June 21, 2019: Sauk Center, MN to Morrill, MN- 56.2 miles
We awoke at 5:46 am. We packed and ate breakfast in our room. After taking our panniers downstairs, we waited for the cafe staff to arrive. Our bikes spent the night safely locked in the cafe. At about 6:45 am, we rode a mile to the Lake Wobegon Trail, which replaced the Central Lakes Trail at Osaka. We biked southeast to Melrose where we took pictures of a huge Catholic Church. Then we traveled on to Freeport, where we enjoyed a granite monument proclaiming the town as the gateway to Lake Wobegon.
Much of the trail ran close to I-94 with plenty of truck traffic. Thankfully, the trees along the trail blunted the southeasterly winds. After a few more miles to Albany, we turned east on the Soo Line spur of the trail to Bolus. After 29 miles on the day, we rode through a covered bridge (see photo) and into Holdingford. Given the forecast of rain starting at 1 pm today, we skipped our second breakfast. But hunger engulfed me. At a C-store I chugged a pint of chocolate milk and ate a piece of pizza. Betsy had coffee and bought food for dinner. In 7 more miles, we reached Bolus and found that the weather report now nixed rain for the day. To celebrate, we ate an early lunch at Jordie’s Trailside Cafe. I dug into the fish buffet while Betsy ate an omelet. Yum!
We left the Lake Wobegon Trail and turned east on Nature Road for a 19-mile ride to Alice’s farm and antique emporium. The stiff headwind wore us out. At Alice’s farm we learned that she was selling the farm, selling her huge inventory of antiques, and moving to town. Lots of people prowled the grounds for treasures. Betsy and I showered and hung out. We were too tired to buck the winds for 27 miles to the next camping site. We’re happy to be here.
