filter bag (Ketadyne)
• Nu-skin for my scar (Hey! It's my list! I can be gross if I want! heheh)
• Ibuprofin
• Tea kettle
• Head lamp (for Lorrie)
• A new camping hat for Lorrie )=
  

BWCA II - Day 6

Travel - Heritage Lake > 40r portage > Shell Lake > 216r portage > Little Pauness Lake > 40r portage > Upper Pauness Lake > Little Indian Sioux River > waterfall portage > Little Indian Sioux River

Exit day. We were all awake by about 5:30am and couldn't sleep anymore. Terry got up to use the privy and saw a moose across the cove from us. So we all got up to see that and take photos. At some point Sue or Terry saw the snapping turtle sitting toward the edge of our site. S/He just sat there and watched us get packed up. Just as we started working on our tent, it started to sprinkle, which it continued to do most of the time we packed. The turtle was still there when we pushed off. We had just been stepping around him/her the entire time but s/he kept a close eye on us without moving at all. A blink every once in awhile let us know it was still alive! (=

Once we were all on the water, it started raining. It felt refreshing at first. And usually it would stop after a short time. But this time it didn't. It just kept coming and coming. We made it across Heritage Lake with no problems and got to our first portage, 40r to Shell Lake. We saw a few more people there. Campsites with people hunkered down in the rain. And there we were on the water in the rain with mosquito nets over our faces. I'm sure we looked silly! But I was definitely beyond caring about that! Eventually we got to our long portage, 216r. Thankfully it was rather flat. There were some muddy sections, of course, and a section where we crossed a pond on little half tree bridges. At first one 1/2 log and then two 1/2 logs (not 2 and a half, 2 half) so that we could put a foot on each. No incidents there. Lorrie took the canoe and I carried the still very heavy food pack. That took us into Lower Pauness Lake, where we began to see still more people. These lower lakes also seem to have more campsites on them. So it makes sense. Still raining. Still buggy. We paddled a short distance to the next portage, a 40r into Upper Pauness Lake. We started crossing several people at this portage. Not something we'd experienced much of previously. But most people are kind and courteous so it wasn't a big deal. There were 2 young men portaging the same direction we were who looked SO clean. One was wearing Tevas and shorts. I was very curious about where they'd been. It was starting to rain a bit harder. But it seemed pointless to put on our rain gear at this point. So we just kept trudging.

What I noticed was that we started becoming more mechanical the closer we got to the end. We didn't canoe as close together as before and we talked less. It probably gets that way toward the end anyway. But with the rain and bugs, it seems totally natural. The Upper Pauness flowed into the Little Indian Sioux River, which after a portage past the falls would take us to the entry point portage. The river has a "roadway" of clear water between the reeds on each side. A little difficult to navigate but I have gotten much better at keeping us on track. We saw lots of people on the portage past the falls. Several were in shorts and sandals. One woman looked rady for a nice stroll in the park! I can't imagine what they thought of us in our "hair nets," dirty pants, wet clothes, and tired faces. Ha! Terry said later that she had suggested pants and shoes to some of them. (= We ran into the clean young guys again who were behind us. And we caught up with 3 fishermen who were also heading out. Seemed to go okay with all of us on the portage though. This one we had done at the beginning as well. The falls were very pretty! Honestly I didn't stand and look for very long because of the bugs. Poor me! )= As we canoed the last leg, we met several groups just coming in to the Boundary Waters. I must say that with the rainy weather, I'm glad we were leaving and not entering today! After one group passed us, Lorrie and I heard a man say with concern,"They have mosquito nets," which sounded to us like maybe they hadn't brought them. It was SUCH a relief when we saw that final portage. However, the fishermen that were in front of us had left their canoes and blocked the entrance. Rude! Lorrie and I squeezed in next to them. I got out in the water up to my thighs so that we could get in. Not a big deal at this point to get that wet. But it was rather rude of those guys when they knew we had been on their tails the whole last 2 legs. Lorrie got the canoe up and out. Actually that was the first time we lifted it up and over us the way we had learned last summer. Ha! Took us awhile but we finally figured it out! (= I stayed back for a bit and tried to get Terry and Sue into the same spot. But I don't even know how we did it. So I wasn't much help. They got in far enough for Terry to get out but there were too many rocks and it was very deep where Sue was so they had to wait for the rude fishermen to get back to their canoes. I took one of our packs up and Lorrie was already coming down. Wow! There were a lot, actually one huge, slippery rock to contend with here. I didn't remember that part. Actually, I didn't remember much! (= Our stuff was finally all up at the parking area, including the food pack, which Lorrie carried against MY better judgment. I went to get D'Azul, who I was very happy to see intact where I left her. I had to change from my very wet pants into pj bottoms so I wouldn't soak the seats. The mosquitoes there were awful still! I'm sure my bare butt was a happy sight for them! We left our mosquito nets on even while packing up the car and putting the canoe on the roof. Took us awhile to figure out how they had attached it at the outfitters. But eventually, with all four of us fiddling with it, we figured it out... or... we got something to work even if it wasn't how they had done it. So at this point it had been 6 hours of continuous exercise. We'd had breakfast bars before leaving camp and each had another bar at around noon. So we were HUNGRY! It was 2pm when we got to the car... and it finally stopped raining! lol

The drive back to Ely was a gravel windy road. Same one we'd taken out. I was tired and hungry so I needed to be careful. But we made it safe and sound within an hour. AND the canoe stayed attached! A very good thing! At Voyageur North Outfitters, they took the canoe, life jackets, and paddles right away. They were also ready to check us out right away and I got $39 back for bringing the canoe back a day earlier than my original reservation. So we picked out a "tree hugger" and some gifts for my parents and Darshi for taking care of the pups.

