July 23, 2018 Northfield MN to Pepin WI

Today was a relatively short day at only 67.8 miles and with only 1650 feet of climb.  It was Ed’s morning to ride so he and I rolled out of St Oalf together, however it wasn’t long before he had dropped me.  I had made a couple of stops to take pictures and I was in no rush.  We were told the school in Pepin would not be ready until 2:30 PM at the earliest so there was just no point in pressing hard. 

At about the 12 mile mark I came up to one of the sectional riders who had a flat so eager to try my new tire tool I pulled in.  He was riding a recumbent which had a 700x38 tire which had blown out.  The tire was quite old and almost fell off the rim so I wasn’t going to use my new tool.  I quickly installed his replacement tube which was only a 700x23 and I was kind of thinking this isn’t going to work.   The tube would not inflate so it came out.  It wound up with a hole in it so I patched it then found a second and third hole.   Ok Lets use my spare tube and I will get one at picnic.  I didn’t think my tube would work as it was a 700x23 as well and when he never showed up at first water I knew it didn’t.

The first stop was Cycle America World Headquarters in Cannon Falls MN.  Cannon Falls is a quaint little town in rural MN.  Ed was waiting for me there and after it was determined that the sectional rider was not coming we rode on.

After the first stop we continued on to the Cannon Falls Bike path which follows an old rail bed all the way to Redwing where picnic was.  This is a beautiful pave path which is 21 miles long and headed east we had a 1-2% downhill all the way.  We just cruised along in the beautifully shaded woods chatting and exchanging thoughts.   After a while we caught some of the back of the pack and I had fun barking at them.  The two British riders were totally startled that a large dog would be so far out in the wood.  It was good laugh.

Redwing is the home to Redwing shoes and is the head of the Mississippi River.  In 2018 Jos phoned Redwing shoes and got a tour of their plant.  In 2010 I had sat on one of the park benches at picnic, fallen asleep only to wake up all by myself as picnic crew had rolled up and gone.   Today it was just a beautiful spot in the park beside the river.  The Brats that Jim had on the grill were fabulous.  After a couple of Brats and a lot of watermelon I rolled on with Ken as Ed was back to work.

With only 29 miles to go and three hours to go we had a pile of time to get to Pepin.  We crossed the Mississippi River on the big bridge and were now in Wisconsin. The road from Redwing down to Pepin follows the shore of Lake Pepin.   One of the roadside signs claimed that this route is considered to be one of the most beautiful drives in America.   It certainly was very pretty with the sun reflecting off the lake.  Sail boats in the distance.  The road is also lined with quaint summer cottages and homes.  

Arriving in Pepin I scouted out the town as I am thinking it will be best to head into town for supper as the rumor is that tonight’s supper is lasagna. 

What a great ride down the bike path.  What a great day on the bike. 

Terry hot biker