Sisters To St. Paul
Day 13

Date: August 6, 2005

Route: Around Lake Itasca

Distance: 16 miles

Ride Time: 1h 25m

Elevation Climbed: 775’

Weather: 80s humid

 

 

Log

We stayed last night at a Marriott Courtyard and luxuriated in the amenities: in-room ethernet internet connection, copy machine, good coffee, efficient service, laundry, and two reading lights beside the bed. We started the day at a leisurely pace having breakfast together (a first!) and doing chores. Jon took care of the laundry and I paid the bills online. (I am still incredulous that this is possible!)

We left Moorhead about 10AM and only made one stop … Jon needed to purchase a fishing license. This looked like a place to buy one but we were not successful except for the picture.

We got to Lake Itasca at noon, way too early to check in to our cabin. We spent the next 3 hours exploring the park and checking out my roads for tomorrow. I’m really glad we had the time to do this because it turns out my map is erroneous. We happily discovered that The Great River Road, the National Scenic Highway down the Mississippi, is clearly marked with signs. That’s pretty important since our cell phones don’t work up here in the north woods and I want Jon to be able to find me after 5-6 hours of riding.

Our cabin is wonderful! It was built by the CCC in the 30s and was formally the Lake Itasca State Park East Ranger Station. It has been tastefully remodeled inside and we have everything we need to cook up the mounds of fish Jon will catch tomorrow. The air conditioning was a nice surprise coming in from the hot, humid afternoon and I know I will appreciate it even more tomorrow after my ride. There are nice touches everywhere we look, including this comfortable chair. It was hard to pull myself out of it and get on my bike.

The park has a paved bike path for the 5 busiest miles. In fact, cyclists are not permitted on the road until you have passed the Headwaters Visitor Center. Then there is a 10 mile one way Wilderness Drive and Bike Route. Jon had a couple of flats but that didn’t faze our mellow mood. We were in no hurry and enjoyed just poking along. Since it was late in the afternoon, we had the road almost to ourselves. The light was beautiful filtering through the forest.

Tomorrow I start. I’m excited. New Orleans, ready or not, here I come.