Then it was SHOWER time! The outfitter has 3 shower rooms available for people who rent from them. Not the nicest bathroom but the hot water certainly felt wonderful! We had left some clean outfits behind to change into. That felt great! And clean hair! Wow! Though I must say that the lake water and rain made my hair very soft! After showering we met Sue and Terry at The Ely Steakhouse where we ate huge meals of red meat. No names! They all had ice cold beer, which they'd been talking about for days! (= At the outfitters, they give renters a free beer or soda when they return. So Lorrie had a can of Hamms in the car waiting for the right moment. She didn't want to ruin her craving for a good beer with that! ha! I had an ice cold Pepsi there. So my craving was taken care of already. When the bill came, I had to run out to D'Azul for my credit card... and it was raining again! I said out loud to myself, "Holy shit!" Funny how resistant I was to getting wet again after I'd been wet all week and thought nothing of it. Got to the car where I had left the windows partially open to let the smell of Lilacs in. Oops!

After dinner we parted ways. Lorrie and I headed back to Northfield while Sue and Terry got a room for the night with intentions of checking out Ely tomorrow morning. It took us about 5 hours to get home with the rain and all. Home at about 10:30pm, which is about 1-1/2 hours past our bedtime of the past week! Ha!

BWCA II - Day 5

Travel - None. Stayed on Heritage Lake.

Lorrie woke up in the middle of the night and saw the North Star. Then she woke up again to a very bright moon that lit up our whole tent. I wish she had woken me up to see them. But I'd had a difficult time falling asleep so I understand. Before that, we'd heard the most incredible 2 loon calls. I'm going to try and video tape those tomorrow night!

We got up pretty leisurely. Sue and Terry went fishing while we made breakfast - egg and hash brown scramble. Sue and Terry caught "Freddie," who we decided to eat for dinner. Yes, I'm a little uncomfortable naming my food. But that wasn't my choice! lol Anyway, breakfast was great!

Lorrie and I then decided to go explore the lake a little. We saw 2 deer pretty close up, checked out the other campsite on the lake, saw a loon, and basically just glided around. Nice pace. We wet our shirts to stay cool in the breeze. It was nice. "Nice" seems to be the key word. Terry and Sue went out exploring more so when we got back, we had camp to ourselves. Lunch was summer sausage wraps with cheese. Terry and Sue came back and we lounged around for the afternoon. Eventually Terry and Lorrie were in their tents, Sue was in her hammock, and I kept shifting around trying to get comfortable. I never really did. Too hot! I read some while sitting by the water. Then finally decided to go to the tent with Lorrie to get away from the bugs. She was reading and said it was comfortable (Mediterranean women!) I was burning up! I complained that I would never be able to sleep. Eventually she opened the bottom of the door a bit to let more breeze in and she laughs that I immediately fell asleep. For about an hour. lol Then it was "cocktail hour." Terry and Sue had a head start. Ha! So I mixed some propel and vodka into my water. Not bad! Lorrie and I made mac and cheese while Sue took Terry across the lake to clean Freddie for dinner. He tasted very good! We all said a blessing on him for being our sustenance for the evening. Still wasn't really comfortable with that. But really, he did taste good.

We have gotten along very well as a foursome. I can see why Sue limits her trips to 4 as I could see 6 potentially being a problem. Ya never know! Terry is hilarious with her little quips! She works as "the lunch lady" for an elementary school in Wisconsin. Sue has funny sarcasm that I can appreciate! She's done a great job organizing this trip. And I've definitely learned from her about some gadgets that we need to get (hammock from Sportsmans' Warehouse). No conflicts among us. That I know of anyway! Maybe *I'm* the problem! lol Just easy going and hard working! I would definitely do another trip as this foursome again. Preferably later in the summer and without the amount of portaging we did in one day yesterday! Just a preference! (=

So now the dishes are done, Terry and Sue are fishing some more, and we are watching the sunset on our last night deep within the Boundary Waters. Still beautiful! Even after all these hard days and millions of mosquitoes, gnats, and ticks. And even wearing a damn babushka. Ha! Tomorrow will be a hard day... 5 portages, 2 times each. But on the other end are hot or cold showers, cold beers for them and a cold coke for me. I am ready!

