Bikerbraid,

  Have you finished your extended bike trip yet?  Just wondering how it came out.............

Jim

We just got home today (Sunday).  The trip was..... an experience!  But we survived!!!

The first day of biking was in 102F heat.  The humidity was "low" so the heat index was "only" 110.  I'm really glad I did not know it was that hot when we were biking the 67 miles!  Sleeping that night was impossible - too hot.  

Tuesday was only 100F, but the heat index went to 115 because the humidity was higher.  We only biked 60 miles that day, but many people did not make the whole trip and had to be "sagged" in.  (There were vans with bike racks that were helping bring in people who were unable to bike in on there own.)

Tuesday night we were under a tornado watch and warning.... that's always fun when you are camping in a tent.  :o  Fortunately we only had heavy rains and the winds were manageable.  But, our tent had about 2" of water in it by morning.  Our gear did not get wet as we pack everything in plastic bags, but many were not as fortunate.

Wednesday's ride was shorter, only 45 miles, but it rained the whole time.  Sometimes a light rain, other times a downpour.  This was a new experience for me... I HATE riding in the rain.  I HATE not having brakes, especially when going down switchback turns on a steep hill.  I also HATE having flat tires in the rain.  We arrived at the campground (in the rain) to find out there was no food!  So, back on the bikes we got and rode another couple miles to get lunch..... oh - and of course, IT RAINED!  On our way back to the campground we stopped at a little grocery store to pick up food for our "evening meal".  We decided we deserved a bottle of wine as well.  It did finally stop raining and we had a great picnic dinner with our wine.  (Others were jealous that THEY hadn't thought to pick up a bottle!!  ;D)

Thursday was...... BEAUTIFUL!  Temps were in the low 80's, the sun was out and we had only 35 miles to bike.  We stopped at several parks along the way, went wading and swimming in Lake Michigan, and generally had a great day.

Friday was also nice - better than expected.  This was our longest mileage day - 75 miles and the temps were to climb to the upper 80's with high humidity.  So we got up early and were on our bikes by 5:30am.  There is nothing like a beautiful sunrise over the lake while biking down a cute cottage road.  We ended up with a tailwind that we did not expect and the hills were not as bad as we thought they would be and the temps never got above 82.  So the day ended up being a very nice one.  

When we arrived at our overnight location for Friday, we were pleasantly surprised to find they had put us right on the lake shore!  We had the most beautiful view right from our tent.  The lake kept the temps at at great sleeping temperature so we got our best night's sleep Friday night.

Saturday was our final day of riding.  Another high mileage day - it was supposed to be 62 miles, but ended up being 70 due to detours around road construction.  Again, it was supposed to be a hot day, but clouds kept the temps at a manageable level.  We did have headwinds of 15 - 20 mph the last 30 miles, which made things tough, but we toughed it out and made it in.

All in all, I made it through in good shape.  Hubby was not as lucky - he pulled a hamstring on Friday, so Saturday was tough for him, but we just went slow and easy (and still made it in before 80% of the riders).

As soon as we have our pictures ready, I'll post a link so you can all enjoy the views of our trip!

It was a great ride, but I'm glad to be home and looking forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight!

I'm very glad you're back, BB.  How's the ankle feeling?

The ankles held up well.  I was stiff during the rain, but my whole body was stiff, not just the ankles.  I was glad I didn't have to walk up any hills - that would have been more difficult than riding up them.  ;D  This is not to say that there were no hills, or that the hills were not hard to get up, only that my ankles did not hurt.  It is always a good feeling to get to the top of a big climb and know that you made it!

Wow you went through all sorts of crazy weather!!  Do you pull or carry your own gear, or do those get driven for you?  Did you use your reclining-type bike?  Can't wait to see the pics.  I was just thinking you should have someone with a video camera and make like a documentary.  Or wouldn't it be neat to have a live webcam?  That would be hard to lug around probably, and not weather proof.  But still a nice thought to have an up to date shot on the ride.  :D

Our gear is transported by truck, van or trailer to each overnight site.  We only bike with what we need for the day.  Hubby and I ride our recumbent bikes for this trip (they are the ONLY bikes we ride).

We have taken still pictures of this trip - sorry no movie camera.  Although I would love to have a time elapsed shot of the overnight spot that shows us as we come in and unloading the bags, setting up the tents, etc, then taking it all down the next morning.  A tent city with about 600 tents (1100 people) is quite a site!

I don't have the pictures for this year  ready yet, but if you want to see some of the past years pictures, you can see them at http://www.tarsk.com/

That just looks like so much fun, BB!!

Glad you had a good time.  :)

Welcome back,  Robin. :)  The trip sounded good.  I enjoyed looking at the pictures. Thanks for sharing. I hope your husband is doing better with his hamstring and im glad you are ok.

Welcome back!  I'm glad the ankle held up and I'm glad the weather cooperated there at the end.   :)

We finally got our pictures up for the bike trip!  If you want to see this years photos click here. http://photos.tarsk.com/d/596-2/sag06_01.jpg

Great pics!  Didn't get a chance to see all of them,but will later on:)

You're pics are great!  I really enjoyed them, thanks for sharing!!!

Wow you guys were in all sorts of different terrain.  I like the Wind Park pics because I've never seen cliffs like those before.  Whitefish looks beautiful too.  I love the butterfly pics!

Do you know what kind of flowers are these?  they're so pretty!  
http://photos.tarsk.com/v/sagbraw2006/sag06_71.jpg.html

Thanks Khrome!  Those flowers are purple cone flowers, part of the daisy family.  They are a wild flower that grows easily in this area.

The varying terrain is why I love to do this ride - the sites are very pretty, and on a bike you get "up close and personal" with the natural features.

wrote on Aug 17^th, 2006 at 10:16am:

The varying terrain is why I love to do this ride - the sites are very pretty, and on a bike you get "up close and personal" with the natural features.

Or maybe too close - ie a tent full of rain water.  ;)  But I'm sure in hindsight, that was fun too!

Water in the tent was OK - we were on an air mattress that kept us out of the water and we are seasoned campers - EVERYTHING is packed in plastic. ;D

At least I live in a part of the country that has such diverse landscape and weather.  :D  I've learned to appreciate and enjoy ALL that it brings.

wrote on Aug 17^th, 2006 at 10:16am:

The varying terrain is why I love to do this ride - the sites are very pretty, and on a bike you get "up close and personal" with the natural features.

Yes you do! I rather miss that about riding. Did you have any trouble with dogs chasing you?

We did not have any difficulty with dogs or any other animals on this trip.  But we did have "flashback" memory when we entered Sheyboygan and passed the area where hubby almost hit a wild turkey a couple years ago.  Thankfully there were no wild turkeys to cross our paths this year.  ;D

Great photos, Bikerbraid!  Maybe I should try biking instead of hiking.  It took me three months to hike 1/2 of the Appalachian Trail.  I, too, love varied terrain, especially mountains and lakes.  

Thanks!  Biking is a great physical activity, but the season is short up here in Minnesota.  (At least it is for me - I refuse to bike on ice or snow even though some of the trails are plowed for the die-hard commuters!).