I woke up at 3 with a headache, and drank a lot of water, took some aspirin, slowly got ready for Don to arrive at 6... or 6:15. I have been sick so often this winter, it seems like I had only been healthy for the last two days (probably because I had a Doctor's appointment).
The Hart-Montague Trail goes from Hart to... Whitehall. It's just under 25 miles -- I did 50 miles by riding circles in the parking lot at the end of the ride to "top off" my odometer. We picked this ride so I could scout the start and end points -- which are not easy to see on Google maps, or on the state trail maps. This trail will be a segment of the Bike Around Lake Michigan tour, discussed in more detail here.
The start of the trail, in Hart. It looks like there's going to be more picnic tables this spring.
We met Vic a few minutes late. Vic had an appointment that evening, so our ride had a certain pressure missing from previous rides. And it's not the pressure one feels after drinking a quart of fluid and being too late to stop at the rest area (only one mile away!). It's the pressure you feel when Vic will be forced to shower and dress for an informal dinner in less than two hours if you don't hurry. In other words, not much pressure at all.
In this picture, Don gets a jump on the turtle herd. Speaking of turtles, I read Terry Pratchett's book "Small Gods", where a god who normally comes to earth as an eagle ends up as a turtle. During the book, he's always watching for eagles which are trying to pick him up and drop him on rocks to eat him. I didn't get the reference to Aeschylus until I saw CSI the other night. I really need to take a class or something.
And speaking of animals, soon after the start Vic and Don were telling me about an eight foot bird they saw once on this trail. I'm raising two children under two, so I had to ask:
"Was it yellow? Big Beak?"
No, they answered.
"Had they recently changed their medication?"
No.
They couldn't remember the name of the bird, but I did: EMU. It's named after a college in Michigan.
This is a fantastic, publicly funded bathroom in the Hart-Montague Trail State Park. It's locked so no one can steal it. It's a nice taunt, but a private bush or three are all I need. Were I a scofflaw, that is, and to which I am not admitting here.
We were famished by the time we got to New Era. As I was taking pictures someone shouted "You're going to break your camera taking pictures of this town". New Era was founded in 1872, so they might reconsider then "new" moniker.
It was good food, but at home we have more than one bathroom. This restaurant is where the entire town goes to use the single unisex room.
This guy spells his name wrong (maybe, there's some who believe that one of my ancestors changed the spelling of his name from this one, but that's beside the point). It's also a balmy 59, which is why Don and Vic began disrobing.
I, of course, rode the whole way without adding or removing layers. I was just a little chilly in the morning, but like a walrus, a large layer of lard helps insulate me. Too bad my feet are skinny.
The bike looks really good, anyway. And I got to model my new Pearl Izumis. There's a guy on a bike on my jersey, in case you didn't get it.
Vic and I discussed a variety of topics on the way to Whitehall, and again on the way back. Don was mostly quiet after we got out of the car, or maybe it was because he was either faster or slower than I was. He did tell me several interesting stories, but I was trying to sleep off my cold on the way up. For example, his dad once lived in Grand Haven, off of one of the exits we passed.
Vic gave me detailed directions through and around Green Bay for my trip. But 1) a bike path was built since he lived there and more importantly 2) I was not taking notes. I hope he follows up with something in writing because I have no memory of any of his advice. Except that it's going to be hard to bike directly from Sheboygan to Green Bay. Oh, one other remark stuck: Vic claims that the number one mistake touring cyclists make is overestimating the distance they can make each day. Thanks for the confidence boost Vic.
Sue is looking for a rack trunk for our trip and found one with a solar panel. I showed it to Vic, who thinks he can build a better one. He thought solar panels on the helmet might be more effective.
The bridge over the river that I couldn't see on the map. OK, I could see the river, but the bridge wasn't obvious.
A starter home. For very small people.
The Train station that doesn't know what city it's in. I didn't tell it that the trains are all gone.
I had trouble the last 12 miles. My headache was back and didn't respond to Excedrin. I couldn't breathe easily or talk at all. Most of the way back I couldn't even pretend to respond to Vic, even when we were discussing non-traditional political views. Vic isn't a demanding conversationalist, but he has the right to expect a responsive grunt now and then. I am SO tired of being sick. I was feeling good on Friday.
I slept most of the way back. Then I let Don drive.
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