Fish caught and eaten - Freddie (RIP)
Fish caught and released - Helga, Gunther, and Isis

BWCA II - Day 4

Travel - Slim Lake > 173r portage > Little Loon Lake > East Loon Lake > 220r portage > Heritage Creek > Heritage Lake

Woke up a little chilly at sunrise to see an incredible pink/orange (Tequila) sky and it's reflection in the still water. Wow! I only vaguely remember it. (= Back to sleep until about 8am. We all started stirring and then a mini-thunderstorm rolled through. That was nice! After the short storm, it was time to move. I like this pace. We have a mission. We all know we have a mission. And we're all working toward that mission. But there is not a rush or any pressure. We leave when we're all ready. Breakfast was bagels with peanut butter and we took oatmeal bars for a snack later. We had packed our boats at different sides of the point so Sue and Terry went and got theirs. They came around the bend just as Lorrie and I were pushing off. But I got us hung up on a rock and SPLASH! - in the water we went! We only tipped so our bags didn't really go in. But we had to pull everything out, including the canoe, and start over. Damn! Good thing we can laugh at ourselves! I slammed my hand on a rock so I have a pretty good bruise and some swelling. Otherwise all was well. We got going again after a lesson learned about not trying to get in a canoe when the tip is still on the rocks! That was just the beginning of our adventure. We went back on Slim Lake the way we had come on Day 2. We did the 173 rod portage back to Little Loon Lake. It was still long, hot, mucky, rocky, and buggy. Lorrie and I dressed in pants today, which made the spill even more entertaining. They certainly helped on this portage though! I wore a tank top and a long-sleeved shirt also with my mosquito head net. Two trips and my shoulders were eaten up. Those mosquitoes will work twice as hard to get my blood rather than moving on to easier skin to find. I don't know what it is about my blood that they love so much! Sue has gotten only a couple bits still! At least one of those is on her ass from the privy! heheh Paddled Little Loon Lake back to East Loon Bay where we camped the first night. Motorized boats are allowed on this lake. We passed up our site and landed on a beautiful beach across the cove from it. There was a group of 16 from Chicago finishing up there. They were swimming and having fun. Looked like 2 adults, 3 girls, and 13 boys. Huge!

We ate our lunch and prepared for the 220r portage we were about to do. The kids had described it as "beastly." Sue had done it before and said it was difficult but not *that* bad. Well, it was worse! I added a loose layer over my other 2 layers to keep the bugs away. But that was SO hot! Better than the bits though! We started out Sue with canoe, Terry with pack, Lorrie with canoe, and me with a pack. Seemed nice at first with grass on each side. But it turned brutal quickly. About 1/4 of the way, Sue put down her canoe and was going to go back and bring packs up to give her shoulders a rest. Lorrie did the same. Terry and I continued on with our packs. We helped each other over and under 4 fallen trees. Clamored over pretty big rocks, navigated rocks among the muck, and very eventually made it to a tiny pond at the end. I was worried about Lorrie and Sue trying to crawl over those trees with canoes so I headed back right away. We also had 3 more packs to bring through. I got to Sue who had one pack and she said Lorrie was still bringing packs to the canoe. I was glad about that since we were on a motorized lake. Someone could easily come along and take the stuff and motor away. When I got to Lorrie, she had a pack on her back and a day pack on her front. I gave her some water and she asked me to take the day pack. So off we went with those. We eventually ran into Terry. We left my orange pack and gave the day pack to Terry to keep walking back. Lorrie and I went back to get a canoe and the couch food pack. That thing is SO HEAVY! So over and under the trees I went, helping Lorrie with a couple of the higher ones getting the canoe over. Wow! Ran into Sue and Terry who were returning for the other canoe. We were all so hot and sweating buckets! Water was getting short and my body was SO tired!

I can't really describe the feelings, physical and emotional. On the first run I was getting pinch hickeys from the pack and my waist pack moving together. The fatigue was incredible! At some point I'm sure I was pissed. lol I know I experienced relief numerous times. And through it all, I had to pee! When we got to where we'd left our orange pack, I grabbed the day pack to save on a trip. Holy crap! I got all that stuff to the end then went back to help Lorrie get down one of the rocky areas with the canoe. We carried it together a few steps then she brought it in with it on her shoulders. Terry showed up a moment before with the orange pack we'd left. And we were done with that portage! What an incredible accomplishment!

No time for pats on the back. Time for a couple photos and then we were off again. We took Heritage Creek to Heritage Lake where we nabbed the first campsite. Everything on shore, we all jumped in the water for a much deserved swim. Tents up... nap time! Nice breeze but lots of gnats, mosquitoes, and ticks! Lorrie is ANAL about the bugs, especially the ticks. I basically have to undress before getting into the tent. And anything that is passed to the inside must be thoroughly checked several times. I have never ever seen her so aware of and attentive to one thing! Finally! (-; Because of the bugs, it is clear that June is probably not the best month for me to be in the Boundary Waters. They just love me too much! It's like paparazzi or something! They follow me everywhere! My adoring bloodsucking fans!

Dinner at 7pm. Chicken and wild rice soup. Yum! We sat together and ate and chatted. Another turtle was eyeing the site and we wondered if she had heard about our midwife services from the turtle on the other site. (= Things put away. Dishes washed. Time for bed... 8:30pm. Still light. Not it's getting dark and there are many more "nature sounds" than we've heard before. Should be nice to sleep to. Though I think we are all so exhausted that it just doesn't matter.

