Lakes to Mountains Tour

The Pieces Come Together

Tues Apr 29: Prairie du Sac to Elroy: 62 miles; 49 at 3:00, mostly cloudy --> scattered clouds, 8:00-5:10
THE SCHOOL (11 mi): the kids at Merrimac Community Charter School gave me a wonderful reception, raptly listening to my litter-vangelism. Afterwards most of them lined up, patiently waiting to get my autograph. One girl asked how it felt to be famous; one boy handed me 50 cents to help defray my expenses.
 
THE ROADS (28 mi): I'm finding out that Wisconsin roads are a mixed bag. One moment I'm motoring down smooth asphalt, the next I'm gripping my brakes on a downhill trying weave through an obstacle course of potholes and cracked pavement.
Even if I weren't checking my speed due to the potholes, the terrain would slow me down. Shortly after leaving the school, I hit the worst hill I've seen since climbing to Beckley, WV on the '06 tour. A one-mile grunt, with curves so you couldn't tell how far you had to go - I plodded along at a zippy 4-5 mph. After yesterday's ride, I didn't have the energy to attack it - especially not in 45-degree temperatures.
Past Baraboo, I hit WI-33, a dream to ride on - smooth, wide shoulder, flat or gentle rises, and light traffic. That got me into Reedsburg to connect with ...
 
THE TRAIL (23 mi): The 400 Trail was named for the '400 Train' - a train that traveled the 400 miles between St Paul and Milwaukee in 400 minutes. It lost the battle to the airlines and freeways, and closed in 1963.
The corridor is now a rail-to-trail conversion, and a biker's delight. The hard-packed crushed limestone surface was a breeze to ride, and if the trail gained any elevation, it was too gradual to notice. We passed through woods, past marshes, swamps, and occasional farms. Every four-to-seven miles we reached another quaint town with bike shops, antique stores, B&Bs, and cafes. This is what a bicycling vacation should be!
 
THE HOST: In Elroy, we left the trail and asked the first pedestrians how to get to 204 Riverview St. Before they could tell us, a white car driven by a man who (in his own words) 'looks like a snowman' pulled up. "Glen! Follow me."
Steve Ward was the perfect host, and we enjoyed swapping stories of adventures we'd had. I played a few of my travel DVDs for him, and (after hesitating) he played a video for me that he said he's only shown once in the four years he's been in Elroy:
In 1994, the TV show CBS This Morning ran a series on America's Best. One day, they honored America's best clergy. On the set they'd invited a rabbi of a huge temple in NYC; a priest from a huge Catholic church in California; and a pastor from a Siren, Wisconsin - Steve Ward. "I'm only showing you this because you said you like meeting real characters."
He kept us chuckling with his tales, such as the time he married a 100-year-old man to a 95-year-old woman. "The man grumbled to me, 'Hurry it up, I want to get to bed.' I had to explain to the wedding guests that his wanting to hit the bed was not for the reason that most grooms want to get there."
Steve provided a perfect dinner of grilled brats and Minnesota sweet corn on the cob. For breatkfast the next morning, we looked forward to promise of homemade blueberry muffins hot out of the oven.

posted by Glen @ 5:51 AM