Our final day! We all met in the hotel breakfast room and enjoyed our last meal together as a group. Discussion about the trip, great route, great time, great company - LOUSY weather. Everyone got ready to head down the route!
First - you pack the car . . .
Then you take the bike apart . . .
And you put it in the car!
YEP! You guessed it. The weather was a repeat - cold, foggy and pouring rain. Everyone decided that putting on "scuba" like gear, getting on a bike and riding in rain, again, did not sound like fun. Everyone packed cars and went toward their final destination.
We decided to drive the final day route - so, off we went, leaving La Crosse, Wisconsin (a stop for Starbucks) crossing the bridge back into Minnesota, to the route start.
This is where Tom ended Day 7
Where the route for Day 8 would have started.
West on 16 - toward Marquette, Iowa
The final day route was one of the best for scenery and views of the Great River, running high and out of its banks.
The final day route was 65 miles, ending in Marquette, Iowa - a wonderful quaint town.
We arrived in sunny, dry, warm North Platte, Nebraska, about 7:30 pm.
Tom and I enjoyed the week, a great week spent with good friends, . Despite the less than desirable weather, the scenery along the route was great, the roads were pretty good overall, and I think everyone had a good time!
Signing off,
Patty on the road ready to be home :)
NOTES FROM TOM: I hated to miss the ride on the last day--felt like something was left undone--but the thought of riding in the rain for another 4-5 hours, and then having to put all of my wet clothes and my cold body into the car, just didn't seem worth it.
Tomorrow we're going to sleep in, and then head 50 miles up the road to Ogallala, to see my aunt, uncle, and some cousins. When I was a kid I spent a lot of time in Ogallala where all of my mom's relatives lived. It will be good to see some family, and then about 5 hours to Silverthorne and home.
I'll take a week or so break from riding, and then start training for a 3 mountain pass, 128 mile, one-day ride called the Triple Bypass which is on July 13th.
Hope everyone enjoyed the blog. Thanks for following us down the Great River.
Tom.
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