BWCA II - Day 3

Travel - None. Stayed at the Campsite on Slim Lake

The ultimate in relaxation! Lorrie and I lounged around the camp most of the day. Sue and Terry went out fishing and exploring for most of the morning. We all got up and had breakfast together then they left and we commenced our lounging. Lorrie made a nude beach of our rock and I laid in the hammock most of the day. I read, slept, and tried to stay in the breeze and out of the sun. Lorrie meditated, read, and sunned herself. At some point we noticed Terry and Sue's canoe was parked across the lake (Slim Lake) where there is an unused and somewhat hidden portage. We figured they were exploring the portage. We ate lunch on our "food rock." Summer sausage on tortillas, pringles, cheese and some trail mix. Pretty good! Terry and Sue made it back around 2pm or so. They said the unused portage was beautiful... though long. They suggested we go check it out. But we felt lazy. We all took naps after their return. lol All that lounging made us tired! We started with a cool tent and a nice breeze. Then it rained a little so we had to put the fly down, which made it a tad warm. Eventually we were all up and ready for dinner. Sweet and sour chicken stir fry. We are definitely eating well! It tasted good but my stomach was starting to react to some of the food. Just because it was all mixed up. Sometimes I do better with meat here and the rest there. Nothing major. Just don't like going back to the privy! (= I am SO bit up already! It's not even funny! My recovery from all those bits and a little sunburn was partially the reason we stayed at camp today. Yeah, it's all my fault! (=

After dinner we all loaded into canoes to explore the other campsite on the lake. From our site, it looked so much nicer because it was high on a rock and we assumed had nice breezes. But really it was not nearly as nice and the tent sites were out of the breeze area. So we were happy with ours. Sue and Terry did more fishing and we cruised around the lake while I practiced my steering, which seems to be getting better by the way. Back at camp I started an awesome fire! Lorrie organized the test. We all just did our own thing until we ended up by the fire. At some point we all joked that we weren't as tired and could make it past 9pm tonight! Sue said it was already 9:30pm! Wow! We eventually petered out and got sick of the bugs. So to our tents we went. We chatted and joked some back and forth and were waiting for A STAR! (= I finally saw the first star of the week. Once everyone saw it, we could go to sleep. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to since I had slept and relaxed so much. That ended up not being a problem! We started again with the rain fly open to get the breeze. That lasted all night this time!

BWCA II - Day 2

Travel - East Loon Bay through a very tiny opening > Little Loon Lake (no more motors!) > portage 173r > Slim Lake

Awake pretty early, around 6am. But went back to sleep until about 8am. I had woken up once in the middle of night because my hands were swollen and asleep. I hate that! But they have lots of mosquito bits and a bit of sunburn on them. Ouch! I had oatmeal for breakfast and the others had oatmeal bars and coffee. We got packed up pretty quickly and were off heading away from the motors and toward Little Loon Lake. Which actually was quite little. Paddling was SO much easier with less wind. Steering seemed a little easier for Lorrie too! We made it to our first and only portage in no time. The portage was FROM HELL! 173 rods into Slim Lake. Tons of muck and mosquitoes. A lot of uphill with rocks and logs to balance on. It was my turn to take the food pack, so I did that one first. I was pretty sure I would just fall over and die with that thing on my back. It is SO freaking heavy! Lorrie did great with the canoe!! We all stopped at one point because there was too much muck to balance the canoes through. So Sue and Terry took their and we took ours about 3 rods holding them by the handles on the ends. I'm sure there's a name for them. I don't know it! Then we resumed our positions. I hated putting that pack on my back again! lol We ended up having to straddle and climb over two downed trees. Lorrie got a little gash on her leg from one that had little branches poking out. Then we got to go back and do it again! We still had our two packs and 1 of Terry and Sue's plus some paddles and misc. stuff. I cannot describe well enough in words how the mosquitoes were for me. I seem to be their main dish while everyone else is just hors d'oeuvres. I hate that! I need better bug spray! Or, I heard before we left that taking a B Complex regularly repels them. That would be good! As soon as we got to the end, Lorrie and I put the canoe in the water so we could get away from the swamp asap. Turns out the campsite we were aiming for is right around the corner on Slim Lake so we didn't go very far. The only other site on the lake was taken. The other looked like it might have more of a breeze but ours seemed okay too. Right on a point with views all around. There were a few good spots for our tents. So we are set!

We got settled in and it was time for lunch. Bagels with peanut butter and/or cream cheese, chips, trail mix, some kind of nuts, and candy for dessert. By this time a nice breeze kicked up and it felt really good! We all decided to take a swim to cool down and clean off some of the muck. Then Lorrie and I decided to go exploring. We took the canoe and headed toward the other portage on this lake. We did the 52r portage with the canoe and day pack. It too was quite swampy and buggy. At the other side was Section 3 Pond. At first it was like a very small river with reeds along both sides. Very pretty! I was steering at this point and it had to be pretty precise with the small width. I think I did okay. And, for some reason, we bickered less with me steering. Hmm! We came out onto this very tiny pond. It feels so secluded! We started working on a Horror screenplay. (= There was one campsite there that we stopped to check out. It was tiny, just like the pond. Our little tent would have fit, but that's about it. I imagine it being pretty buggy right now. It was also a pretty sketchy climb up to the site. At the end of the pond was another little portage to South Lake. We parked the canoe out of the way and did the 52r portage carrying nothing. That was nice! But it was still buggy. Lorrie twisted her ankle looking around at scenery. We usually don't get to do that with all our stuff on our backs. We usually have to be aware of every step. I guess we should be anyway! (= At the end it was very mucky and, YES!, buggy! So we turned around quickly. But we did notice that it looked like it had been flooded. I'm not sure how far we'd have to walk in to get going with a canoe. The walk back was uneventful. Back in the canoe with Lorrie steering. She wanted to do a quick video for her family. Cute!

Everything was going great until we got back to the portage. We'd put on our mosquito nets in preparation. I planned on carrying the canoe this time. We had some trouble getting it up on my shoulders. We'd also left our Nalgene bottles dangling, which posed some problems in my balance. Also, my hands were exposed and were on the canoe so I was really being bitten. I would look up and there would be 4 or 5 mosquitoes on each hand. I need to do something to prevent that next time! Then the water bag came lose and was going to drag (sorry Sue!) but Lorrie went to take it off the canoe. In the process she accidentally pushed the canoe forward and down, which rammed my neck with the yoke. Ouch! So then I just wanted to get out of there quickly. Which I did, though not very gracefully. We snapped at each other a few times and then, once in the canoe, away from the bugs, talked about it. No one's fault, we just wanted to get out of there fast and weren't working very well together at the moment. We got the video made and headed the short way back. We had to stop in the middle of the lake to fill up with water. Then came in to a PAR-TAY! The girls had brought out the hooch and were a little tipsy. Vodka and raspberry schnapps. Guess that's what they went to when the water ran out! (= We drank a little and then had some dinner. Pork and noodles. Yum! Can you tell I get very excited about the food!? lol

After dinner, we went swimming again to cool off. I, so far, am always the last person in the water. They all step out onto a rock and then basically sit back into the water and float with their life jackets. I don't like the idea of going backwards into the water... partly because it's water and partly because I don't want to ram my ass into a rock. lol Where that fear came from I have no idea. So I stand there, then squat down, whine a little, then finally glide into the water... screaming the whole way. It's very relaxing! lol After swimming it's time for our evening-wear. Pants! (= Sue started a fire, Terry did some fishing, and we just hung out. At some point, Lorrie, I think it was Lorrie, discovered a turtle digging a very deep hole with both of her back feet. Seems like she dug for almost an hour. Lorrie watched her most of the time and yelled when she started dropping eggs. Five total! Amazing! Then she had to cover them up again. Imagine if we had to do all that work while in labor! We were all fascinated. It is still not dark and we are all ready for bed. Lorrie and I decided to leave the rainfly pulled back to get some air. We'll see how that works!

BWCA II - Day 1

Travel - Entry Point 14 > Little Indian Sioux River > portage *60r past rapids > portage 40r > Upper Pauness Lake > portage 40r > Lower Pauness Lake > portage 160r > Little Indian Sioux River > East Loon Bay.

Sometimes I get lazy and just make a list for the day. This is one of those days...

• Got up to wet
• Sue was packing the food into her new toy food barrels
• We took awhile to get organized
• Me = irritable
• Lorrie = Angry face at me that I did not like at all!
• Lots of mosquitoes at entry and during portages
• Lots of zig zagging in the canoe while Lorrie learns to steer we get used to paddling
• Lorrie lost her had in the first river )=
• Lorrie slipped while walking to the waterfall
• Some guys from Youth for Christ helped haul our stuff on the long (160r) portage
• Lunch on some rocks - salami & cheese on tortillas (yum!)
• 4 portages total, 5 if you include the entry. Which I should. 5 portages total
• Got the campsite that Sue wanted, overlooking the river
• Hamburger with green peppers, potatoes, carrots, and onions over the fire for dinner.
• Tired!
• We all sat in front of the fire waiting to go to sleep... at 9pm.
• It's still bright out
• Spotted 3 deer
• No moose yet
• Lorrie and I did lots of bickering this morning (nerves?) but we got much better in the afternoon.
• We swam after we got to our campsite, which was COLD! But felt great!
  

r = rod, which is basically the length of a canoe (e.g. 40 rods = 40 canoe lengths)

BWCA II - Day 0

Happy Summer Solstice!

We did well getting everything prepared. Yesterday we drove all over Southern Minnesota dropping Tori off in Mankato and Emma with my parents in Geneva. Darshi fed us lunch and my parents fed us dinner. That was nice! But we got home a little late and still had to pack and shave. Got to bed around midnight. We were up by 8am and on the move. But with all the stops we had to make, it was a long day! Grocery store for hard candy (necessary when paddling near lunchtime!), gas station, The Tavern for breakfast. Then on the road we had a major detour to deal with. That was after stopping at REI to return my aluminum Sigg bottle and picking up mosquito head covers. Once on the interstate, after the detour, I decided I wanted an iced coffee and Lorrie needed a computer to use so we stopped at a Dunn Bros. That taken care of, we went into the grocery store to get some lunch. But it was stacked with samples! So we filled up on those! lol That was a fun meal! Back on the road. Again. Finally off the interstate and more on the back roads or county highways. We stopped in Virginia for gas then got into an argument about where to eat. That sucked! We got that cleared up pretty quickly then found a Mom & Pop place to eat. A couple burgers in us and we felt great! A little while later, we were in Ely, MN. We had a canoe on the roof of my SUV in no time. The magic of Ely I suppose! You pull into town and a canoe appears on your roof. (= We got our paddles, life preservers, permit, and Sue's food barrels. Ready to rock and roll! Another hour down Echo Trail, which is mainly gravel, and we are at Jeanette Lake Campground for the night. Lorrie and I did okay building a fire with lots of wet wood. Actually, the credit goes to Lorrie! Sue and Terry, our travel companions for the week, showed up a couple hours later. Terry'd had a wedding to attend so they got a later start than we did. Now everyone has gone to bed. Sue is in the back seat of my car collecting "hair of Emma Blue" for the trip and Terry is in Sue's pick up. They didn't want to set up their tent for a such a short period of time. Early morning tomorrow! "Hey Lorrie! We're in the Boundary Waters again!!"

Woodley out... Getting my legs loosened up

Distance = 11.26
Time = 47.19
Avg speed = 14.2 mph
Max speed = 24 mph
Odometer = 2993.6 miles

Back on the bike after a day off. I wasn't sure how I would feel but I'm glad that I did it! Lorrie has pulled or overextended something, possibly a ligament in her knee, so she didn't ride today. I did our quick and dirty Woodley loop. Out to CR 42, left turn, left again toward Northfield. I tried to work hard on the hills so that I could start getting more used to them. Still so much work to do before I'm ready for the RRR or TRAM. Yikes!

On Woodley, after it isn't Woodley anymore but is a County Road, a big dump truck honked at me. Scared the crap out of me! Not sure why he did that. There was no one else on the road and he certainly had enough room to get around me. I don't understand that. Wish I'd been close enough to catch him at the stop sign. Though he couldn't have seen me anyway! lol

Red Ribbon Day on the Ride

Distance = 56.76
Time = 4.38.45
Avg speed = 12.2 mph
Max speed = 29.5 mph
Odometer = 2982.3 mph

Well, we jumped from 20-mile rides to a 60-mile ride. Wow! It was pretty warm and I had forgotten my sleeveless jersey. I knew exactly where it was! lol Hanging in the bathroom to dry. Ah well. I should start from the beginning. We got most of our stuff ready last night. So that was good! The alarm was set for 5:45am. That was not good! We got up around 6am and were off in pretty good time. We were on time for the required safety speech and to start with everyone. I got a little nervous at the beginning because they made it sound like we were all expected to stay together. Yikes! That could be painful! But that wasn't the case. They just preferred that we stay together... and, I think, realized that it wouldn't happen. Anyway, we rolled out in a group of about 71 from the St. Joan of Arc church where the RRR office is housed. We made our way through Minneapolis along well trafficed roads. I got a little concerned that we would spend the entire time in the city. Now I sortof wish we had! lol

We road around near the airport and the group had started to spread out a little because of traffic lights. I rode behind a guy, who I think is on my team, that kept lurching and hitting his breaks. So I'd ride up on his ass even though I was trying to be careful. Because of the traffic, it wouldn't have been safe for us to pass him. So I just slowed a little more and stayed where I was. Lorrie was behind me. We got to a major overpass intersection near the airport and I think I-494. Everyone in front of us was "rolling" through a green then yellow light. So all I heard was "rolling." Well, the man I was talking about before decided to stop suddenly without saying anything. So the guy behind him stopped suddenly. I swerved to barely miss them and crossed on the yellow. As I was in the middle of the intersection, I heard Lorrie yell, "JESUS!" She had run into the two guys. The exact reason why expressing one's intentions is imperative when riding in a group. By the time I got across and was able to safely stop and turn around, she was already up. I went back over and besides a scrape on her leg and being shaken up, she was fine. Her first accident out of the way. I said to the guys standing there, "You have got to tell people when you're stopping!" I could easily have gone off on them because Lorrie was hurt. But I controlled myself. It would have mainly been my fear of her getting hurt being expressed. So I just focused on her. We started out again slowly, making sure her bike and body were okay. They seemed to be. I was surprised at how little concern anyone showed. Maybe no one saw what happened. Though I know the two guys saw it. But they took off as soon as the light was green. Not exactly the "community" I would expect of an AIDS ride in general and especially after what I'd been told. I will keep an open mind though. For now. I've seen the other side of the community as well, when Joe was hurt, so I'll just assume that this was "individual" and not group. Okay, done being a psychologist for now.

The rest of the ride was a mixture of fun and pain. We had some rolling hills before the first rest stop and it was a little difficult for both of us to get our legs into it. But we are both "late starters," so we don't do great the first 10 or so miles and then kick it better toward the end. We stopped for a little while at the first rest stop. Got some salty snacks and used the rest room. Lorrie had thought about sagging after the first or second leg. She decided to head out and see what the next leg would bring. More of the same. It was getting a little more windy at this point too. And obviously hotter with the afternoon approaching. The next rest stop was interesting. No food except these little "coin candies." I'm not sure what to think about that. Even some little snack packs of peanuts would have been better. But if people aren't cyclists or athletic at all, how would they know? It was "manned" by a major sponsor of the ride, Wells Fargo. So I guess I can't complain too much. But how about some oranges or bananas? PB&J?

The next leg would be one of the more difficult. Although, at this point, we were getting beyond our longest past ride this year so all segments were difficult! lol But this one was long, flat, straight, and windy. My least favorite! As you may remember, I made peace with the wind in California. But it's different to make peace with views of the ocean to distract me. It's another to be peaceful when the scenery is lacking. Lots of green. I was also getting hungry. Those coin candies didn't quite cut it! lol So we just kept pushing and pushing. By this time, Lorrie and I were basically alone. Couldn't see anyone in front and no one behind. Thankfully the signs were well-placed and often enough! They definitely had that under control! The lunch stop was great! Hamburgers and chips. Just what we needed. But... I ate too much! lol I should have just had 1/2 a hamburger. But, like I said, hungry! By this time we only had about 18 miles left. That's nothing! We were nearly done. Ahh the mind! (=

The next 18 miles were very hard. Remember, we have only ridden about 20-miles at a time by this point. So we'd already doubled our trip mileage in one shot! It was so friggin hilly the next section. Wow! No wonder it was short in distance... 10 miles. So we just chugged. Can't say much more than that! Well, except that we did catch up with the guy who stopped short and I made sure to pass him right away. He passed us again later and got pretty far ahead. Worked for me! At one point we were on a bit of a flat area and some guy in a huge car honked at us. Presumably to get out of the way... there were no encouraging waves or anything like that. Then he had to stop at the light ahead. I was feeling a little feisty by this point. Anything to get some energy. So I peddled hard to catch up to him at the light. Once I caught up to him, I just waved and smiled at him. I know it made no difference to him and he will likely continue to honk at cyclists who impede his progress in any way. But it gave me a little boost and that's what matters! Off again to conquer more hills. I honestly lost count of how many hills there were. AND THEN, the bridge. HOLY CRAP! After the hills we turned onto a paved trail. That was fine and dandy. Until we started riding next to what I think was I-494. There was a major headwind anyway. And then the traffic added to that wind. It was painful. SO painful! I started getting pre-cramps in my legs. You know, those little spasms that tell you any one of the next five exertions will lead to a mind-numbing cramp. We stopped on the bridge for about a minute so that I could settle my legs down. Drank some Accelerade. And off again. Once across, we had just a little jag to get to the final rest area. They just smiled and nodded knowingly at us. Apparently everyone had been telling them how painful the bridge was. We stayed there for about 5 minutes recovering. Well, not really recovering so much as trying to keep from turning into one big cramp. Then off we went for the final 8 miles.

The last leg was not so much difficult as we were just ready to be done. The route took us back into a neighborhood. So we had some stop lights and such. Not a big deal. At one point, one of my teammates passed us in her truck. Why couldn't we be done too!?? lol It felt great to be back... and done! There was a filmographer there asking us to say things into the camera like, "I'm a daughter." For some kind of RRR promo I guess. One we got our stuff put away, we decided to wait until Jean, another team member, made it in. So we waited about 20 minutes and cheered her in. Then left!

At home, we showered and took a nap! lol It was a lazy lazy night after that day! But I'm proud of us for making it with so little training under our belts! And I'm SOOO thankful that Lorrie didn't get hurt!

I didn't take my camera because I thought there was too much chance of rain. That would have been a relief! I'll start carrying it more often. (=

Red Ribbon Team Ride - AGCMCC

Distance = 20.7 miles
Time = 1.44.57
Avg speed = 11.8 mph
Max speed = 22.5 mph
Odometer = 2925.5 miles

At church today my team was rolled our bikes up to the front before the offering was given. We are the recipients of 2 months worth of DUO (do unto others) fund offerings. This should help complete my fundraising! As we stood up there with our bikes, one of the board members who is also doing the ride said a few words about us and the ride. The congregation gave us a standing ovation. It was much more emotional than I expected. We all stood up there, our eyes tearing, just looking at each other like, "What do we do now." So we just stood and took in the energy. It was awesome!

After the service, we hosted an official training ride. The plan was 30 miles. We started with 17 riders. We rolled through Minneapolis, down the same trail we rode several weeks ago that I can't remember the name of, into St. Paul and around the state capitol. Somewhere toward the beginning we lost a couple riders. One was a ride leader who was the caboose as no rider gets left behind. The other was a woman who I don't think had ridden yet this year and was having some bike trouble and riding trouble. So we were at 15 riders. In St. Paul around the capitol, there was a short steep hill near the capitol. My favorite kind! One of the guys got a flat at the bottom so we had to wait at the top for them. I turned around and went about halfway back down and rode it up again. Really. I love those kind of hills! And I definitely need the work! Took awhile but they finally got things under control. Something is going on with his spokes because that was his second flat during that ride. Once we were reunited, we all headed off again.

We got into a neighborhood around the capitol and, from the front of the pack, we heard, "Biker down!" Not what any of us ever want to hear. Our other ride leader had fallen at the bottom of a short hill when he was trying to turn. I was sure he had broken his collarbone. He was in shock and had possibly lost consciousness for a very short time. We called an ambulance. The incredible thing was the people in the neighborhood. SO many of them came out and asked if we needed help. It was really incredible! We happened to have 2, maybe 3, nurses riding with us. So they basically took over until the ambulance got there. The rest of us stayed out of the way, directed traffic, accepted wet cloths from neighbors and checked on each other. Joe was laying in the middle of the road so we were definitely in the way of traffic and very visible. Ambulance didn't take long getting there. They assessed him and decided he should get to the hospital. He was out later that night and went to one of the other rider's home to recuperate. Very scary! And definitely a reminder that anything can happen. He wasn't goofing around or being careless. His tires just slipped out from under him on a turn. It happens. Lorrie was a little freaked out. She's never seen a cycling accident before. There was no blood or anything like that. And he'll be fine. But she was still shaken. Side note... Joe, miraculously, did not break any bones!

We decided as a group, 14 now, that we should turn around and go back. People were shaken up and our minds weren't on the ride. So it was best to get home. No further issues after that point.

Dundas - Natalee Loop

Distance = 19.12 miles
Time = 1.27.06
Avg speed = 13.1 mph
Max speed = 14.5 mph
Odometer = 2904.8

Perfect day for cycling. Not much wind. Not too hot. Nice! Only thing wrong with this ride was the first stretch out of Dundas on Hwy 1. Too much traffic. One of the main back roads here (Hwy. 3) is closed so it's being detoured to this road. Not great for cyclists. We won't ride it again until 3 opens back up. We made it to the stop sign over I-35. I don't know the name of the road but it goes past Natalee's (my co-worker) house. So it's Natalee's road. (= Not much traffic there, which was a relief. After looping back around under I-35 we got onto Old Dutch Road, which is usually pretty good. We usually are on this road going the opposite direction. Today it seemed VERY long! Sometimes those flat stretches get a little difficult. I start feeling it in my butt mostly. So I stand up and peddle awhile. Shake my legs out. Get the blood flowing. An uneventful ride is usually the best kind!! Glad to have one!

Morning Ride

Early morning ride. Trying to figure out how I can get some miles in with as busy as I am at work and the need to study for licensure. This was one possibility. Though anyone who knows me knows that I am so NOT a morning person. I gave it a good effort. But I was a little grumpy. Couldn't find my computer... which was part of the grumpiness. But that also means that I don't know exactly how far we went or how long it took us. I do know that it was very cold and very windy. We really just went out Woodley to the stop sign at CR 42. Then turned around and headed back. Definitely woke us up!!

Distance = approx 8 miles
Time = approx 1 hour

Red Jacket Trail

Distance = 16.56
Time = 1.30.38
Avg Speed = 10.9 mph
Max Speed = 29.5 mph (=
Odometer = 2885.7 miles


Lorrie and I headed out to Mankato to check out what might become our new Nimrod Camper. Mainly because I love the name of it! lol It is actually quite cute. We're debating. It belongs to her friends Helen and Nick. They want to give it to us. The only catch... we can't take it back if we don't want it anymore. lol We hung out at their house for a few hours and played with the kids. They all had to go to a birthday party so we went off for our bike ride. We took the Red Jacket Trail, which was conveniently located right by their home. We rode to the Rapidan Dam, which was pretty incredible. We stopped at the Rapidan Dam Cafe to share a burger that we needed to go back up the hill we'd just flown down. And we were going to be riding against the wind for a lot of the first part of the return. VERY cute little cafe. Family owned. They also have a campground attached. We'll have to check that out sometime. Lorrie said she would put in her canoe by the dam when she would go with Daryl. We'll have to try that too. The ride back was uneventful after we made it up the hill and out of the wind. The trail was well covered so we didn't have to deal so much with the wind. Some beautiful views, which I will add pictures of. And a couple of very cute goats along the trail. lol Afterwards we headed to Chipotle! YEAH! Then Cold Stone. lol Then the Liquor Store. lol The liquor was for friends coming in for the weekend. Not for after the ride. I need to start getting in some more miles if I'm going to be successful on the Red Ribbon Ride and possible the MS TRAM.

Wild River - Day 3 (Happy Bday Lorrie!)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LORRIE!

Got up leisurely. Lorrie made breakfast. Before anyone gets out of hand, she wanted to make it! Eggs and bacon. Then she made the blueberry scones we got at the Midwest Mountaineering Expo. They were okay but not blueberry enough. Had a good fire going. Thanks to me! (= Fire bug! We putzed around and got ready to leave. Packed up the car and were on the road by about noon.

We headed to Wild River Amusement Park/Ski Area. Because it's her birthday, Lorrie got a free day pass to the park! We did the Alpine slide twice and raced the go-karts once. I'd never done an alpine slide before so that was fun! A little scary at some points. The go-karts were fun. I tormented some guy the entire time. But I opted for safety and didn't pass... even though he would have gotten in trouble for ramming into me. Oh well!

Then off to Taylor Fall and the Glacial Pothole park within Interstate State Park. That was very cool looking! Lots of rock climbers of all levels were everywhere. It also bordered the St. Croix river so some nice views. We took Emma in with us but left Tori in the car. I don't think her hip would handle all the climbing. I got a lot of great photos in there.

After that, hungry, we head the 100 feet into Taylor Falls to eat at their little drive-in diner. We sat outside to eat our burger and hot dog... with root beer of course. Frost Top. Then on to this little coffeehouse that Lorrie's been raving about. With reason! It was very good and very cute!

Then home. Pretty easy drive. A little traffic hung us up in St. Paul but nothing major. Once home, we headed directly to a gospel concert on the Carleton Campus. We smelled like campfire! ha! The group was "Essence of Joy" from Penn State University. I am SO glad we went even though we are tired and smelly! (=

Hopefully I can come up with another nice weekend for Lorrie next year! I'm doing well so far!

HAPPY 43rd! <3